Aloma bakes Lisbon's best pastel de nata

Who won the best pastel de nata contest in 2026?

Pastelaria Aloma, for the third year running and the sixth time overall. 7 Desejos (Ericeira) was second and Casa do Padeiro (Odivelas) third.

The result was announced on stage in the Jardins do Marquês de Pombal in Oeiras, on the last day of the Congresso de Cozinha. The organisers call it the biggest event for kitchen professionals in Portugal, and the final was open to the public. This was the 17th edition, and around four dozen bakeries took part before the field was cut to twelve.

Aloma has now won in 2012, 2013, 2015, 2024, 2025 and 2026. Nobody else comes close. Second place went to a pastry shop from the surf town of Ericeira, on the coast north-west of Lisbon, and third to Casa do Padeiro, which won the whole thing in 2022.

How does the O Melhor Pastel de Nata contest work?

Bakeries from the Lisbon area enter, a jury tastes them blind, twelve reach the final, and the score now mixes a secret shopper test with the final tasting.

Only bakeries with their own production ("fabrico próprio") and a shop in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area can enter. The qualifying tastings ran over three days in early July at the Centro Lexus Lisboa. The top three from the year before skip that round and go straight to the final.

The jurors never know whose tart is on the plate. They mark five things: appearance, the feel of the pastry, the taste and consistency of the pastry, the custard and the overall flavour. This year added a twist. In early September the jury bought each finalist's tarts as a mystery customer, to judge them as they reach a normal buyer, and that test made up 30% of the final score. We like the change: a tart baked for a jury and a tart sold at 4 PM on a Tuesday are not always the same thing.

The jury is chaired by Virgílio Gomes, with pastry chefs from the MACAM Hotel and the Fortaleza do Guincho, the TV presenter and author Joana Barrios, and other cooks and food writers.

Who won O Melhor Pastel de Nata in 2025 and earlier years?

Aloma won in 2025 too, ahead of O Pãozinho das Marias (Ericeira) and Confeitaria Glória (Amadora). Before Aloma's run, Confeitaria da Glória won in 2023 and Casa do Padeiro in 2022.

The 2025 final was held at the same congress in Oeiras. After that win the owner of Aloma, João Castanheira, told the magazine Sábado that the secret is to "fazer o bem, várias vezes e com produtos de qualidade", which means doing it well, again and again, with good ingredients. It is a modest answer, and the results back it up.

The same names keep coming back. O Pãozinho das Marias made the podium in 2023 and 2025, and Confeitaria Glória won in 2023 and came third in 2025. Places are earned: every finalist gets there through the blind round, or through the podium the year before.

Where is Pastelaria Aloma in Lisbon?

The original shop is at Rua Francisco Metrass 67, in the Campo de Ourique neighbourhood, and the bakery now has several shops in the city.

Aloma has sold pastries on that Campo de Ourique corner since the 1940s. Lisbon's Lojas com História programme, which lists the city's heritage shops, includes it and notes that every tart is made by hand, with no industrial machines. Eat one at the counter, still warm if you can.

Campo de Ourique is a residential quarter west of the centre, far from the tourist trail, with a covered market and the Estrela Basilica not far away. Tram 28 ends in the neighbourhood, which makes it an easy add-on to a ride across the city.

Where can you taste the other finalists?

Five of the twelve finalists are in Lisbon itself, two are in Ericeira and the rest are in the suburbs around the city, from Amadora to Azeitão.

In the city, the easy ones are Nat'elier, Castro, an atelier of pastéis de nata,, Pastelaria Taigui and Aloma. Across the river, Casa Negrito is in Vila Nogueira de Azeitão, the wine village of the Arrábida hills. A day at the beach in Ericeira covers both 7 Desejos and O Pãozinho das Marias.

Nat'elier has a link to one of our classes. The bakery masterclass in the Baixa can be hosted by João Batalha, co-founder of Nat'elier, or by the bakery's in-house pastry chefs. You laminate the dough yourself and make at least three tarts each, from $78. There is no alcohol, but a barista makes you a drink of your choice.

Work in a real bakery kitchen with a pro pastry chef, bake at least three tarts, and leave with a certificate.

★ 4.9 · 2 hours · from $78

Explore the bakery masterclass → Tour details

Is the contest winner better than Pastéis de Belém?

They are judged in different leagues. Neither Pastéis de Belém nor Manteigaria is on the 2025 or 2026 finalist lists, and the only fair test is your own mouth.

Pastéis de Belém bakes the pastel de Belém to a recipe it has kept secret since 1837, and it sells it under its own registered name. Manteigaria bakes all day in front of you in shops across Lisbon. Aloma is the jury's pick among the bakeries that entered. Plenty of locals will tell you a different favourite, usually the one on their own street. The full story of the name is in pastel de nata vs pastel de Belém.

The best way to judge a contest tart is to have made one yourself. After two hours folding pastry and pouring custard you know exactly what a thin, crisp shell takes. The Lisbon baking class near Belém, rated 4.9 from 3,331 reviews, runs from $61 with port and a ginjinha tasting. Then head to Campo de Ourique and taste the winner with fresh eyes.

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