Henrique Sá Pessoa was born in Lisboa, but it was during an exchange in the United States that he discovered a taste for cooking while attending a lecture about the Cordon Bleu Institute, where the environment would later come to study. He has worked in several famous restaurants, such as Panorama restaurant at the Sheraton Hotel and Hotel da Lapa, both in Lisbon, at the Sheraton on the Park, in Sydney, Australia, and at the Sheraton Park Lane, in London.

Among several prizes, he won the Chef of the Year 2005 competition, was considered the figure of the year 2007 by the Portuguese magazine “Intermagazine”, awarded with the prize “Arteda Cozinha” 2007 given by the “Academia de Gastronomia Portuguesa” and won GQ Men Of The Year Portugal  also in 2007. In 2008 he was awarded in the 1st edition of the Horexpo Cup.

He opened his first solo project, Alma restaurant, in 2009 which was named Restaurant of the Year by “Revistade Vinhos”.

In 2015, reopened Alma in the heart of Lisbon, Chiado, in a much larger and more sophisticated, so that it was finally possible for his restaurant to appear among the main ones in Europe. The reopening was so successful that, in the year after it happened, Alma was awarded its first Michelin star and the bill would not take long to increase: two years later, in 2018, Alma won the second star.

Regularly seen with great success on culinary tv series, he defines his as a tasteful cuisine: refined taste, perfect technique, and excellent product. The basis of his culinary philosophy is in his influences and references: travels around the world, the passion for Asia, the knowledge of traditional Portuguese cuisine, the life in Lisbon.

In September 2022, Henrique Sá Pessoa achieved is place in the list of The Best Chef Awards in the 70th position.