Viviane Durieu

Came to Portugal for the first time in 1969, and was enchanted by its light and climate. Having just arrived from Belgium where she was used to nine months of cloudy skies, she was met with leaves on the trees and blue skies, and fell in love with the city.

With a background in photography, she opened the restaurant A Travessa which at the time was located in the road named Travessa das Inglesinhas. Without much experience of cooking and even less in hospitality, she often rang her mother who dictated recipes down the phone to her. The lack of experience proved not to be decisive and the truth is that what they did, they did very well, with the restaurant fast becoming one of the best known in Lisbon.

“it was a success. Using the original concept as the starting point, we just developed and updated it, and it’s now been thirty-six years since we opened. How time flies!” Viviane in an interview with The Lisbon Conection.