Pigeon actually isn't that bad. It has extremely dark, tender meat, though not very much of it. From what I remember of duck and goose, it's more similar to those than to chicken. For once, something that doesn't taste like chicken!
One of the foods that Macau is known for is the Portuguese egg tart. Yes, Portuguese. Macau was a colony of Portugal until recently, and the European influence is plain there. Egg tarts are common in Asia, but the Portuguese take on the Asian staple is simply delicious. Flaky pastry, sweet egg custard, and a sprinkle of cinnamon. The tart is also subjected to flame like a crème brûlée. É maravilhoso!
On the pastry note, bakeries were extremely abundant in both Macau and Hong Kong, much to our delight. Many cakes were eaten, some familiar, such as the chocolate and hazelnut creme cake pictures, and some were a little more localized, like the purple yam and red bean cake I sampled in Hong Kong. It was gone before I could take a photo, but yes, it was in fact purple.
Due to some amazing stroke of luck, our one-day visit to Macau fell during the Macau Food Festival. Rad! Food prices were a little steep, but that was fine, it was a festival of food. A gluttony fair, if you will. We loaded up on meal coupons and sampled quite a few of the different stalls. I remember having some spinach gyoza, Portuguese sliced meats baked into a cheese roll, and samosa with three sauces. Some lemonade with sour plum was consumed as well.
The other two travelling with me had some dim sum among other things, and so our last mean in Macau was a super success.
The first meal in Hong Kong was significantly better than the first in Macau (the pigeon, if you remember). We hit up a fancy-looking deli and market for some sandwiches, which were actually quite inexpensive and very, very good. Mine was a smoked ham sandwich with mustard, tomatoes, lettuce, pickles, and apples. Mmmm. It was good to have real bread. I don't get sandwiches very often in Singapore, and when I do they're from Subway. Sad panda.
Also in the deli market was a bakery with pastries (of course), where more egg tarts were purchased. There was also a giant gingerbread Later on in the Hong Kong trip we ascended Victoria Peak via tram, one of the essential tourist activities in the Pearl of the Orient. At the top there are two malls (of course), one of which had a New York Fries. Which served poutine. I went into hysterics. The other guy travelling with me lives in Austria, and had never heard of poutine, so, like any self-respecting Canadian, I introduced him to the caloric goodness. For those of you who don't know, poutine in a Quebecois dish consisting of hot French fries, fresh cheese curds, and brown gravy. Best.
At this point, you might be noticing a lack in, how shall I say it, Asian food. I really did eat "Asian food" most of the time, but the delicious and momentous things just happened to be, well, not.
However, our second day in Hong Kong we jumped on the tram and rode it to the end of the line to see what we could see. We happened upon a dessert café that offered many typical Hong Kong deserts. Most of them involved mango, and most were a sort of pudding or soup. I had a mango-based dessert, which also had dragonfruit, pomelo, and sago. Sago is just a starch that, at least in Hong Kong, is usually found as an edible pearl similar to the black tapioca pearls in bubbletea. The dragonfruit was my favourite, but mango is starting to grow on me.
This last photo wasn't our last meal in Hong Kong, but it was the last food photo I took (aside from the Mickey Mouse waffle). It's also proof that we consumed Asian food, although this wasn't my plate. But this one looks more pretty than mine. Mine looked like a pile of brains. But it was more delicious than that. I think. Never had brains, so I can't compare.
Anywho, suffice to say that it was a delicious trip!
all photos by me, more of Flickr.
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