Books & Bites



If you are one of those readers who pines for recent days when you could pick up a book while sipping a double, soy, decaf caramel latte in an Ikea chair at one of those ubiquitous franchise bookstores, well, you won't want to read any further.

Unlike Northern Europe and North America, the franchise bookstore bubble never came to Portugal. We don't have empty big-box stores or vacant mall galleries where trendy, plastic wood shelves once offered a formulated list of bestsellers and coffee. Thankfully, this is one franchise movement that passed by Portugal's recent gentrification.

As a self-admitted bookworm, perusing family-owned bookstores filled with dusty old leather volumes, tattered stacks of printed ephemera, postcards, comic books, and antique engraved prints is a favorite activity that I usually reserve for those rare rainy winter days in Lisbon.

I can easily let a few hours slip by that should have been spent responding to important phone calls and emails, and return home with a few neatly paper-wrapped items, which most likely will not get the hours of attention I intended to spend with them.

For the traveler with time, Portugal still has many treasured places I call "readeries". The family-owned bookstores where you can drift through pages of history and discover rare pieces, far from the mobs of tourists waiting in line for hours to enter popular places like Lello's Bookstore in Porto.

Here's a curated list of Portugal's most interesting independent bookstores:

Livraria Bertrand Chiado — Rua Garrett, 73-75, 1200-203 Lisboa

Founded in 1732 by Pierre Bertrand and Pedro Faure, both originally from France, this is the oldest bookstore still in operation in the world, according to the Guinness Book of Records. Inside you'll find a dedicated Fernando Pessoa room, blue-and-white azulejo tile walls, and a café whose menu is inspired by the cookbooks on sale. www.bertrand.pt

Ler Devagar — Lisbon Rua Rodrigues de Faria, 103, 1300-501 Lisboa

Located inside an old Portuguese newspaper pressroom at LX Factory, a creative hub filled with art, music, and fashion. It has thousands of arty titles spread over two floors, stages concerts and exhibitions, and has a café/bar — making it one of the most beautiful bookstores in the world. www.lerdevagar.com

Livraria de Santiago — Óbidos Largo de São Tiago do Castelo, 2510-057 Óbidos

Part of the Ler Devagar network, this bookstore occupies the ancient Church of St. James, built by King Sancho I in the 12th century, right next to the castle entrance. The main altar, saints, and pulpit are still in place, with books filling the lateral altars and every available surface. An utterly singular experience. www.lerdevagar.com

Fábula Urbis — Lisbon Rua Augusto Rosa, 27, 1100-058 Lisboa

Tucked away just behind the cathedral, every book on offer is exclusively about Lisbon. Housed in a former carpentry workshop, the 3,000-title collection spans poetry, history, gastronomy, architecture, photography, and more — with over a fifth of the titles in foreign languages, including English, French, Spanish, and German. Upstairs, there's a gallery space for rotating exhibitions and evening recitals. (No standalone website — find them on Google Maps)

Livraria Poetria — Porto Rua de Sá de Noronha, 115, 4050-526 Porto

Hailed as Portugal's only bookstore dedicated entirely to poetry and theater, Poetria is caught between the past and the present — the staircase brings old-world elegance while the lower level is clean and modern, with books suspended on floating shelves. The owner's motto is "Poetry heals, theater is life," and the store produces its own independent editions alongside works from Portuguese, Brazilian, and English authors. (Find them on Instagram: @poetria.livraria)

Centésima Página — Braga Avenida Central, 118-120, 4710-229 Braga

Housed in the Rolão House, one of the best-preserved examples of 18th-century Baroque style, and a building classified as a site of Public Interest since 1977. This is an independent bookstore where you'll find expositions, book launches, debates, concerts, children's workshops, a café, and a garden — making it far more than just a place to buy books. www.centesima.com

Livraria Chaminé da Mota — Porto Rua das Flores, 28, 4050-262 Porto

More like a museum of literature than a typical bookstore. Inside, you're greeted by an assortment of titles, manuscripts, posters, and maps, some of which are more than 100 years old. The scent of old paper hangs in the air, sculptures gaze silently down the long corridors, and timeworn artifacts rest in elaborate cabinets. Photography is not permitted, adding to the sense that you've wandered into something rare and protected. (No standalone website — find them on Google Maps)

Livraria Moreira da Costa — Porto Rua dos Mártires da Liberdade, 120, 4050-359 Porto

Founded in 1902, this is Porto's oldest still-operating bookstore. Step through the wooden doors and you're instantly transported back in time — worn floorboards, tall wooden shelves, and the unmistakable scent of old paper. It specializes in rare and secondhand titles, as well as vintage postcards and artwork. (Find them on Facebook: Moreira da Costa Alfarrabistas)

Location: Lisbon, Portugal

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