Where to eat CAPE VERDE 🇨🇻 Le Sentier: Restaurant Black Lions
The main dining hall, replete with a grand piano and posters of left-wing icons like Nelson Mandela and Che Guevara, was ornately decorated. Even the presentation of the main course, in a large conch on a pillow, was thoughtfully and artfully arranged.Â
Restaurant Black Lions
Grande-Rue 17, Le Sentier
What we ordered: For two people, we ordered the menu du jour, a three-course lunch menu consisting of a starter salad, two fried plantains and four baked rolls stuffed with light noodles, carrots and mushrooms as a main course and a mango custard dessert topped with preserves. To drink, we had two glasses of Swiss white wine, one Coca Cola Zero and an espresso.
Cost: 67.60 CHF / €70 / $75
A big part of the experience of Restaurant Black Lions in Le Sentier, a town on the French border in the heart of Switzerland’s industrial watchmaking belt, was simply getting there. Given the number of transfers Switzerland’s extraordinarily well-connected rail line would have us on, a forever journey in its own right, we opted to rent a car before setting off for the day.
Restaurant Black Lions is one of a handful of well-rated restaurants in Le Sentier, a town better known for watches and industry than culinary traditions, but it is a thoughtfully decorated, eccentric spot for those who know it. The main dining hall, replete with a grand piano and posters of left-wing icons like Nelson Mandela and Che Guevara, was ornately decorated. Even the presentation of the main course, in a large conch on a pillow, was thoughtfully and artfully arranged.
Owned and operated by Cape Verde native Guilhermina Beier-Barbosa, the food is a hit. Beier-Barbosa appeared throughout the meal and lunch service in the dining hall in a tall chef’s hat with an American flag motif that was neatly labeled “Chef” on the side while she simultaneously did duty in the kitchen. We were clearly not the only ones who made lunch reservations as the room quickly filled up after the noon lunch service began, with only the menu du jour available at a most reasonable price point.
The salad to start was fresh, topped with caramelized onions and bits of spinach, a light dressing. The main course was served on an open conch and consisted of lightly fried rolls and plantains and a cream sauce for dipping. Beier-Barbosa came to encourage us to use our fingers given I was struggling with a knife and fork amid the ornate presentation. For dessert, the menu du jour rounded off the meal with a mango custard topped with raspberry preserves. The portion sizes were just enough to leave one satiated but not overstuffed.
With just a few offerings all well at the right price point in a lovely setting, Restaurant Black Lions is an anchoring presence in a provincial, albeit heavily industrialized, bucolic town. It is likely some guests travel from over the French border just for the offerings at Black Lions, a feat given the difference in price between the two countries. If ever visiting the area, especially those interested in Swiss watchmaking, restaurant Black Lions is an affordable and pleasant spot for lunch. Dinner menu options are Ă la carte.
How to get to Cape Verde from Switzerland:
The only way to travel to Cape Verde’s capital Praia from Switzerland is with Tap, the Portuguese airline, or Royal Air Maroc, with some routes on Swiss Air via Casablanca or Guinea Bissau. Plan on at least one or two layovers, regardless of whether you fly from Zürich or Geneva. Total flight times with stopovers are all upwards of 14 hours.
How many Cape Verdeans are in Switzerland: Less than 1,000
Distance between Bern and Praia: 4,565 km
Distance from Restaurant Black Lions to Praia: 4,470 km
Learn how to make Cape Verde's national dish, cachupa, and about its origins.
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