Macau

Really decent Chinese food with lovely service and there’s also an old fashioned vibe to Macau. BYOB and good vegetarian options (deep fried aubergine and bean curd dishes included). I’d especially recommend the vegetables in satay sauce with boiled rice. Great for a tranquil evening out.

A great BYO serving up authentic quality Chinese cuisine. The food is fresh, the menu varied — all your usual favourites with a few more thrown in. The Monkfish Hotpot is a firm favourite. Friendly and attentive staff. Great for groups as it can be quite noisy at crammed at peak times. Corkage £2.50. FYI — totally authentic so don’t ask for chips!

Before I say anything else, I will say this. Out of all the cuisines of the world, Chinese food is pretty much my least favourite (yes, I know, I’m one of the few!)
I went here with work, who I imagine booked it as a safe bet, and hoped I could at least find something I would be able to eat on the menu, and understandably, did not have overly high hopes for the food.
Upon arrival, our party were promtly shown to our table, drinks orders taken, and menus distributed. The waiter seemed keen to make us feel accommodated, so I asked him if he could recommend me something, as I did not usually eat Chinese food and didn’t know what to get.
He recommended the Chili squid to me, which didn’t appeal greatly (never eaten squid before) but he assured me that this is one of their most popular dishes. At this point, others in our party were discussing getting a variety of food and sharing, so I decided to go ahead and order it.
After a reasonable amount of time, the food arrived, and I tried the squid with a lot of trepidation, but he was totally right, it was highly deserving of its place of one of the most popular dishes… I’m converted!

Ate out here for the first time after hearing great reports and I wasn’t disappointed.
It’s a great place to go with a group of friends before a night out as it offers a bring your own option. However, remember to read the small print as they do charge a glass recycling fee of £2. We still weren’t sure at the of meal what way it was worked out but I think it’s two quid for each person drinking, which still works out cheaper than paying for drink at the restaurant.
The starter’s are wonderful, nearly better than the mains. I chose the honey and chilli prawns which were divine but if your not a fan of hot food stay away as they were pretty steaming! A friend ordered the squid which I practically munched of his plate, definitely one I would choose again.
For mains I went down the plain and simple aka BORING option and got chicken fried rice. It was alright, nothing special. However I yet again dipped into my neighbour’s dish, he went for the monk fish hotpot. Again, divine. Great texture and flavours.
The restaurant itself is very busy and quite loud so you find yourself shouting over people to carry a conversation, but then again when a few drinks pass your lips you tend to do this anyway!

Macau is a place of contrasts. When you say Chinese restaurant to someone they immediately think of a small basic Chinese takeaway and although I must admit this place has the look of one of these, the food is of a really high quality. I love the food in this place and although the décor is somewhat to be desired, the food more than makes up for it.
On my first visit I was really worried, because first impressions are so important, but after I sampled their sweet chilli chicken I was a little annoyed at myself for judging the place so quickly. I would love to suggest people to go here because the food really is great, but I am often hesitant to do so because the experience as a whole is lessened somewhat by the surroundings.

I love Macau. The restaurant in Belfast that is, not the city in Hong Kong, although I would love to go to Hong Kong too. Macau is a regular spot foe me when I go out with the great bunch of girls I used to work with. One of the group goes to Macau every weekend with her family and she is always greeted like a member of family and by association we are greeted as long time friends too.
This isn’t the fanciest restaurant in terms of décor and furniture but who cares when the food is so good. I have never had a bad meal in Macau, or indeed an average meal. The food is what I would call authentic Chinese cuisine — no gloopy sauces or unnatural orange colours, just fresh ingredients, crispy vegetables and lots of spice and flavour. The menu has some unusual choices and lots of fish, including a special depending on what fresh fish they have. Last time it was a whole turbot in ginger and chilli which was hard work to eat but worth the effort. The flesh was light and firm and the broth it was in was also light and had beautiful flavours. I had noodles and beansprouts with my fish and some of the special fried rice and both were lovely.
Now for some more good news — Macau is byo which means you’ll have a fab meal and be able to keep the costs down. Large groups will enjoy the buzzy atmosphere but families are also very well looked after too.

I’m a little bit reluctant to add Macau to this site as it’s a bit of hidden gem. It’s one of Belfast’s finest chinese restaurants — the décor is uninspiring to say the least, but with such wonderful food (served in very generous portions — one starter between two is more than enough), who cares? The dishes are all very competitively priced and it’s also BYO, which makes for a very reasonable night out.
The scallion and ginger dip served with the prawn crackers is worth thr trip alone.
You will need to book in advance, and they only accept cash.