There’s a new place to discover in Lisbon. In the heart of Tapada da Ajuda, surrounded by trees, open fields and nature, Geradora is Esporão’s new home in the city. A place where food, wine, olive oil, culture, knowledge and nature come together. You might come for lunch and discover a new olive oil. Join a wine tasting and stumble across an exhibition. Come for a concert or a conversation. Take a walk through the Tapada. Or simply stop and stay awhile. There is no single way to experience Geradora. And no single reason to visit.
Just a few minutes from the city centre, Tapada da Ajuda invites you to slow down. This is where Geradora opens its doors, surrounded by nature, an urban retreat with the time and space to eat, taste, discover, talk or simply be, at your own pace. Alongside the restaurant, Geradora is home to a wine cellar and tasting room, a museum and a shop, as well as a regular cultural programme featuring music, film, exhibitions, talks and other events. Come for an hour. Stay for an afternoon. Or simply let one discovery lead to the next.
From Esporão to Lisbon
Esporão was founded in the Alentejo in 1973. Over more than five decades, it has grown into other regions, the Douro, with Quinta dos Murças, and Vinho Verde, with Quinta do Ameal, while maintaining a deep connection to agriculture, the land and the people who bring these places to life.
With Geradora, Esporão now has a new home in Lisbon. A place where we can share what we make, tell the stories and showcase the products of the places we come from, while creating new connections between agriculture, food, wine, olive oil, culture and knowledge. Geradora brings our origins closer to the city without attempting to recreate them. Instead, it is an invitation to discover them, to learn more about what we do and, perhaps, to inspire a journey to the places where it all begins.
A building that generates once again
The building that houses Geradora has a story of its own. Built more than a century ago to generate electricity for the Ajuda Palace, it never actually fulfilled the purpose for which it was designed. After decades of abandonment, it has been restored by architecture studio Gorvell, preserving its industrial character and many of its original features. More than a century later, Geradora is finally generating. Ideas, conversations, encounters and discoveries. And new reasons to return.
Tapada da Ajuda
The history of Tapada da Ajuda dates back to 1645, when King João IV established what was then known as the Royal Hunting Ground of Alcântara. Following the 1755 earthquake and the royal family’s move to the heights of Ajuda, it acquired the name it still bears today. Once a royal hunting ground and place of leisure, it is now one of Lisbon’s major green spaces, with a unique natural, scientific and architectural heritage. Its woodlands, agricultural trial fields and plant collections, assembled over more than a century, include a botanical reserve renowned for its wild olive woodland. The landscape is also home to important examples of late 19th-century civic architecture, including the Exhibition Pavilion and the Lisbon Astronomical Observatory. The grounds within the walls of Tapada da Ajuda are officially classified as a Property of Public Interest.
Getting to Geradora is part of the experience. You can arrive by car, bicycle or on foot. From the Tapada entrance beside the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, it is just a few minutes along a signposted route through trees and greenery. As you make your way down, sunlight filters through the canopy and the sounds of the city begin to fade. The change of pace starts before you even reach Geradora.
Getting to Geradora
There are several entrances to Tapada da Ajuda, but we recommend using the Ajuda University Campus gate, between the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and the Faculty of Architecture of the University of Lisbon.
Whether you come by car, on foot or by bicycle, the route is clearly signposted and takes no more than five minutes.
See the route on the maps below or on https://maps.app.goo.gl/RURE8UZ1vhwRFKc99
