Located in Matosinhos, just north of Porto, Conservas Pinhais has been putting fish in tins for more than a century. At one point, it had as many as 54 competitors, but due to overfishing and declining interest in tinned fish, they closed one by one, eventually leaving only Pinhais.
Today, the factory floor can be visited via guided tour. There, you can witness how women—and only women—complete all the various tasks by hand, from gutting and preparing sardines in the ancient marble sinks to wrapping each tin with the brand’s handsome, retro-feeling labels.
The fruit of their labor is some of Iberia’s best tinned fish: sardines or mackerel in olive oil or tomato sauce, or a spicy version of either which includes a bay leaf, a couple peppercorns and cloves, a few slices of pickled carrots and cucumbers, and single salt-cured chili in each tin.
After a tour, head to the upstairs cafe, where you can sample a tin—excellent when paired with bread and northern Portugal’s vinho verde”—or tinned fish-based dishes including wraps and bagel sandwiches. If you like what you’ve eaten, a ground-level gift shop has tons of tins for sale as well as lots of Pinhais merch, including branded socks.
