Portugal likes to promote itself as “Europe’s West Coast,” and who can argue with that?

The country gives off a California vibe with its sunny climate, great waves for surfing and a wine industry that has made it the envy of Iberia.

Its cafe and pastry culture wins over skeptics — who doesn’t love pastéis de nata (egg custard tarts)? — and now even gourmands are beginning to take an interest. There are whispers that the new Michelin guide for the area, to be released later this month, will double the number of starred restaurants in the country.

To seal the deal, the country’s retail scene has begun to perk up. In a country famous for producing quality goods for others (from Armani to Louis Vuitton), entrepreneurs are taking pride in showing off “Made in Portugal” brands to the world.

Here are eight reasons to go now — before the word spreads.

1) YES WAY, JOSÉ

The Iberian nation is fast becoming a food destination, and the name most linked to its culinary boom is José Avillez. A prolific restaurateur, he oversees six dining spots in Lisbon’s Chiado neighborhood. Avillez was the first Portuguese chef to earn two Michelin stars, given to his upscale Belcanto restaurant. This summer he unveiled his newest, Bairro do Avillez, which focuses on delicious seafood. His stew-like prawn açorda, prepared with bread, cilantro and red chili, is a must.

2) SOAP BOX(ES)

Toiletries brand Claus Porto is a staple in Portuguese households — the company celebrates its 130th anniversary in 2017.

In recent years, it has won fans overseas, including Oprah Winfrey, thanks to its all-natural, vegetable-based bars of soap in hand-wrapped packaging decorated with art deco designs.

This fall, the fourth-generation firm has expanded into brick-and-mortar outlets, opening its first boutique in Lisbon. Among its best sellers are the lemony Banho soap and its masculine Musgo Real line of fragrances, shaving creams and soaps.

3) JOLLY RANCHERS

It’s hard not to fall for the Alentejo region, with its rugged beauty marked by olive groves, cork forests and vineyards. And visitors fall even harder for São Lourenço do Barrocal, a 200-year-old farmstead that was converted into a hotel this year by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Eduardo Souto de Moura. Here, guests indulge in vintages from the estate’s winery, enjoy a dip in the pool, or soak in a cedar bath in their serene spa. Channel your inner cowboy and saddle up to explore the estate’s nearly 2,000 acres of farmland (from about $160).

4) SHORE THING

Beaches in the Algarve, on Portugal’s southern coast, are hugely popular with tourists. Some even decide to stay for good. After working in finance, French citizen Veronique Polaert and Christian Kraus of Germany saw their future here, specifically in a rundown 19th-century manor in the coastal town of Lagos. Now the estate has been refashioned into a chic 30-room lodging with traditional touches such as latticed screens and terra cotta tiles. The soon-to-open property, called the Casa Mãe Hotel, has two restaurants, a pool, an outdoor movie theater and a shop to buy traditional food and crafts (from $126).

5) SHOP LOCAL

A plucky group of entrepreneurs has emerged out of Portugal’s nagging economic crisis to launch brands that show off the country’s design and manufacturing know-how. Clothing label La Paz does nautical-themed knitwear. Portuguese Flannel makes casual shirts for men in sturdy cotton with a smooth feel. Ideal & Co uses vegetable-tanned leathers and selvage cotton canvas for its bags and backpacks. Wolf & Son crafts classic leather footwear and suede sneakers for fathers and sons. Chocolataria Equador seduces sweet tooths with chocolate bars in 1940s-style wrappers and exotic fillings, from mango to port.

6) MOUNTAIN HIGH

High up in the Serra da Estrela mountains in a glacial valley sits Casa das Penhas Douradas, an 18-room boutique hotel that smartly mixes vintage Scandinavian furniture with modern Portuguese design (from $130). Cozy elements found throughout the property include colorful bedspreads and blankets and carpets in burel, a hard-wearing wool donned by local shepherds since medieval times. The hotel’s owners have revived interest in burel and now produce bags and homewares available for sale in their Burel Factory stores in Lisbon and Porto.

7) AMAZING ARCHITECTURE

Portugal’s cultural institutions got a boost this year from architects who know how to beautify the built landscape. First, Pritzker Prize winner Álvaro Siza Vieira unveiled a museum dedicated to abstract painter Nadir Afonso; the result is an immaculate white concrete complex in Chaves. Siza Vieira then teamed with countryman Eduardo Souto de Moura in Santo Tirso for a municipal and sculpture museum project called the Municipal Museum Abade Pedrosa (MMAP). Last month, it was Lisbon’s turn with the opening on the riverfront of the undulating MAAT (Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology), a building by British architect Amanda Levete.

8) FOOD WITH A VIEW

Set into a cliff on the Atlantic coast and sporting a saltwater swimming pool fed by the waves, Azenhas do Mar is heaven for seafood lovers. Owner João Pedro Cunha guarantees fresh ingredients by spearfishing sea bass and bream along the southeastern coast. He also risks life and limb to pry the local delicacy percebes (goose barnacles) off rocks in the pounding surf. Try them as a starter while sipping a dazzling white from local winery Casal Santa Maria and soak up the panoramic sea views.