Vila Joya stands above Praia da Galé, just west of Albufeira on Portugal’s golden Algarve coast. The principal Vila Joya restaurant of this boutique hotel has held two Michelin stars since 1999, with Austrian chef Dieter Koschina leading the kitchen since 1991. Together with head Chef Stefan Langmann, he offers contemporary cuisine, showcasing the premium produce of Portugal, prepared with classical techniques. I last stayed at the house in 2018, and in 2026 I returned for a memorable lunch on the terrace.
A table with a view
Upon arrival at the villa, you walk through the house, under a vaulted ceiling and the sweeping white staircase, before catching sight of the most striking panoramic view. The location is flawless. The terrace is set on the cliff and looks over the villa’s pool and gardens to the Atlantic. Each round table is dressed in white linen, beneath cream parasols. Below is the garden of lawns, palms and pines, reaching down to the sand of Praia da Galé. You see and hear the sea from your chair.
The table is impeccable. The linen is pressed without a single crease, the silverware is bespoke and carries the Vila Joya name, while the serving team wear white gloves. Even the oversized menu is a souvenir to take home. Each table also has its own playful wooden sculpture, made from reclaimed materials by a Portuguese artist.
I’m no Michelin inspector, so when I experience a meal like this, I am not just focusing on the culinary creativity, but the sense of place captured by the restaurant, and the joy one feels when indulging. Vila Joya excels at delivering an unforgettable, holistic experience.
The team
The team read their guests well, and they can be chatty if you want them to be. Joaquin, the maître d’ who looked after us, was knowledgeable, elegant and professional, and he put us at ease from the start. Our Dutch waiter was discreet, almost invisible, yet he was so friendly and joined the conversation whenever we invited it. It made for a natural and relaxed lunch, not a stiff, formal occasion.
Flavour, flavour, flavour!
We started with a Negroni, from a cocktail menu whose cover reads ‘many stories to appreciate’. Bread came wrapped in linen inside a hand-carved wooden bowl, with a cone of butter and a dish of Picual olive oil from Monterosa, an Algarve producer in Moncarapacho. The menu folder carries a watercolour of Koschina with forks tucked behind his ears and the line ‘many stories to be tasted’. Inside, a short welcome note gives the kitchen’s motto, which is ‘Flavour, flavour, flavour!’
Each dish is listed in just three words, so you know very little until the plate is in front of you.
Small bites, then six courses
The dishes were like artworks. Lunch began with a series of pre-starters. A square of foie gras with kumquat and a dot of yoghurt sat on a thin crisp, veal with capers arrived under a drift of Parmesan, and an olive gazpacho with feta served in a small cup. Then came a sublime cracker of salmon, horseradish and quail’s egg.
Six courses followed, beginning with bell pepper, goat’s cheese and tomato. The menu is a clever mix, because some dishes arrive in two parts, which gives you a contrast. Lobster with grapefruit and salty lemon came with a side dish of rich, decadent lobster in a velvety citrus butter sauce.
Grouper was served in a light broth with leek and chanterelles and topped with two pale, crisp discs.
The main course was Miéral pigeon, from the celebrated poultry house in Bresse. It was tender, with crisp beetroot and raspberry drawn across the plate in a deep red sweep and served with a tasty gyoza parcel in a small bowl on the side.
A pre-dessert of tonic, buttermilk and cucumber came before the pineapple with vanilla and olive oil, which arrived as a pale, spice-dusted sphere on a glass plate. Coffee was served in hand-painted ceramics with a silver spoon shaped like a twig, alongside petits fours that included a miniature ice lolly and a chocolate truffle.
Portuguese wines
We didn’t choose the wine pairing. Instead, we took a couple of recommendations from the expert sommelier. We began with a glass of Parcela Única 2022, a single-plot Alvarinho from Anselmo Mendes, the winemaker many in Portugal call the king of Alvarinho. The vineyard is in the far north of Vinho Verde at Monção e Melgaço.
Then, with the pigeon, a glass of Quinta da Boavista from the Douro, an estate historically linked to Baron Forrester, who was the nineteenth-century wine merchant who charted the river. Dessert came with a late harvest Semillon from Quinta do Poço do Lobo in the Beira Atlântico. The cellar is in the care of head sommelier Arnaud Vallet, who has been at Vila Joya since 2007 and looks after around 12,000 bottles, most of them Portuguese.
The story behind the stars
Vila Joya began as the holiday home of the Jung family and opened to guests in 1982 under Claudia Jung. Her daughter Joy has run the house since 2003. Koschina joined the team from Austria in 1991 and won the restaurant’s first Michelin star in 1995 and a second in 1999. It was the first restaurant in Portugal to hold two. Maître d’ Paulo Luz has been here for thirty years too, providing a rare continuity.
Good to know
The three-word menu gives little away, so it is worth asking the team to talk you through each plate, and anyone with allergies should say so when booking, because the kitchen changes its menu so often. Dinner tables for non-residents are few, as house guests have priority. So lunch is a great way to experience the cuisine. It’s a wonderful time to come, because you enjoy two-star dining with a feeling of freedom, space and light.
This is the Algarve at its most creative and delicious.
Contact Details
Website: www.vilajoya.com
Address: Estrada da Galé, 8200-416 Albufeira, Algarve, Portugal
