Going down the street Mouzinho da Silveira, right at the heart of Porto, allows us to enter an essential artery of the city’s life. Successive stores, buildings that hold stories in themselves, the Fountain that keeps Porto’s inhabitants secrets, projects that transport us to other places. And we have arrived! The number 70 of Mouzinho da Silveira exudes portugality and sustainability. And… it is a one-way trip to Manteigas. We are talking about the Loja do Burel, which brings to Invicta the best of what is produced in Serra da Estrela. And speaking of Serra da Estrela… we are quickly teleported…
Casas de São Lourenço: Paradise in the mountain
And now… A slow dry breeze runs in the air. The silence is contagious in a natural setting that has won and merits its space. An immense green front, the Glaciar Valley that meanders between the mountains, and Manteigas falling asleep ahead. This is the scenery of Casa de São Lourenço.
Right at the heart of Serra da Estrela, the space was designed in 1940 with an important purpose: to be the Pousada de Portugal da Serra da Estrela, which offered its guests a unique experience. 70 years later, the space was recovered, but holding on to the foundation’s roots of Rogério de Azevedo and retrieving the entire estate of Maria Keil.
And for the Winter at our doorsteps, the house offers every comfort available. Even gastronomic comfort. In the hands of young Chef Manuel Figueira, the true Portuguese flavours merge in carefully dishes prepared with old receipts and ingredients from the mountains itself. The recently introduced new menu is proof of this: an intensity of Portuguese flavours turn into magic at the table. From wine to sweets, including cheese and oil. Breathing the mountain through the plate is just inevitable.
But the project does not stop here. Casas de São Lourenço belongs to the larger Burel Mountain Originals property, which includes too Casa das Penhas Douradas and Burel Factory.
Casa das Penhas Douradas is located on a higher spot where the view takes your breath away. An authentic mountain refuge; a small haven of cosiness, ideal for families. An old sanatory, discovered by Isabel Costa and João Tomás, who decided to let themselves be taken away by the mountain fresh air and give new life to the space.
Burel Factory
There was a time when machines could be heard everywhere in Manteigas. Times have changed, but if the silence imposes itself, it is yet possible to hear the loom. Burel Factory holds in itself memories and magic. And it still produces one of the biggest treasures of the Serra: a 100% wool material, commonly used by the shepherds and produced from bordaleiras sheep.
The factory is a celebration, of the industry, of raw materials and, above all, of know-how. It elevates Portugal, valuing what is ours and building on the firm foundations of tradition. And if we have to choose the best among the three, there is only an answer available: go to all of them and return to Porto to see the products ready to be taken away across borders.
