Tim’s Kitchen Macau is one of the handful restaurants who were rewarded Michelin stars. The restaurants is originally from Hong Kong, which is only an hour boat ride across the Zhujiang River Estuary.
Tim’s Kitchen Macau is within Hotel Lisboa on Avenida de Lisboa. Avenida de Lisboa reminds me of the Vegas strip and happens to be only 5 minutes away from the Ferry Terminal. The original Tim’s Kitchen is in Hong Kong and the Macau location is the second restaurant of the two branches. This location is a Michelin one starred restaurant serving high-end traditional Cantonese cuisine.
Macau was on my itinerary for my 2nd trip to Hong Kong. It’s only an hour boat ride from Hong Kong Island Ferry Terminal, which only costs about 172 HKD (i.e., 23 USD) on the TurboJet. However, Hong Kong and Macau are Special Administrative Regions of China, so that means you will have to go through immigration checks at both points of entry and exit. With this in mind, my goal was to wake up early then depart Tsim Sha Tsui around 7 AM to get to the Hong Kong Island Ferry Terminal and then arrive in Macau around 8:30 – 9:00 AM.
Unfortunately, I woke up around 9:00 AM and found myself scrambling to get to the Hong Kong Island Ferry Terminal by 11:00 AM. The first item on my agenda was to get a SIM card when I landed in Macau to help me get around with Google Maps. However, I was having issues with the SIM card and barely made my 12:00 PM lunch reservations at Tim’s Kitchen Macau.
When I stepped into Hotel Lisboa, it was decoration was draped in gold columns and luxurious chandeliers; the endless sea of shops selling jewelry and currency exchange vendors was borderline tacky. I roamed the Hotel Lisboa halls in vain and got completely lost in the hotel. I finally found Tim’s Kitchen Macau among the extravagant hotel decor after 20 minutes.
I was greeted by the hostess then seated by the window. I looked over the menu to decide what I wanted to eat since I was starving and missed breakfast. I finally decided with the help of the waitress who spoke near perfect English. The waitress took my order then brought out my table settings.
As I waited for my food, my eyes wondered the restaurant to noticed the simple classic Chinese decor and the distance between each table provided comfort. It was a contrast between the hotel it was located in. The lunch hour was filled with business men and women discussing trade, market expansion and Chinese politics. My food arrived.
- Australian Wagyu Beef – The Australian Wagyu was a grade 6 and sauteed Hong Kong Style. The chunks of beef decorated with a flower to its side was tasty. It was medium-rare topped with an assortment of chopped peanuts, onions and shallots. The tender beef had a very nice texture to them. It whole dish provided a robust assortment of flavors.
Australian Wagyu Beef - Shiu Mai – The iconic dim sum dish. The shiu mai was topped with roe and thinly slice bamboo shoots; the plump morsels was juicy and provided depth on your palate. The whole flavor of the classic Cantonese was very nice and it reminded me why dim sum is only done right in the south China regions.
Shiu Mai - Fried Rice – The classic Chinese dish served with ginger and minced Yunnan ham. Fried rice is synonymous with Chinese cuisine and Tim’s Kitchen does it well. The flaky soft long grain rice wasn’t drowned out by the overuse of cooking oils.
Fried Rice - Crystal King Prawn – The Crystal King Prawn was the size of a lobster tail. The plump prawn was cooked to perfection; the succulent prawn felt ripe between my teeth as I bit into it. The two sauce was like yin yang providing a comparison of different flavors.
King Prawn
As I looked out the window, I couldn’t help but feel a great appreciation for Chinese cuisine. It took a few years for the Michelin Guide to get their palate around local cuisines in the region and they still haven’t gotten it right with their French influence taste buds. However, I think they still have a long way to go to truly appreciate the local cuisines and cooking techniques in Macau and Hong Kong.
For Americans, Chinese food is viewed as part of the cheap-take-out-fast-food culture. In addition, Chinese food has always been advertised as cheap food and the media has a lot to do with how people perceived things in the States. Tim’s Kitchen Macau is definitely changing the way Chinese food is viewed around the world.
Check out our other Macau articles here.
- Service - 8/108/10
- Presentation - 7/107/10
- Flavors - 7.5/107.5/10
- Decor - 7/107/10
- Ambiance - 7.5/107.5/10
Summary
Tim’s Kitchen is within Hotel Lisboa on Avenida de Lisboa. Tim’s Kitchen is one of the handful restaurants who were rewarded Michelin stars. The one Michelin starred restaurant serving high-end traditional Cantonese cuisine. I definitely recommend the Australian Wagyu, Crystal King Prawn and some dim sum.
