One of the most beautiful cafés in Portugal, Café Majestic opened in 1922 on Rua de Santa Catarina and quickly became the meeting point for Porto's intellectual and artistic society. The Belle Époque interior — carved wood panels, gilded mirrors, leather banquettes, ornate plasterwork — survived neglect and eventual closure before a careful restoration brought it back in 1994.
It is now very much a tourist attraction as much as a working café, and the prices reflect that. But the coffee is excellent, the pastries are good, and the room is genuinely extraordinary. Come for a mid-morning espresso rather than a full meal, take twenty minutes to look at the room properly, and leave before the coach tour groups arrive.