Of a land across the ocean - Macau - Part 3

O lord, really, the egg tarts! Before going to Macau, I have been told to try a few things. Namely, the portugese egg tarts, the almond cookies and the pork chop buns! And I tried them a plenty certainly.

However, not all shops sell good ones though. For the egg tarts, many shops sell these, especially along the more touristy spots going up to the Ruins of St. Paul. Most are smaller version tarts. Taste quite nice, but nothing really spectacular. The ones we went for was in the sleepy town of Coloane, to try at Lord Stow's Cafe. The egg tarts taste quite good, and the difference is in the smoothness and richness of the fillings and the crispiness of the pastry, which incidentally, still stayed crisp even after 6 hours (yes! we ta-paued some back to the hotel). I think it is one of the better egg tarts I have tried, but alas, couldn't bring some back to Malaysia. However, not cheap though, each egg tart costs MOP7, which is about RM3.30!! Imagine paying that here in KL, but I guess when one is away on holiday, the willingness to spend is greater.

Another must try (as I have been told) is the pork chop buns. We went to various shops to sample the goods, but I think the nicest I tried was near the St. Joseph Seminary Church. They sell curry noodles there too, but I think famous for their pork chop buns. Since there were seven of us, we had to wait a bit to get seats, and even had share the pork chop buns. Couldn't even have one each!!! We wanted to order more, but the owners "rationed" us because they were fast running out! Imagine that! The shop was kind of small and a bit cramped, but I guess that's the novelty of it all. Lots of customers though, and at times, there was even a queue for seats.

What is not so commonly known, is that this shop called "Mak Si Fu Tim Pan", situated in one of the smaller alleyways near Senado Square. Think the owner has been in business for over 15 years, and his tong sui (dessert) is a must try! I particularly liked the black sesame tong yuin (glutinous rice balls) with some peanut paste filling, and had it three days in a row. It was creamy, rich tasting and non too sweet! Yummy!

The only thing is the lack of seats, but my group was comfortable just getting some chairs and sitting outside the shop. The weather in Macau was cooling the time we went, so it was very pleasant. We even did some promotional activities for Mak Si Fu, especially when som fae others walked pass the shop and contemplated whether to eat or not, we happily receommended our favourite desserts!

Almond cookies? Well, to be honest, not my favourite, but came highly recommended when one goes to Macau. I think the quality differed from shop to shop, and there were certainly so many shops selling almond cookies. The good thing is that one can try the cookies before buying, so can pick and choose which suited individual taste. They make good souvenirs to bring back home though, and the cookies were presentably packed as gifts. Still, I would prefer Lord Stow's portugese egg tarts or Mak Si Fu's desserts anytime. But alas, was unable to ta-pau back.

I didn't manage to take more food pictures though, but we certainly ate a lot during the trip. Even tried the local Dim Sum in one of the shops we chanced upon for breakfast. Left it to my friends who were more than trigger happy to do the snapping of photos. One thing we didn't manage to try, was authentic portugese food. Perhaps next time. The only thing I found not satisfying was the chilly oil. Think Macau shops used some kind of bean paste. Hong Kong's chilly oil still reigns supreme! However, Macau still have so much food types to offer, so, if you ever do go to Macau, do try out the various food there.