The Francesinha

A ubiquitous dish in Porto, it resembles something drunk David Hasselhoff might have “invented” at 3 a.m.: an open-faced sandwich with ham, sausage and steak, blanketed by cheese and a fried egg, relaxing in a pool of tangy beer sauce. No Portuguese person has been able to explain to me why it is called a “Little French Gal,” or why, in fact, it exists. I suppose it provides some emotional warmth on those days when cold winds blow from the endless sea.

Bon appetit, I suppose.