Conserveira de Lisboa — Specialty Store in Baixa, Lisbon

Conserveira de Lisboa is a family-run shop on Rua dos Bacalhoeiros in the Baixa, trading since 1930, and the first thing you notice is the shelving: original wood, floor to ceiling, packed with tins lined up in rows. The shop sells its own brand rather than a range of other labels, and much of the packing is done by the family itself.

Start with the sardines, which come in flavours such as tomato, garlic, curry and pink peppercorn. The Tricana house label is the one to look at for value: it is made by the shop and costs less than comparable premium tins elsewhere. Horse mackerel is worth taking home, and the tuna range includes a black tuna variant. Cod runs to a dozen kinds, from neck to roasted garlic.

There is no shelf to browse alone. You tell the staff what you want and they fetch it from behind the counter, so it helps to know the flavours before you arrive. Whatever you buy, it is wrapped individually in paper and tied with string, which turns a few tins into presents. Multi-tin gift boxes do the same job faster.

Prices are modest next to the flashier tinned fish shops around town: a few tins or a bottle typically comes to €10 to €40, and single tins often sit around €4, with gift boxes running higher. Cans are not cheap, and there is no tax refund here.

There is no orderly queue when the shop fills. Go for the tins and the wrapping.