The newly opened Justindia sees the return of one of the city’s favourite chefs and his signature dishes
Photos MACAUEAT Kitchen & Studio
It’s fair to say that Chef Justin Paul is the most well-known and well-loved Indian chef in Macau. His reputation for using high quality ingredients to create authentic, yet inventive Indian cuisine, not too mention providing warm and friendly service for nearly two decades, is very much deserved. And now that he has opened his new restaurant Justindia in the NAPE area, many more local diners have the chance to try his fantastic culinary creations.
After more than 20 years of working in fine dining restaurants in India, Hong Kong and Macau, this is Chef Justin’s first venture into operating his own restaurant, and he brings with him a wealth of experience and a very talented team.
“Including me, we have five chefs altogether,” says Chef Justin. “They are all people I have worked with in the past, friends of mine from different regions of India – Kolkata, Rajasthan, Himachal, Chennai, Kerala. So we are serving cuisine from all over the country.”
As well as delicious foods, there is also a selection of exotic cocktails on offer to add to the unique charm of the restaurant.
“We use lots of herbs and roots from India even for the cocktails,” explains Chef Justin. “Aloe vera, cinnamon, carom seeds, sundried black lemon, as well as whiskey and gin from India.”
All these exotic ingredients result in a variety of uniquely refreshing, elegant and intriguing cocktails that match the rich flavours of the food perfectly, and are also great to enjoy on their own at the daily happy hour from 5 to 7pm.
As for the ingredients for the dishes, Chef Justin likes to combine local fresh produce with a wide range of products imported directly from India.
“We have eight different types of chutney, as well as various pickles and naan bread, all homemade,” he notes. “Many of the spices like black pepper, nutmeg and green cardamon are sourced from my home town of Idukki in Kerala in the south of India.”
“I source the beef from Kattappana in the highlands of Kerala. They make this type of beef especially for my restaurant, sun dried and charcoal smoked. Then we crush it in the blender and sautee with spices to make our special Kattappana Beef.”
Other must-try dishes include Chef’s wagyu beef samosas and the always popular Kandari murgh tikka – chicken twice seasoned with coriander, cumin and dry chili, beetroot and pomegranate to give rich colours and flavours, and then slow cooked in yoghurt to keep in all the moisture.
And it’s not just the ingredients that are authentically Indian. The impressively heavy white brass bowls are also sourced from Chef’s Justin’s home country. And the vibrant paintings adorning the walls were painted in Macau by one of Chef’s childhood friends, artist Suku Bhaskar.
“We have known each other since primary school and nowadays he is quite a famous painter in India, travelling all over the country painting churches and temples. He had never left India, so I brought him here to Macau for two weeks. He painted one canvas a day and they represent different regions of India – Goa, Lucknow, Kolkata, Kerala and Rajasthan – as well as some famous aspects of the culture and festive traditions, like Holi fest.”
Chef Justin first arrived in Macau in 2007 and soon after began working at the then newly opened Venetian Macao in the banquets department. At the time he was the only Indian chef on staff. In the same year, and then again in 2009, the Venetian hosted the IIFA (International Indian Film Academy) Awards which greatly increased the number of Indian guests at the property. In 2013, the hotel opened its first dedicated Indian restaurant Golden Peacock with Chef Justin at the helm.
Under his leadership, Golden Peacock earned a One Michelin star rating, becoming the first Indian restaurant to be awarded a Michelin Star in Asia.
“We maintained our Michelin Star for eight consecutive years,” he says proudly.
Sadly, the restaurant closed in 2020 due to Covid, but his time there taught Chef Justin a great deal about running a restaurant and the preferences of Chinese customers.
“We employed a lot of Chinese staff from all over China and whenever I prepared a new dish, I would always give it to the Chinese staff first to see what they thought of it,” he remembers.
With many fond memories of his time at Golden Peacock, Chef Justin is excited to now have his own restaurant.
“There were some limitations there. My new restaurant is not strictly halal so I have more creative freedom to offer a wider range of dishes here.”
Nonetheless, many of his old customers still salivate for his classic signature dishes, so he has kept some of them on the menu too.
Justindia is open for lunch and dinner, offering a choice of five set menus for lunch and either a 5-course or 8-course set for dinner, with an A-la-carte menu coming soon. Seating just 24 pax, making a reservation is highly recommended.
When Golden Peacock closed, uncertain of his future in Macau, Chef Justin went back to India for four months before returning shortly after. Now, with his wife and two daughters all living here in Macau, and a new restaurant as well, the good news is we should all be eating Chef Justin’s fantastically innovative dishes for many years to come!
Justindia
R. de Bruxelas, 59 Edf. Jardim Fu Tat, Building AK, Macau
Opening Hours: 11:30am – 12am (Closed on Tuesdays)
Reservations : +853 6208 3100
