A stone path next to the Regency Art Hotel leads the way to a tranquil pondside corridor – the only access to the secluded Flamingo Restaurant, which reopened several months ago.
Having first opened in 1986, this popular Macanese restaurant has been closed for almost a decade. Finally reopening its doors, Flamingo aims to present the traditional flavours of authentic Macanese cuisine and while offering long term guests sentimental dining experience from Macau’s past.
Inside the restaurant, the decor remains the same as it was in the 80s. The hazel-nut-colour wooden floor blends well with the white-and-orange walls, creating a cozy atmosphere. From the Portuguese style arched door, rooftop and decó like the ceiling fans and chandeliers, to the oriental style peacock paintings and Chinese porcelain, the restaurant is a classic example of the East meeting the West. Sitting in an environment like this, it is easy to yourself at a small pond side bistro in a southern European town.
In order to reproduce traditional tastes, the chef of Flamingo, Marco Chan, has brought back some signature dishes from the restaurant’s past including the classic pastéis de bacalhau (deep-fried dried codfish balls). The chef reveals that the preparation of this dish is very time consuming and he explains that he uses as little tapioca starch as possible, which makes the deep-frying process a bit more difficult as the balls can deform easier, but improves the overall texture of the balls. The outcome is a softer codfish ball that is full of the aromas of bacalhau, olive oil and coriander.
Another signature dish that is worth recommending is the fresh clams and pork. The pork is well-cooked and tender, and the potatos in the dish absorb all the flavors of the clams and pork, while still maintaining their own flavor.
And the most exciting dish of all has to be the curry crab. The chef says he uses eight different spices to create the curry sauce for this dish, which is a perfect match with the fresh crab meat.
But to fully enjoy this dish, one has to eat the Flamingo’s homemade bread soaked with the curry sauce. Since the restaurant still uses a traditional charcoal stove for daily bread baking, their bread always has a lovely lightly smoked aroma, which goes beautifully with curry and crab meat.
