Cafe ‘A Ginjinha’ Rossio, best place in Lisbon to enjoy a Ginja (liqueur made of berries) & city center tourist attraction

Try a typical Portuguese liqueur: Cafe ‘A Ginjinha’ is a city center tourist attraction. When walking to ‘Restauradores’ or ‘Rossio’ , a lively area, in Lisbon’s city center, be sure to stop at the ‘A Ginjinha’ cafe, Largo de São Domingos 8

Lisbon Rossio Ginja

Cafe ‘A Ginjinha’ Rossio Lisbon near Teatro Theater Nacional Doña Maria II

This is a very tiny bar where a maximum of three people can go in at a time and order a Ginja.

Lisbon A Ginjinha’ cafe Lisbon tourist attraction 1

Cafe ‘A Ginjinha’ Rossio Lisbon. Next door: famous traditional hat shop

Ginja or Ginjinha as most people call it, is a liqueur made of a cherry-like berry called (not surprisingly) Ginja. The berries are fermented into a brandy that’s slightly bitter, slightly sweet and very sticky.

Students in September drinking ginja

Cafe ‘A Ginjinha’ Rossio Lisbon in September

Lisbon students in September, a brand new school year…

You can order a Ginja for little money and with or without a cherry in it. The Ginja’s are on the bottom of the bottle and it requires a fair bit of skill to get just one berry into a glass. Most Portuguese people like to have their Ginjinhacom Ginja’, with a cherry in the glass. If you don’t want it, ask for one ‘sem Ginja’ (without a Ginja).

A Ginjinha near Restauradores Lisbon Portugal

Cafe ‘A Ginjinha’ Rossio Lisbon

The older Portuguese men drink their Ginja in one time. After this, they suck on the berry for a while and spit the pit onto the streets. Take care: if you approach this square, the pavement can become quite sticky ;-)

Lisbon A Ginjinha’ cafe Lisbon tourist attraction 3 Rossio city center

Cafe ‘A Ginjinha’ Rossio Lisbon

There’s no specific time for drinking a Ginja, the Portuguese tend to drink all day. Where to buy a bottle of Ginja in Lisbon (or order via the website?

Lisbon A Ginjinha’ cafe Lisbon tourist attraction 2

Cafe ‘A Ginjinha’ Rossio Lisbon

Saude! (cheers)

15 Responses to “Cafe ‘A Ginjinha’ Rossio, best place in Lisbon to enjoy a Ginja (liqueur made of berries) & city center tourist attraction”

  1. [...] Rossio near Restauradores: Portuguese like to drink a ‘Ginjinha’, a liqueur made of [...]

  2. Where can I buy Ginja from Portugal that will ship to the USA?
    Thanks
    Carl

  3. [...] Ginjinja near the tiny Ginja bar on Largo de São Domingos, Ginjinha is a liqueur made of a cherry-like [...]

  4. [...] can win a taste of Ginja if you manage to throw a coin in a small glas inside the big bottle filled with water. [...]

  5. [...] just in time! Be aware when you visit touristical attractions and terraces. Nearby you can taste a Ginjinha, a liqueur made of a cherry-like berry, a typical Lisbon [...]

  6. [...] Besides: they also sell 10 years old Port wines, Portuguese wines like vinho verde, Aguardentes (similar to Cognac, Schnapps or Grappa) and the legendary wild Cherries Liqueur Ginjinha. [...]

  7. [...] This one has very sad eyes….near the church in Rosssio, close to Palácio da Independência (Palace of Independece) and the famous small  ‘A Ginjinha’ cafe. [...]

  8. I adore this spice drink

  9. where may I buy that they will ship to USA ?

  10. [...] met up with Ana again on our last night in Lisbon at A Ginjinha, where locals begin their evening out with a shot of this brandy-fortified sweet liquor! It made [...]

  11. Muzeyyen bedel on May 10th, 2010 at 11:47 pm

    How can i get in contact with Ginjinha producers for magazine?

  12. Where can I buy 12 bottles of Ginja d’Obidos on line and get it shipped to Darwin – Australia?

  13. I really must say it’s very refreshing to uncover a genuinely original blog like this, good effort. I expect I’ll be coming back frequently and I’ll be looking to see if you’ve made another comment when I do.

  14. Guy Bellinger on March 15th, 2012 at 4:43 pm

    Do you know if the ‘A Ginjinha Bar’, Rossio, is the same as the one filmed in in 1930 in Leitão de Barros’ semi-documentary “Lisboa, Cronica Anedotica” (a masterpirece that can be viewed on You Tube). There are some places shown in the film I was unable to trace (probably because they have disappeared. Do you by chance have any information about them : Béco das Mil Patagas, Pateo de Batalha, Capile Palace, Colegio união por os dois sexos, Lota o Lavagem de Peixe (Camera Municipal de Lisboa)?
    Thank you in advance for any information you could give me
    Guy Bellinger
    PS: I am a contributor for IMDb.com and the French film location site L2TC
    PPS: Sorry for the mistakes. I visited Lisbon once and I loved the place but I did not stay long enough to start learning Portuguese.

  15. There is another shop called “Ginja sem Rival” near “Ginjinha” wich I think it’s even better!!

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