港澳冰室 HK Macau Bistro

🇲🇴 MACAU / While there is no smoke-filled room to play baccarat or bet on greyhounds in after your meal, the sights and flavors of vibrant Macau have a new home in San Gabriel.

🇲🇴 MACAU and 🇭🇰 HONG KONG
📍 708 E. Las Tunas Drive,
San Gabriel, San Gabriel Valley
🅿️ Ample parking in plaza
🥤 No Alcohol

EDITOR'S NOTE: 🎩 H/t @mark__kai (IG)

📸 All photos by Jared Cohee
for Eat the World Los Angeles

While not as common as decades past, chances are if you have made some friends in your travels to Macau, you were invited to a cha gordo, or at least heard about them. This thoroughly Macanese version of high tea (“cha gordo” means fat tea in Portuguese) mostly reserved for special occasions includes hours of fun for all ages, a dozen or more dishes, and of course plenty of hot tea.

Now Los Angeles has a place to indulge in this merging of Cantonese and Portuguese treats. While there are a decent amount of Hong Kong-style cafés (called a “cha chaan tang”) in the San Gabriel Valley, this is the first that shares the culture of Macau with Southern California. Many foods are shared between Macau and Hong Kong and those show up on the menu as well.

The new restaurant still feels its age, slowly being decorated with street signs in both Chinese and Portuguese like you would see in Macau. The centerpiece is the bright neon combination skyline on the back wall. Each table has an elaborately patterned set of mahjong tiles in different colors. While there might not be the iconic minchi or Portuguese egg tarts offered, there is plenty to show off the cuisine.

With the slow drawl of Hong Kong Cantonese filling the air, the first item that should go on top of your mahjong table is of course an HK style milk tea or coffee ($3.50, below) which comes in their beautiful custom cup. You can also get the two mixed, a curiosity from Hong Kong worth enjoying if you have not yet. Having the milky brew helps you go over the long menu, which can be a little intimidating. As the level of your coffee or tea eventually goes down, they will come around and offer a refill, a very pleasant surprise.