Buried at the bottom of the Elevador da Bica, near the seedy bars of Cais do Sodré, this unpretentious bar is favoured by students, nihilist artists and financially impaired intellectuals.

A battered velvet sofa and tatty lampshade self-consciously displayed in the rafters suggest a dishevelled comfort. The dimly lit room is the ideal place to nurse a melancholic pint while lamenting life’s woes. Discerning DJs spin a selection of disco, breakbeat and electro, although the crowd is mostly too cool or too jaded to dance.

At weekends, though, it’s an interesting place to people-watch and feel part of the alternative in crowd, however dwindling it might be. The spray-painted magic mushroom outside has become a local landmark.