Saturday, September 10, 2011

Greasy (This week's Photo Hunt theme)




In the quiet village of Coloane down near Macau's southern tip, there is a purveyor of decadent edibles such as its trademark egg tarts that scores of people happily go out of their way to get their hands on the establishment's greasy delights. Although Lord Stow's Bakery now has branches elsewhere (including at the opulent Venetian Macao and outlets in Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong and the Philippines), my preference -- and that of many others -- is to solely head to its original location at Coloane Town Square.

Its exterior may appear modest but I think it adds to its charm. And not only is the sales area full of goodies but you also can see the establishment's usually seriously busy bakers at work producing their undeniably greasy but oh so delicious Macanese egg tarts (which, funnily enough, were created at that location by an Englishman, albeit one who lived and worked for years in the former Portuguese enclave that now is a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China).

So how good are Lord Stow's Bakery's egg tarts? Let's just say that on my visits to Macau, I find myself regularly unable to resist having one -- and sometimes even two -- of these tarts that taste like they have crème brûlée centers for tea, even after having had my usual large Macanese lunch. And despite seeing all the grease oozing out to stain the brown bag that it's put into at the bakery in mere minutes! (A question for my fellow Photo Hunters: Why oh why does super greasy food that probably is not very good for you often taste oh so very heavenly?! ;S)

26 comments:

ancient one said...

I know.. those greasy foods are always soooo good! Great post for the theme.

Carver said...

That's the kind of greasy food I do find tempting. I don't think of myself as liking greasy food but pastries are definitely an exception. I am tempted by egg tarts and coissants. Happy Weekend!

baroness radon said...

I'm drooling.

eastcoastlife said...

Thanks for the info. I may be heading to Macau and this saves me checking up for the best egg tart.

Do you know where is the famous pork chop bun shop in Macau? yum

Not into shopping these days so looking for good eats when I travel. :P

Anneke (Mudhooks) said...

I love those egg tarts. But they aren't as greasy, here. The sweets I have real difficulty finding are Lotus Paste balls. I can find them in Toronto and there used to be a Chinese bakery where we could get them but they closed. There is a huge oriental grocery store and while they have all sorts of pastries, including the egg tarts, they don't have ANY of the deep-fried dumplings!!!!

My entry isn't edible.

YTSL said...

Hi ancient one --

Teehee and thanks! :)

Hi Carver --

If you like egg tarts, you should come visit Hong Kong and Macau and do an egg tart tour/comparison! :b

Hi baroness radon --

Would it be correct to gather that you too have good memories of Lord Stow's egg tarts? ;b

Hi eastcoastlife --

To be honest, I'm happy enough with the pork chop buns I can get in Hong Kong that I don't go about searching for the famous pork chop bun shop in Macau. But here's a link to another blog's post on the subject that may be helpful to you:-

http://epicurious.wordpress.com/2009/06/11/battle-of-the-macau-pork-chop-buns/

Hi Anneke --

Lotus paste balls? Hmmm... are they dragon balls, by any chance? Or do you mean longevity buns with lotus paste in them? If the latter, try looking for them in vegetarian (pastry) shops. Only be careful since there also are longevity buns with custard fillings. :)

Anonymous said...

Those egg tarts look just like the Portuguese pasteis de nata, which are truly addictive (and not at all greasy). Interesting as Macau was once a Portuguese colony.

Colin Campbell said...

Mostly I like greasy food. Plenty here in Australia. Interesting perspective as always YTSL.

Annie said...

I'd like to try one of these! I'm not a big fan of greasy food for the most part, but there are definitely exceptions like this

About your comment on mine, Venice gets an undeserved bad rap for its food. There are some uninspired tourist trap places, but if you try to eat where the locals do, the food is very good.

Happy weekend!

MaR said...

Those goodies look like the Portuguese Belem custard tarts! delicious...!

So sorry about your allergy, but I myself prefer liquid soaps :)
Happy weekend!

greasy...

YTSL said...

Hi azahar --

I'm sure that Macanese egg tarts are largely influenced by the Portuguese egg tarts. It seems though that there's some innovation which makes them a bit different from the Portuguese egg tarts. At the very least, they most certainly are very different from Hong Kong egg tarts. :)

Hi Colin --

The one time I visited Australia (years ago on a youth exchange), I remember eating quite a lot of barbecue food. Now that's greasy! ;b

Hi Annie --

Still more re food in Venice: that sounds promising... only if I go to Venice, I'll be a tourist and worry that it'll be hard to get off the beaten path without getting too lost! ;S

Hi Mar --

Hehehe... never thought we'd be having a discussion on soap this week but there you have the creativity of Photo Hunters! ;b

Gattina said...

Fortunately I don't like cakes too much and greasy things make me sick !

Trekcapri said...

Hi YTSL, these egg tarts looks delicious. I love Flan and if these tarts are similar I think I would drive to great lengths to have them too. :)

Interesting to learn the background history of who created this yummy dessert.

LifeRamblings said...

you can never go wrong with Macanese egg tarts. the entire tart is tasty enough to be gobbled up in seconds. hard to find really good ones in Penang.:(

Liz said...

I love egg tart! That one looks so good.

Have a fabulous weekend.

Liz @ MLC

jams o donnell said...

Ooh it looks wonderful YTSL. It is a shame that the devil not only ha the best tunes but also the tastiest grub!

Anonymous said...

Egg custard tarts are woderful! Happily none of the ones that I have eaten left a grease mark on the paper like that one!

Have a great weekend.

Susan Demeter said...

We do have them in Toronto too and they are yummy! :) Happy weekend and photo hunting!

Anonymous said...

MMmm - yummy greasy stuff!

YTSL said...

Hi Gattina --

I'm actually not a big cake fan but do love Macanese egg tarts (and Hong Kong's pineapple buns). Re greasy things: everything in moderation, even them?! ;b

Hi Trekcapri --

Hmmm, if you like flan, you might prefer the Hong Kong egg tarts which are more... custardy. ;b

Hi Life Ramblings --

I haven't even tried to find one in Penang. While there, I prefer my oondeh oondeh! :b

Hi Liz --

It was good. Worth a special journey, as the Michelin guide would say. :)

Hi jams --

Trust me -- it *is* wonderful! :D

Hi JdeQ --

Maybe it was the paper that was especially good at catching grease... she says hopefully. ;S

Hi Sue --

Good for you in Toronto! :b

Hi archiearchive --

Exactly! :D

Hi

sarah bailey knight said...

hi ytsl,

So yummy looking. The egg tarts we ate in Montreal this past summer were good but I'll bet nowhere near as good as the Macau ones.

YTSL said...

Hi sbk --

Did you have Macanese or Hong Kong style egg tarts in Montreal -- or something else altogether? ;b

sarah bailey knight said...

hi ytsl,

We had the Hong Kong style egg tarts in Montreal. I haven't seen any other style in Monteal.

YTSL said...

Hi sbk --

Hong Kong style egg tarts can be very good but, in truth, I think Macau has Hong Kong beat in the egg tart category! ;)

Moggsy said...

It is soo true about the greasy food.

YTSL said...

Hi Moggsy --

I find some non-greasy food tasty too... but they tend to be on the fatty side (nonetheless)... ;(