Six Macau Michelin-starred Chinese restaurants – the dishes we loved
The gambling capital of Asia has no shortage of great Chinese cooking, but these six restaurants have been awarded one of the highest honours in dining. We give them a try
The end of the gambling monopoly in Macau in 2002 may not have been the best thing for those who loved the city for its once-peaceful, old-fashioned atmosphere, but it was great from a purely culinary perspective. Macau still manages to retain much of its past – the old Portuguese, Chinese and Macanese restaurants that give character to the city, but the cavernous casinos have added many high-end options.
In a previous article on Macau dining, we covered Michelin-starred bargains. This time, we’ll concentrate on some of the Michelin-starred Chinese restaurants.
Interior of The Eight.
Advertisement
The Eight ***
The Eight is one of two restaurants in Macau with the top rating of three Michelin stars, and both are in the Grand Lisboa. We’ve had a stellar dinner there in the past, but the dim sum also receives a lot of attention.
Advertisement
I rarely use the word adorable – I’ve never used it in a food feature – but it’s the perfect adjective to describe some of the dim sum at The Eight.
Crispy barbecued pork buns with preserved vegetables at The Eight.
A fried shrimp and mango dumpling looks like a very spiky fish, the traditional har gao takes the shape of a goldfish, steamed char siu bao comes as a porcupine – complete with quills, while other dumplings are shaped and decorated like cuttlefish and hedgehogs, with wrappers so thin you can glimpse the filling inside. They’re delicious little bites, too, although I wish they had served them slower, so we could enjoy each one while it was hot. It also would have been nice to have the lighter steamed items first, before progressing to baked, then fried.
Har gao crafted to resemble goldfish at The Eight.
Their siu mei (roast meats) are also very good. Siu yuk, made with pork belly, has a delicately crackly skin, and the char siu is tender, with nice charred edges. If you still have space, try the fried rice with sakura shrimp.
