8½ Otto e Mezzo Bombana
After providing some fine dining experiences in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Beijing, 8½ Otto e Mezzo Bombana finally made its way to Macau to open up a restaurant in Galaxy. Described by many as the “Best Italian Chef in Asia”, Umberto Bombana decided to try his luck outside his country and the result speaks for itself. Besides being appointed as the world’s ambassador for the white truffle, Chef Bombana’s restaurant in Hong Kong was the first and only Three Michelin Stars Italian restaurant outside Italy, being listed in the top 10 of Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants for three consecutive years.
Magazine&More had the opportunity to experience firsthand some of the delicacies offered in the new restaurant by the hand of Chef Antimo Merone, who was chosen by Bombana himself to be the Executive Chef in Macau. “This restaurant is absolutely Bombana. A few of the dishes we are only serving here, others are signature of Bombana. We have a big range of pasta, it’s very popular in our restaurant and it’s always on the menu”, said Chef Antimo.
What we first notice when we get to this place is the doors at the entrance, which are somewhat different from the so-called regular restaurants. When we get inside we notice that the ambient is very intimate, with low lighting but just enough so you can feel relaxed and cozy while you enjoy your food. Before that there is a mini-bar right at the entrance where people can enjoy an appetizer before discovering the menu.
The presentation of the food is exquisite, as expected, and it almost makes it difficult to start eating. There is plenty to choose from on the menu, and so Chef Antimo decided to give us a help crafting a set-menu. “I would say there are a few dishes that are signature of Bombana that are really requested, like the tuna, as well as the Burrata ravioli, which is another signature of Bombana, and there are people coming here just to try that”, he added. And after trying out these dishes, especially the seared red tuna, combined with fennel pollen, tomato citrus emulsion and caviar, it is easy to understand why.
There are 22 people working in the kitchen and the restaurant also makes its own bread and pastry, which is a definitive plus. “During serving time I don’t go out much, when it’s a bit slower I go around and people sometimes want to have a chat with the Chef and I do that with pleasure. Sometimes people ask me how to do something and why I did like this, and I’m happy to reveal the process and ingredients. We use them from different parts of the world, we buy from New Zealand, Australia, Japan, China, Italy, France, Spain, sometimes from the United States”, said Chef Antimo. Some of them are not very easy to find in Macau, at least compared to Hong Kong, but “once you get things in order with your supplier everything goes smoothly”.
It was a weeknight but the restaurant was almost packed. Comments tend to spread and feedback “is very good”, according to Chef Antimo. “We have a lot of regular clients from Hong Kong who come as a curiosity to try the food and they can find here the same respect for the products and quality of the food, and for me this is really important. I’m here carrying a big name on my shoulders and that’s very important for these people”.
8½ Otto e Mezzo Bombana:
Monday to Saturday, from 5pm to 12am
經過香港、上海和北京的細心經營，8½ Otto e Mezzo Bombana終於在澳門銀河酒店亮相。擁有“亞洲最佳意大利烹飪大師”的Umberto Bombana決定走出國門，做出新嘗試。除此之外，Umberto Bombana還被任命世界白松露的使者, 8½ Otto e Mezzo Bombana香港分店還是在意大利以外的首家和唯一一家米芝蓮三星意大利餐廳，同時也是連續三年被列為前十的亞洲50最佳餐廳。
Magazine&More有幸品嘗到由澳門分店主廚Antimo Merone親自炮製的美味佳餚。大廚Antimo Meron是由Bombana親自挑選擔任澳門分店的行政主廚。主廚Antimo說道：“這餐廳是絕對的Bombana，因為有好些菜式只有這裡才有，當然還有我們其他店的特色招牌菜式。我們這裡有各種各樣的意粉，十分受歡迎”。
我們進入餐廳首先發現的是在入口的大門有別于其他餐廳。進入餐廳裡面，氛圍十分優雅私密，幽暗舒適的燈光，讓你在享用美食時還能放鬆心情。在餐廳門前有一迷你bar檯，可供顧客在琢磨餐牌之前享受餐前小食。
與預料一致的是，食物是相當精緻的，讓人不忍心下口。由於餐牌上選擇眾多，因此主廚Antimo建議我們選擇套餐。他還說道：“有一些Bombana的特色菜是不可以錯過的，像吞拿魚和Burrata混沌，都是Bombana的招牌菜式之一，很多顧客都慕名而來。”品嘗過照燒紅吞拿魚配茴香花粉、番茄和魚子醬，你就會知道為什麼這些菜色會成為招牌菜。
餐廳廚房一共有22名廚師和工作人員，而且餐廳還會自己烘焙麵包和製作自家意粉。主廚Antimo說：“一般情況我是不會離開廚房，如果比較閑的時候我會主動地跟一些顧客交談。有時候顧客會問我一些菜式的做法和為什麼我喜歡這樣做，我也會很樂意的分享製作過程和菜式當中所用的材料。我們的食材是全球採購，來自新西蘭、澳大利亞、日本、中國、意大利、法國、西班牙和還有一些是來自美國。”有些食材在澳門比在香港更難找到，但一旦與供應商接洽好，一切都會變得很順利。”
雖說只是一個平日的晚上，但是餐廳幾乎也是爆滿的。一傳十十傳百，大家的反應都是“十分不錯”。Antimo還說：“我們這里會有一些香港來的常客，他們專程過來澳門品嘗我們出品優秀的菜式，當然我們也會以最高品質的菜式來回報我們的顧客。對於我來說，他們的熱忱是十分重要的。我肩負重任和餐廳的名聲，常客們一樣關注和視其重要。”
8½ Otto e Mezzo Bombana:
每逢週一至週六下午5點至凌晨營業。
