Chinese Matamis

It was already nighttime when the pastry party wrapped up.Dessert came first (hi Lori B!) so the hubby and I  were especially looking forward to dinner for some savory food to cut through the sweets we indulged in. Hinatak namin one of his best friends and the three of us went to nearby Lutong Macau. Di na kami lumayo kasi araw ng sweldo and surely the mall-based restos are packed.

My first visit was when they just opened in the 90s. The novelty of the restaurant as foreshadowed by its catchy and meaningful name instantly drew me to lunch. Chinoy food as I called it, Lutong Macau adapted traditional Chinese food to the Pinoy buds successfully. All the dishes had a hint of sweetness.

On this visit however, aba, yung hint e nagsusumigaw na. Pagkatamis tamis nung gravy ng lechon macau. "Ano 'to Satay?" - aba, bat napunta kong Malaysia....nahilo ako sa byahe a. The dish is bedded by adobong mani. Ah okay. Yung iba ginawang gravy. The lechon had tender meat and crunchy skin, kaya lang may mga parts ng skin na sunog. I dipped each piece in soy-calamansi, ayun. 

Then came the birthday noodles. Looks good! Flavors are oks. Pero, some of the noodles were clumped together and the sauce was over slurry-ed. And yes, matamis.

The pork siomai was okay, pero no different from the lower-end Chinese stalls. Malinamnam pa rin, mas mahal lang. In fairness, hindi matamis.

 Then came dessert este spring rolls. Anuba ang tamis ng filling! As if adding-in salt to injury, may dipping sauce na matamis din! Anak nang pinatungan pa namin ng matamis ang uta namin sa matamis na kinain namin bago nag dinner. Of the three pieces only one was sliced, the other two had cracked wrappers seemingly from an attempt to slice them using a dull knife ("Ay mali! Dali i-serve mo nalang ng ganyan!", I imagine.). They were also a bit soggy.  

Kung yung tamis e napunta nalang sana sa mga waiter - ni isang mapait na ngiti, wala. Kahit nakikita ka na hindi pa lalapit kasi hindi nya istasyon. At bakit special request ang chopsticks? At ang airconditioning? Ehem nako Lutong Macau, nag-abala ka pa. To think evening kami nagpunta ha, ang init parin sa loob.

The next time I want Chinese food on a payday weekend, I'll brave the malls nalang  for hourly waits in Mongkok or standing room Hen Lin. Sulit parin ang hintay sa pila at pagtayo. Hindi over sa tamis, mas mura pa. May pabaon ka pang "Thank you mamser!"