Apart from Macau, Portuguese cuisine is rare in China. Among the first-tier cities in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, only Beijing has a Camões Portuguese restaurant. St. Louis Portuguese Restaurant is co-founded by Shaanxi St. Louis Group and Macau's well-known New Port Portuguese Restaurant.
As a long-established maritime power, seafood has always been an indispensable main dish in Portuguese cuisine, and cod is the most popular seafood. When sailing, salting and smoking are indispensable for the long-term preservation of food, so there is no shortage of pickled dishes in the meal. The most well-known Portuguese ingredient is bacalhau, which is made from salted cod and used as the main ingredient in many Portuguese dishes. Unfortunately, St. Louis does not serve this signature ingredient and uses capelin instead of cod for pickles.
Salt and pepper capelin is made by wrapping flour with salted capelin. The fish is named "Taharu" because of the eggs in the belly of the female, and the restaurant uses the spawning fish that is rich in fish roe. The pepper and salt spring fish is brown and crispy, a large ball of fish roe can be seen when you bite into it, it is slightly bitter in the salty and fresh, although it is fried at high temperature, the fish meat is still tender and smooth. Unlike pickled dishes, baked cod is not localized, and it is one of the few authentic Portuguese dishes. The chilled cod is made with fresh meat baked only in olive oil and garlic, and is golden in color, soft and boneless. In addition to capelin and cod, Saint-Louis also serves seafood dishes such as mussels, prawns, crabs, squid, sea bass, mackerel, scallops, cuttlefish, etc., mostly salted, grilled and baked.
When you come to the Portuguese restaurant, you can't miss the Portuguese egg tart for dessert. The tart here has a crispy crust and is roasted until browned, and the core is divided into two types: golden yolk and milky white white, and there is almost no difference in taste. The hot egg tarts are hot, sweet, silky and tender, and the production is quite outstanding.
Although Saint-Louis has been in business for more than ten years, it is well maintained and does not show any signs of age. The restaurant has a retro style, with a yellow awning, brick walls and wrought iron wall lamps on the periphery, and a dimly lit dining area, which is decorated like a restaurant in the Shiliyangchang concession area, with a bustling texture of the old days. A gold and bronze candlestick is placed in the center of each table, and a long white candle is lit at night, making the atmosphere even more charming. When ordering, the service staff will generally ask about the taste preference, and will also make matching recommendations, and after each dish is served, they will also teach how to eat, and the service experience is relatively good.
