This article first appeared in the Sep/Oct 2013 issue of World Gaming magazine.
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SAFFRON
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| Galaxy Macau |
| Open 07:00 to 23:00 (7 days) |
| Telephone +853 8883 6061 |
A tired, hungry and forlorn Panda wandered into Saffron straight from the ferry looking for some Thai relief. That’s exactly what he received.
So here I was getting off a long haul flight, missing my ferry and looking forward to reviewing the Thai restaurant that everyone is talking about in Macau. Just a few days earlier I was browsing WGM’s website wgm8.com and had read the article written by World Gaming’s Yuci Tai on the cooking classes run by Saffron head chef Gina. But as much as the idea of learning this fine craft appeals to me, the Panda has always been more interested in the eating side of things.
Saffron was recommended in the 2013 Michelin Guide for Hong Kong and Macau and is situated at the Banyan Tree hotel at Galaxy Macau. On this particular day I jumped off the ferry from Hong Kong, rushed my way through immigration and hailed the first cab I could … destination Saffron! The cab pulled up at the Banyan Tree Hotel entry and sitting just to my right at the edge of the foyer is the place I’ve been looking for. I was running terribly late, had been travelling for 16 hours and was thankful that my wandering had come to an end with the promise of a good feed ahead.
Saffron is like everything else at Galaxy – it simply works. The restaurant is immaculately presented with plush carpeting and enticing décor. Being located just off the foyer of the Banyan Tree makes this restaurant very peaceful. It doesn’t have that underpinning of frenetic pace like the eateries located in the main Galaxy shopping arcades tend to, which is great because Thai food should be eaten in peaceful surrounds. As far as decoration goes, I was struck by the incredible gold statues that appear to be half dragon, half elephant. They kept me amused throughout my meal and every time I looked at the statue from a different angle it looked like something else. Maybe I was just delirious, but I found it entertaining nonetheless.
While Macau keeps on rolling faster than a runaway truck down an icy mountain road, it will continue to steal some of the best chefs from all over the world. Chef Gina was awarded gold and silver medals in Thailand’s national “Thai Food Competition” over three consecutive years from 2004 to 2006. She also won the silver medal in the 2005 “Som Tam” contest. Thais are very proud of their food and you don’t become a multi award-winning chef in Thailand unless you really know what you are doing.
Chef Gina actually came out of the kitchen to welcome me upon my arrival. Here was one of the best Thai chefs in the world and I had made her wait all evening to answer a few of my silly questions. I felt bad but she quickly put my mind at ease.
“My mum was a great cook and from a young age I wanted to always be a chef,” she told me. “So I am very lucky to be one of those people that is living their dream.”
I also asked Chef Gina for her surname She laughed and spelled it out – Kanowkan Pungjaroenkijul. No wonder she goes by Chef Gina!
So why did Chef Gina leave her beautiful homeland for the bright lights of Macau?
“I was very keen to work overseas,” she explained, “to bring signature Thai dishes to a new audience.
“I love Macau because it is very safe and there are no traffic jams (laughs). It’s a small country and I love preparing food for my customers here that come from all over the world.”
Wary that Panda Soup might be the next dish on the menu if I held Chef Gina up any longer, I thanked her and prepared myself to eat – letting her know in the process that I like my Thai spicy!
Fried marinated pork neck
Beginning with a glass of New Zealand Pinot Noir – which I thought was the perfect accompaniment to some spicy Thai food – I tucked into some traditional Thai crackers with dipping sauce followed by crab cakes with sweet sauce, chicken satay sticks, an incredible crunchy salad with grapefruit and some perfectly seared meat with another Thai dipping sauce. We were off to a good start.
Next came the Tom Yum Soup – one of my favourites and a traditional Thai cuisine litmus test. It included big king prawns, chunks of lemongrass and an abundance of flavor and spice. I hit a hot spot and found myself reaching more and more for the wine to quell my excessive eagerness. I have always found the encouragement to imbibe to be one of the benefits of eating hot food.
The mains consisted of fried fish on fresh pineapple, beef in a rich, savoury gravy and a red chicken curry. My favourite dish was some mouth-watering king prawns served with peeled asparagus and shitake mushrooms. I love asparagus and this was perfectly prepared. The saffron and ginger rice was some of the best I have had and this was all followed by a coconut sponge cake with the finest coconut ice cream I have ever eaten.
I couldn’t have asked for a better way to put the dramas of my long day of travelling behind me. I was high on chili, red wine and the enjoyment of Saffron’s attentive service in a relaxing environment. Galaxy Macau doesn’t do much wrong and Saffron is another reason to keep people coming back.
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Food
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8.0/10
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Service
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9.0/10
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Value
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7.5/10
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Setting
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8.5/10
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Drinks
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8.0/10
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Overall
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16.0/20
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