Macau Eat: Tai Lei Loi Kei (大利来记猪扒包) Pork Chop Bun @ Taipa Village

The main outlet of Tai Lei Loi Kei (大利來記), located along Rua Correia da Silva (告利雅施利华街) in the old town of Taipa Village, Macau, is housed in a yellow traditional colonial architecture with a blend of Portuguese and Chinese influences. The restaurant is famous for its pork chop bun and also recommended in the Michelin Guide for Macau.

Tai Lei Loi Kei's pork chop bun comes in various configurations with original "sweet bun" (包), toasts (多士), croissant (牛角包), pineapple bun / croissant (菠萝包/牛角包) — they have top crusts that look like pineapple skin but contain no pineapple — and noodle. Aside from pork chop dishes, Tai Lei Loi Kei's secret-recipe Beef Tendon & Brisket (秘制牛筋腩) is another signature dish to try. There are other snacks such as curry fishballs and squids and also Serradura pudding, a Portuguese dessert that is very popular in Macau.

The original Pork Chop Bun (驰名猪扒包) has a big piece of deep-fried pork chop sandwiched between a cut sweet bun. The bun is soft inside with light crispy crust — "sweet bun" does not mean the bun really tastes sweet. The meat, showing a pinkish tint on the cut edge indicates it is not overcooked, is tender, non-oily and not salty too — it was meant to savour the natural flavour and texture of the meat without much flavourings. This is really good and a must to try.

The Beef Brisket Noodle (牛腩面) uses thin egg noodle, tossed in braised beef sauce, and added with beef brisket and tendons too. The beef brisket is super-tender and juicy and the tendons are ultra-soft. This is a great dish to go for with their secret-recipe beef brisket and tendon — a must for beef-lovers!

Tai Lei Loi Kei used to have a presence in Singapore, operating in Serangoon NEX Shopping Mall and VivoCity, but exited during the COVID-19 pandemic. To savour the Macanese flavours, one will have to fly to Macau. Hope they can be back in Singapore again.

Address:

35, Rua Correia da Silva, Taipa, Macao

Opening Hours:

9am to 6:30pm | Daily

Next: Macau Eat: Hon Kee Cafe (汉记手打咖啡) Hand Beaten / Dalgona Coffee @ Coloane Village