Dona Estefânia - Fábrica de Queijadas e Travesseiros de Sintra

"Hot batches of pillows and cheesecakes have been coming out for two years throughout the day at this recent factory, which is already a success story. Dona Estefânia is the new addition to local sweets in Sintra, with the name of a queen. She is from Sintra, graduated in Health and Sports but is an example that a son of a fish knows how to swim. With parents and uncles who were pastry chefs, Pedro Gomes always grew up around cakes and ovens. “I slept on the bags of flour”, laughs the pastry chef at Dona Estefânia, the pillow and cheese factory that was founded two years ago in Sintra. The desire was already old, but it came true when he met co-founder Paulo Veríssimo. Six months later, they were opening doors. Right at the entrance to the space, which has a room and terrace where 70 diners sit, attention turns to the open production area, where anyone can take a look at the various manufacturing processes, from the making of the bases to the output of the batches. “There are no secrets here,” says Pedro. The pillows, without the folds of puff pastry and with a reinforced dose of filling, are sold in three sizes (normal, mini and candy). Around two thousand units are made per day. As for the cheesecakes, you can try them individually, in a mini version or in a one-kilo pie. The secret of both “is in the quality of the product”, from Algarve almonds to local cow's cheese."

"In this bakery, you will find our homemade, artisanal production, including the famous Queijadas de Sintra along with other traditional cakes."