While I tucked into chips drenched in mustard sauce, I could not help but think: if this place really is serving close to 1,000 people a day, it might just be one of the busiest cash based businesses in Cascais. A delicious dinner, and a fascinating little mystery.
On a busy street in Cascais sits Jardim dos Frangos, a restaurant that has been grilling chickens and feeding crowds since 1974. The name means “Garden of Chickens,” but the menu goes well beyond piri piri chook. I went for the steak in mustard cream sauce, which arrived with a generous pile of golden chips. The steak itself was a little tough, but the sauce was magnificent, creamy, tangy, and made for dipping those chips until the plate was clean.
To wash it down, I ordered a half bottle of Alentejo wine (375ml). With the meal and the wine, my bill came to €28, very good value for a solo dinner in a tourist town.
The menu itself was another surprise. It came printed in four languages, Portuguese, English, Spanish and French, which, not coincidentally, reflect the main nationalities of visitors to Portugal. At the next table sat a couple from Mozambique, their English fluent, their Portuguese lilting, and their laughter as much a part of the atmosphere as the clatter of plates and the shuffle of waiters balancing trays.
Curious about the scale of the place, I started asking questions. The waiter didn’t know the answers and each time went to fetch the manager. That is how I learned that on an average day they claim to serve around 1,000 people. At first it sounded like a stretch, but the numbers start to make sense when you look around.
They have both indoor and outdoor seating. I didn’t get a chance to count the tables inside, but staff seemed to be encouraging people to sit outdoors. My impression was that the inside space is set up more for fine dining, while the outdoor area handles the fast-moving, high-turnover crowd. With around 80 chairs outside constantly turning over, plus the indoor seating and steady take away trade, you can start to see how the numbers build.
Do the math:
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1,000 diners × €28 average spend = €28,000 a day
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That is around €196,000 a week or just under €10 million a year in turnover
And here is the twist, they only accept cash.
Most diners mention it in reviews, waiters remind you at the table, and still it comes as a surprise in 2025. For such a busy, well known restaurant to stay cash only feels like a throwback to another era. On the one hand, it seems almost too visible, surely the tax office knows. On the other hand, this is Portugal, where many family run restaurants have always done things this way, no card machines, no bank fees, full control of the takings.
So while I tucked into chips drenched in mustard sauce, I could not help but think: if this place really is serving close to 1,000 people a day, it might just be one of the busiest cash based businesses in Cascais. A delicious dinner, and a fascinating little mystery.
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