Where to eat in Santa Cruz, Madeira
Santa Cruz is the least touristed of the eastern towns and eats accordingly: small, plain, cheap and good. Taberna do Petisco is the one to plan around, petiscos and grilled fish, open Tuesday to Saturday until midnight. Rota dos Sabores does generous sharing plates (garlic prawns, milho frito) on a terrace by the promenade, O Professor and Recanto da Pitada cover traditional Madeiran cooking in the town. For tables on the pebbles at Reis Magos, head ten minutes west to Caniço de Baixo. Expect €15–€25 a head with wine.
Last verified by Mike McCabe, on the island. 6 venues checked, hours, closures and prices re-confirmed before publication.
Every place we've eaten in Santa Cruz
Restaurants
- Do Dia P'ra Noite
Easy-going restaurant and café a few steps from the seafront in Santa Cruz, serving generous, honest Madeiran cooking at fair prices. Set menu or à la carte, a sunny outdoor terrace, air-conditioned rooms inside, free Wi-Fi, a children's area and takeaway.
Wednesday–Saturday and Monday 08:30–22:00. Sunday 08:00–16:00. Closed Tuesday.
- O Professor
Simple, family-run spot right on Santa Cruz's main square, with a small terrace under the trees. Snacks, prego rolls, grilled fish and shellfish at local prices, the kind of place regulars use for lunch rather than a tourist night out.
Daily 07:00–00:00.
- Recanto da Pitada
Small, casual kitchen on Rua da Praia in Santa Cruz doing quick, home-style plates and takeaway. Popular with locals for a fast, cheap lunch between the square and the beach; service can be hit and miss when it's busy.
Friday–Wednesday 09:00–22:00. Closed Thursday.
- Taberna do Petisco
Tiny, no-reservations tavern in the old centre of Santa Cruz that locals and visitors queue for. The menu is built around seafood petiscos, garlic prawns, octopus, cuttlefish and daily fish, served quickly at tightly packed tables or on the small pavement terrace. Arrive early or be prepared to wait; it fills up every night.
Tuesday–Saturday 12:00–00:00. Closed Sunday and Monday.
- Que Disparate Restaurante Pub
Restaurant and pub in Santa Cruz with sea views and views of the airport. Food from breakfast onwards, then cocktails and music from the 70s, 80s and 90s in the evening. Phone: +351 291 524 188. Details verified by the owner.
Tue–Thu 07:00–23:45; Fri 07:00–01:45; Sat 09:00–01:45; Sun 08:00–14:00. Closed Monday.
- Rota dos Sabores
Friendly petiscos restaurant in the centre of Santa Cruz, serving Madeiran and Portuguese sharing plates, garlic prawns, breaded prawns, milho frito, rissóis and fresh salads, on a terrace steps from the seafront promenade.
Thursday–Tuesday 11:30–22:00. Closed Wednesday.
How eating in Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz sits between the airport and Caniço, with a long promenade, a municipal lido and almost no visitors eating in the old streets behind it. That is the whole appeal: the prices are local prices and the dining rooms are full of people who live here.
Reis Magos, the pebble cove further west, belongs to Caniço de Baixo rather than Santa Cruz town; its beach restaurants and container bar are covered in our Caniço restaurant guide.
- Free parking along the seafront and around the lido, even in August.
- Taberna do Petisco closes Sunday and Monday, check before making it the plan.
- Two minutes from the airport approach: this is the sensible last-meal-before-the-flight town, not the terminal.
Eating in Santa Cruz, answered
- Where should I eat in Santa Cruz, Madeira?
- Taberna do Petisco for petiscos and grilled fish in the evening, O Professor or Recanto da Pitada for traditional Madeiran cooking at local prices, and, ten minutes west in Caniço de Baixo, the Reis Magos beach restaurants for lunch with your feet more or less on the pebbles.
- Is Santa Cruz cheaper than Funchal for eating out?
- Noticeably. A full meal with house wine runs €15–€25 per person in Santa Cruz against €25–€35 for the equivalent in central Funchal, and the fish is the same fish.
- Where can I eat near Madeira airport?
- Santa Cruz is the closest town to the terminal on the Funchal side and Machico is five minutes the other way. Both are far better value than eating airside, and both are a short taxi ride from departures.