The Francesinha Santiago

Made with soul

Considered one of the 50 best sandwiches in the world and one of the 10 best flavors in Europe, Francesinha Santiago® is today one of the greatest gastronomic icons of Porto City and Portugal. And it is at Café Santiago that Francesinha presents herself at her highest quality and recognition. Welcome and enjoy.

The bread

Our Francesinha is made with loaf bread cooked in a wood burning stove. Before we use it we made a criterial selection of its shape and consistency and cut it in carefully slices.

The mortadella

The preparation of our Francesinha Santiago starts with a thin slice of Mortadella; the flavor is tenuous but you can still feel it, aside adding its flavor we use it as base to the remanding ingredients.

The fresh sausage

We receive daily our fresh sausages that we use in our francesinha. We never precook them; we only grill it upon receiving your order just like we do with all ingredients. It gives a rustic and slightly smoked taste to our Francesinha.

The "linguiça"

Intense flavor, gives Francesinha Santiago® one rustic but slight smoky touch. The sausage is grilled at the same time and with the same process of fresh sausage.

The beef steak

People say that without a good steak you cannot make a good Francesinha; we receive the fresh meat in a full piece from our carefully chosen prime suppliers and after inspect them we cut it in tender fatless smaller steaks. We grill them in the stove and put it on top of the fresh sausages.

The ham

A slice of ham just right, a little thicker than thin, to enhance the flavor and texture. Our ham is always premium quality.

The cheese

Inside Francesinha Santiago, we always put one slice of cheese with the right thickness. The cheese goes on top of the ham at room temperature and slowly starts to melt.

Toasting the bread

Toasting and grilling is not the same thing. Our bread is carefully toasted so you can feel it on your first bite.

O egg

A fried egg cooked without any oil is carefully placed on top of the toasted bread, the way we place the egg is our trademark. The mix of the egg yolk with the crunchy bread is simply outstanding.

The cover cheese

We put 4 thin half circle shaped slices on top of the egg of our Francesinha Santiago. The cheese melts with the right consistency due to the hot sauce.

The Francesinha sauce

There are several ingredients that we use to make the Francesinha sauce. The right temperature, the pans, the spices, the time we cook it, everything combined makes the difference. Our sauce has soul; we call it Santiago Essence, the well-kept secret of our family. Inimitable.

The Essence

That´s our secret ...

Fabulous café and the only place to try the signature dish of Francesinha. Get there early to beat the crowds and sit at the bar so you can watch how it's made... and then spend the afternoon walking off the calories.

Marion P

What a brilliant place. Seemed to be very popular with locals. Had to que for twenty minutes or so but worth the wait. Really good food freshly cooked. Will call there again on my next visit to Porto.

Denbur

We enjoyed our visit to the Cafe Santiago to try the francesinha sandwich. We tried the largest version and had plenty to share. Service was quick. Food was delivered at a good temperature.

Linda Sue

Our spaces

Different spaces, the same soul.

Café Santiago

Officially founded in 1959, Café Santiago opened its doors quite before, in the 1930s, as pasture and barroom house. Over time, it went undergone several major renovations as it almost nothing remains of its original decoration. In 1978, Mr. Fernando Pereira and Isabel Ferreira, the current owners, started their connection to Cafe Santiago by exploring the tobacconist that currently existed. In 1993, they acquired the entire property giving a new life to space itself.

The Francesinha Santiago® has always been our primary reference, having emerged as the result of the development and improvement of the typical Francesinha in Porto, by dedicated elements of the Pereira family. Carefully selected ingredients, unique quilting process 100% handmade and its famous and delicious special sauce which recipe is a well-kept family secret, give the Francesinha Santiago® the status of major reference in the gastronomy of Porto and Portugal.

Santiago F

In response to the demand and following success in Café Santiago, Café Santiago F emerged in 2011 also in Rua de Passos Manuel, in Porto,right in front of the Coliseum. As an independent project, managed by Filipe Pereira, it is the first expansion of Café Santiago, thanks to a team with a great amount of confidence, born and raised in the "Santiago family" over the last few years.

The Café Santiago F is a relaxed and welcoming space where the top priority is quality. Just as in Café Santiago, the cuisine is home-inspired and Francesinha Santiago queen. Francesinha Santiago® TOP is an exclusive.

Café Santiago da Praça

On July 25, in 2017, we opened the Café Santiago da Praça, in Praça dos Poveiros, "our crown jewel" just 25 meters above the mother house. With a distinct Oporto character, Santiago da Praça follows an evolutionary way the gastronomic that predicates its origin, the Café Santiago. With a relaxed and genuine atmosphere, it has an exceptional location, right in the heart of the city and close to everything, as you can see in the signposted places inside the restaurant.

Francesinha Santiago® of Praça primes for excellence in quality and is an exclusive that is only available here.

MEANWHILE IN THE KITCHEN

Santiago’s Hotdog

The Santiago’s Hotdog is also one of our most popular references. When it’s served with sauce, some call it the Francesinha in a longer shape. With crunchy dog bread, fresh sausage, "linguiça", ham and cheese, Santiago’s Hotdog is assumed as an unique snack , or as a delicious appetizer, or even a good old simple snack.

“Prego em Prato” or “Prego no Pão”

In Porto we call “Prego” (a Nail in English) a grilled steak with french fries. Mostly because in the old days, the meat was literally "hammered” in order to make it more tender .In Santiago Café, we serve the typical Porto ‘nails’. Served in a dish or in a single bread, our ‘nails’ are made with the best bull meat we receive daily, in which we put aside the fat and soften the meat, without the hammer.