This is the first of a series of restaurant reviews from my recent week-long trip to Portugal’s Algarve. Pequeno Mundo is situated in Almancil, near Faro – a short ride from our villa in Quinta Do Lago. A quick note on Pequeno Mundo: book in advance! It’s a year-in-year-out favourite for many repeat visitors to the Algarve and so you might be unlucky if you chance just turning up on the night.
Starter
Pequeno Mundo is a perennial favourite of our family when we visit the Portuguese Algarve. It’s probably my Mum’s favourite restaurant and for good reason. The restaurant is in a beautiful setting; you arrive into a central courtyard and walk around a little fountain and into the farmhouse building. We always make sure to arrive early to have a drink in the rear garden overlooking the house’s allotment. You know you’re firmly on holiday when you find yourself sitting in a peaceful garden, gin and tonic in hand, beneath a tree full of bean pods, before enjoying an exceptional meal!
The night we visited it was a little windy and so we opted to sit inside to eat. The inside area is beautifully simple and overlooks the courtyard we initially entered through. It’s traditionally decorated with terracotta walls and floors, with a few tastefully chosen antiques on display. On a hot summer’s night the windows and French doors are thrown open to the night and so by dessert you will often spot a shy gecko or two appearing high up on the wall.
Main Course
The menu at Pequeno Mundo is very much French cuisine. As I’m lucky enough to have beento the restaurant many times over the years, I have noticed that the menu rarely changes, and if it does, it’s only slightly tweaked. I remember eating their puff pastry topped mussel soup the first time I visited – at least ten years ago – and it was still on the menu in June 2015. This could be cause for concern at some restaurants, but the food is so exquisite that I certainly don’t mind.
On this occasion I chose the vegetable cannelloni for starter, lamb for main and shared a delicious chocolate mousse for desert. After orders were taken and menus removed, a small prawn cocktail amuse-bouche was served. For a restaurant to refine the most uncool of uncool foods and transform it into this dainty, tasty morsel just goes to prove the chef’s ability. The food is utterly impeccable. Not cheap, but so very special. It was all gobbled up and there were certainly no complaints.
Dessert
Pequeno Mundo is a true gem of fine dining in Almancil, Portugal. For a top notch dinner in a beautiful and tranquil setting, you’d struggle to do better. Just go.
Star rating: ★★★★★
Website: http://www.restaurantepequenomundo.com/
Telephone: 00351 289 399866
Facebook: Restaurant Pequeno Mundo
Big Nibbler 
Sounds great!