Os Cafés e outras Constelações de Encontro da Avenida de Roma

Until the end of the 19th century, Alvalade essentially consisted of fields, farms and vegetable plots, used in the summertime by the nobility and then later as an area for leisure and sports by the general population. It was in the second half of the 1940s that it underwent its greatest period of development, becoming a symbol of Modern Lisbon and a home to several urbanism concepts.

Alvalade is today an area with strong memories. Some are more distant and are reflected in the hustle and bustle of Avenida de Roma and Avenida da Igreja and the tertulias (social meetings with artistic overtones) in their cafés. Other more recent ones led to countless alternative cultural scenes.

This itinerary is made of those memories, with guided tours and tertulias. The Verdes Anos (Green Years) and 25 de Abril routes end at the Vá-Vá café, where you’re invited to return to the past through augmented reality.

Os Verdes Anos
1 september, 11am
2 september, 11am and 5.30pm
Duration: 2 hours
Maximum participants: 20
Meeting point: Edifício do Mercado de Levante (Bairro das Estacas)

The first itinerary takes us back to the time of the film Os Verdes Anos (1962), when this area was designated a Modern Neighbourhood. We’ll be discovering the cafés and cultural tertulias which flowed out onto the Avenida de Roma, setting off from where it all began.

At 6.30pm on 1 September, Isabel Ruth (Ilda from Os Verdes Anos), Alfredo Barroso, Ana Louro, Isabel Maria Mendes Ferreira and Lauro António will participate in the tertulia Os cafés de Os Verdes Anos on the terrace of the Vá-Vá café.

O 25 de abril
8 september, 11am
9 september, 11am and 5.30pm
Duration: 2 hours
Maximum participants: 20
Meeting point: Avenida Estados Unidos da América, n.º80 (primeiro logradouro da Av. EUA)

Following the 25 Abril revolution, the Alvalade neighbourhood became the stage for an interrupted party. The cafés and other meeting points would experiment with a greater scenographic intensity, where celebration became a symbol of Freedom.

The cafés and other meetings points during these days of freedom following 25 April, 1974 are the subject of the tertulia which will take place on 8 September at 18:30 in the Vá-Vá café with Eduardo Boavida, Elísio Summavielle, Rui Simões and Miguel Vale de Almeida.

A geração do Rock
22 and 23 september, 5pm
Duration: 1h30
Maximum participants: 20
Meeting Point: Avenida de Roma, n.º74 - antiga pastelaria Sul-América (Burger King)

This itinerary revolves around 1980s meeting places and the emergence of the rock movement. We’ll be paying special attention to the strong presence of garage bands found on the neighbouring Avenida EUA and the way in which cafés were used as meeting places during the many tours. The route ends in the Jardim dos Coruchéus (later renamed Jardim João Ribas).

At 22:30 on 22 September, the Popular de Alvalade music venue will host the last tertulia (dedicated to the rock generation) with Samuel Palitos, Manuel Wiborg, Pedro Oliveira and Pedro Lopes. Before the tertulia, at 22:00 there’ll be an artistic performance in tribute to João Ribas by Isabel Ribas and Maria João Luís.