After h3 À La Francesinha, which we’ve also tried (you can read our opinion in the article), the latest novelty from this Portuguese burger chain takes its inspiration from the much-loved Portuguese delicacy, Pica-Pau, one of the most requested snacks in any national tavern .
We’ve already been there to try this new (and controversial) bet, and we’ll tell you about our experience.
What is h3 Pica-Pau?
The well-known h3 hamburger restaurant has always accustomed us to its successful “new hamburgology” formula, which offers good quality meat grilled to order (or as you choose, rare, medium or well-done) served on the plate with the usual side dishes of fries or rice (or a bit of both).
But when the brand decides to “tinker” with classic recipes (as was also the case with the Francesinha), then things take a different turn and you really have to try it to see if it really tastes like it should.
In a move that is always “risky”, h3 has just launched a limited and reinvented version of the famous Woodpecker, with a new menu consisting of a 200g burger, Woodpecker sauce, pickle mix and sliced olives.
As soon as we heard about this news, our “gastronomic alarm” went off and we immediately went to try this new h3 Pica-Pau, just to answer the question that all fans of this “simple” pita want answered: have they managed to honor the recipe or is it just another marketing ploy with a more familiar sauce? That’s what we’ll answer next!
The Secret Lisbon experience
First of all, it’ s important to manage expectations: if you’re looking for a dish with cubes of sirloin or pojadouro meat swimming in a delicious sauce, that’s not what you’ll find.
h3 has stayed true to its DNA and, instead of these pieces of meat, you’ll find the house’s already tasty burger, with 200g of pure beef. We ordered it medium and it landed on our tray at the perfect point.
It was clear to us that the first bite had to be with sauce. Verdict: the inspiration for the more traditional recipe is very noticeable on the palate, with beer, garlic and a pinch of chili or peppers (with very little intensity). Although it’s not the best Woodpecker sauce we’ve ever had (as you’d expect, of course), we really enjoyed chopping up several pieces of the burger in this sauce.
After the first impression, which was very positive, it was time to try a mix of everything – meat, sauce and pickles – in a single bite, which really brought the acidity that you ask for when you eat this snack in a tavern. Another nice surprise were the olives, cut into small slices, which gave this dish that magical touch.
To accompany it, as we always do, we ordered some of h3’s no less famous thinly sliced fries, as well as the aromatic rice which, mixed with the sauce, elevated the experience even further.
Will we ever eat the h3 Woodpecker again?
That’s definitely the question! And our answer always serves as the final verdict, and our opinion is that yes, we will go back to h3 to try this Pica-Pau.
As it ‘s a limited edition, we suggest you try it as soon as possible if you’re also passionate about this type of tavern snack.
Not being a Pica-Pau “purist”, the most demanding customers might turn up their noses, but we liked the result a lot, since there’s a lot of flavor to this traditional pitéu, it makes you want to “bite” and, above all, you want to dip all the side dishes in the generous dose of sauce that is served to you, until the plate is “clean”.
We tried the new h3 Pica-Pau at the Parque das Nações store (right next to the Vasco da Gama shopping center) and noticed that the people who serve this menu put a lot of effort into making sure the customer leaves well served and well “eaten”. That was our case, thank you!
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