Q&A with Maria Lawton

Photo courtesy of Maria Lawton

Although she was born in the Azores and raised in New Bedford, Massachusetts, Maria Lawton loves traveling to Fall River for her must-have pantry items.

That’s where you’ll often find the cookbook author and host of PBS’ “Maria’s Portuguese Table” scouring meat markets, bakeries and old-school specialty stores for ingredients to whip up her family’s beloved Azorean recipes.

“I go to Fall River a lot,” she says. “There are a plethora of places there I really love.”

In between hosting two sold-out culinary trips to Portugal and the Azores with tour company Club Adventures and getting ready for the November publication of her second cookbook, At My Portuguese Table: Azorean Cooking and More, Lawton found time to dish on her must-visit Spindle City shops.

Lawton’s Go-To Stores

For all my sausages, I go to Michael’s Provision. They really do a great job, and there are nice cuts of meat in the sausage. And the seasoning is perfect to my taste. Reis Meat Market makes amazing sausages as well.

I love going to Europa Pastries. It’s all family — a brother and sister own it — and you can see that there’s just a lot of love in there. They’re young and they’re trying new things, and their pasteis de nata are incredible. Barcelos Bakery is very nice, too.

Right across the street from Europa is Chaves Market, the original, the OG before Portugalia. I have a lot of respect for Chaves Market and what they’ve done throughout the years. I stop there once in a while.

Of course, you cannot go to Fall River without going to Portugalia Marketplace. I always tell people, ‘If you haven’t gone to Portugal or the Azores yet, go there first.’ It’s almost like being transported to Portugal. I’m probably there if not every week, then every other week.

Her Favorite Restaurants

Sagres is one of the longest-running Portuguese restaurants in Fall River. Two brothers own it — one’s in the front of the house and one is in the back of the house. Their monkfish dish is one of my favorites. It is beyond delicious. But everything I’ve ever had there has been amazing.

The other one I love is T.A. Restaurant. They’ve been around since the mid-eighties and they’re as authentic as it gets. The last time I was there they had a fava bean stew, which was incredible. I don’t want to gross anyone out, but I like liver, and they had a dish with very thin-cut liver with an onion sauce over it that was incredible.

Maria Lawton will sign copies of her new cookbook, At My Portuguese Table: Azorean Cooking and More, on Nov. 30, from 11 a.m.–2 p.m., at Portugalia Marketplace.

Photo courtesy of Maria Lawton