Portugal is very well known for its sweet delicacies. From Pasteis de Nata (cream pastries) - the most famous dish - to amazing cakes, if you like sweets, this country is made for you.
History
Portuguese sweets are a tradition in the country created by the catholic orders that ruled the place during the 12th to 16th centuries. In that time, there used to be hundreds of monastries in the country, and each of them had a recipy for a sweet that they used to sell to the community to earn some more money.
When the religious orders were expelled and forbidden in Portugal, everything the monks and nuns had left was their sweet recipies, so they opened many bakeries (or pastelarias in portuguese) in the country. That's when Portugal became famous for the sweet gastronomy.
Some of this religious orders took this traditions to other countries during colonization, that's why you can find many bakeries in Brazil as well, for example.
Recipes
The most important ingredients in portuguese sweet recipes are: eggs (mostly egg yolks), sugar and almonds.
In the 15th and 16th centuries, Portugal was the biggest egg producer in the world. But, due to the difficulty to transport the whole eggs without breaking or rotting, the country used to sell only the egg whites in a wine making product. Therefore, the egg yolks need to be used for something.
When the portuguese navigations started and the sugar got more popular, religious orders would buy yolks, since they were cheap, to make sweets. That's how recipies such as Pasteis de Nata, were born.
Briosa
Coimbra used to have many monastries during the Middle Age and Renaissance, so, after the religious orders vanished, the city got many bakeries and typical sweet delicacy.
Pastelaria Briosa is one of those, and probably the biggest one. There you can try almost all of portuguese sweets, and it is a great place for having a coffee during the afternoon.
Location
Like most bakeries in town, Pastelaria Briosa is located in downtown Coimbra just in front of Largo da Portagem. A priviledged location, with a great view to Mondego river and in a very cute and traditional street.
Every tourist in Coimbra must visit this place. If you're living in Coimbra, once you go there, you will come back many times.
What to eat
Briosa serves almost any snack you would like, from salty pies to sandwiches, but most of all portuguese sweets. They have typical delicacies such as a huge Suspiro, kind of a biscuit made of eggs whites (since the eggs yolks are used for most of the other sweets) and sugar - delicious.
Also, you must try Briosa pastries, a puff pastry fulled with almond and egg cream. The sweet is inspired in Tentúgal pastries, a typical dish from a city very near Coimbra.
Other typical dishes are Santa Clara pastries, a recipy from Santa Clara monastry in Coimbra; Ovos Moles, a small egg yolk sweet in the shape of and egg that are typical of Aveiro; and, of course, Pasteis de Nata (cream pastry), the most famous sweet delicacy in Portugal.
