You’d rarely see Fernando’s restaurant looking like this. The famed Portuguese beach-side restaurant is packed to the rafters almost every single night. It’s the must-try in any guide book, from Lonely Planet to Frommers. Even Taiwanese, Japanese and Chinese tourists stumble in with slightly crazed looks, clutching articles cut from magazines and newspapers with pictures of pig ear salad and baccalau (salted cod). Located at what seems the end of the world (by Macau standards), by Hac Sa Beach in Colaone (Macau’s countryside), it seems like a whole different country from the bright lights of the casinos 20 minutes away.
Humble however, Fernando’s isn’t. Which is why, for 8 months, I tried my darnedest to stay away. I’d heard horror stories about how the restaurant owners and staff, big-headed with a never ending crowd of patrons would treat patrons. Turning them away, despite making the pilgrimage from faraway lands to try the famed sangria and clams, without even a small apology.
I’d been warned, that they didn’t take reservations. In the event they made an exception for a large group or important occasion, dare to venture in even 1 minute late, and your table would be given away and you’d meet an angry stare, and be banished to the waiting area.
However, friends have also raved to me about the tasty salads and grilled meats. The must-try sangria which enhances the flavors of the food - sooo, on Tuesday, my curiosity got the better of me.
Five of us headed down to Hac Sa beach on a windy Tuesday night. I put on my best smile and approached the portly Portuguese staff/owner(?) at the counter. He only lifted his head after I requested a seat, and grunted a few words and pointed to a corner table before going back to whatever he was distracted with.
The 2 locals in our group suggested sitting out in the courtyard, where the atmosphere is a little more pub-like and cherry, but it was packed full of expats that looked like they’d be there all night. In the front of the house, it was more of a mixed crowd of tourists that ranged from PRC visitors, construction workers, still wearing their bright vests, families and a group of men in suits.
Although the main menus are in Chinese and Portuguese, there is thankfully a booklet illustrated with pictures and English, making selection simple. We ordered the cod-fish rice, (tasted like Chinese fried rice), grilled chicken (tastes like it sounds), grilled squid, served with olive oil sauce, a simple salad, boiled baccalau and Portuguese-style clams. We avoided the suckling pig and veal (I don’t eat babies) and the very popular pig ear salad. *warning* People who aren’t used to salty flavors should ere on the cautious side when ordering baccalau which has always been salty enough to make every single guest scrunch their face in distaste or reach for water. On the whole, it was a very simple style of cooking, with basic cooking style and natural flavors. Not bad, but not the mind-blowing experience some had hyped it up to be.
The grilled squid has us fazed for a minute about whether we had the right order. Served in mussel shells, my shellfish avoiding dining partner wondered allowed whether it was off limits - we decided it wasn’t. The sangria was delicious, with the right amount of sweet and tangy flavors. The price was very reasonable, and yes, the clams were rather tasty. However, we didn’t particularly find it worth raving about - nor did we find the mediocre service worth complaining about.
The very simple open air restaurant doesn’t have a beach view - more a view of the car park, and it isn’t exactly an atmospheric place to stay for hours and chat - although if we’d had a few more jugs of sangria, I might change my mind.
We decided to head to Morton’s Steakhouse at The Venetian for New York Cheese Cake (flown in by DHL direct from NYC), Godiva Hot Chocolate Cake and a large helping of their warm and friendly service. I don’t think I’ll be returning to Fernando’s anytime soon, unless I get a hankering for sangria.
November 20 will see a showdown between 80s and current tennis greats.
Though they may have ruled the courts when mullets and headbands were the rage and wooden rackets were still the weapon of choice, John McEnroe and Bjorn Borg will get back on the court to challenge each other in a singles and doubles duel.
Roger Federer and James Blake will have a showdown, before pairing up with the 80s legends for a Ten Point Doubles Tie Breaker.
Many tennis fans may have been disappointed that Rafael Nadal is not part of the lineup as originally hoped, but here’s to John McEnroe providing plenty of on-court excitement.
Back in the day, his temper tantrums, including screaming obscenities and throwing rackets won him both fans and critics.
He is the most vain, ill-tempered, petulant loudmouth that the game of tennis has ever known.
- The Sun, a British tabloid, 1979
Here is the lineup:
Bjorn Borg v John McEnroe - 1 Set
Followed by:
Roger Federer vs James Blake - Best-of-Three Sets
Followed by:
Roger Federer and Bjorn Borg vs John McEnroe and James Blake - A Ten Point Doubles Tie Breaker
The Venetian Macao Tennis Showdown 2008 takes place at 7pm, Thursday November 20, Cotai Strip, CotaiArena, Macau
Ticket prices have been set at MOP $980, MOP $780, MOP $480 and MOP $280.
Book tickets from www.venetianmacao.com
As if one international star wasn’t enough. Rumour had it that following Avril Lavigne’s concert last month, she’d be taking the opportunity to hold the after-party, and her 24th birthday celebrations at the Bellini Lounge.
The bar, located on the casino floor of The Venetian Macao, was also supposed be to graced by another diva of a different genre and era - none other than songbird Mariah Carey herself.
Obviously this created quite a buzz, as the crowd that gathered on the night curiously peered into the cordoned off area by the Bellini Lounge stage. What would Mariah wear, would she bring her dog, Jack and most importantly, would Mimi and Avril get into a cat fight?
With two divas known for throwing tantrums when they aren’t the center of attention, another niggling thought was whether there’d be enough oxygen in the room left for the rest of us with both of the big voiced ladies in it.
Unfortunately, we never got to find out the answer to any of these questions. Throughout the night, we were teased with insider news and SMSes about Miss Carey’s whereabouts.
She was at high roller Paiza Club The View at Venetian’s sister casino Sands, and then apparently had the munchies and stopped off at Morton’s. We can only imagine she had a good meal, because after chowing down she headed back to her suite and called it a night.
Here’s a very grainy picture of Miss Carey at Sands, courtesy of a friend’s iPhone. Those things really don’t do so well in dim light huh?
As for Miss Lavigne, she treated us to a live performance along with her hubby Sum41 singer Deryck Wibley, who sang In Too Deep once again (he had sung it during Avril’s concert earlier). If he seemed overly enthuiastic, it may be because Sum 41’s own members are on a break to pursue their own interests. In Wibley’s case, that may be gatecrashing his wife’s concerts.
The birthday girl herself treated the crowd to some breakdancing moves (she ain’t that bad!), which beat her drumming skills hands down.
She also treated the crowd at Bellini to her current hit Girlfriend. For those that had attended the earlier concert, it would be the third time they had heard the song in that night.
We’re not sure if Avril took advantage of the free flow of champagne for ladies every Friday at Bellini Lounge, but the crowd were certainly bouncing off the walls with energy.
We have been waiting for the great band Linkin Park for long, however, they have been forced to cancel their upcoming Music for Relief Concerts in Mainland China, Macao and Taipei as lead vocalist Chester has sustained a back injury and is under doctor’s orders to refrain from the traveling.
Linkin Park sincerely regrets this unavoidable cancellation and apologizes to their fans for any disappointment caused; however, being the fans of them, we really hope Chester can recover at very soon so they must perform as perfect as they are in the next Asia tour!
For those who have bought tickets, please visit the box office of The Venetian Macao to check refund methods; or call (853) 2882 8818 / (852) 6333 6660; or simply send email to events@venetian.com.mo
She may have gotten married, ditched the tie and skateboard, but at her concert at The Venetian last month, she proved she was still a kid at heart.
With an all-girl dancing troop, pink scull and cross bone backdrop, pink drum kit and polo-tee and hoodie outfits, Avril was more wholesome Powerpuff Girl than angsty teenager with a chip on her shoulder.
In fact, the pink-streaked blond had a big smile on her face, that rarely left. Perhaps it was the fact that she was celebrating her 24th birthday that very night. But maybe, she had found her niche, as a role model for the younger generation, many of which came to the 3/4 full Cotai Arena wearing bright pink outfits, including a pink ballerina tutu.
Kicking off the concert with her latest hit Girlfriend, she had the crowd of mostly teenagers, children and parents squealing at the top of their lungs. And it was interesting to see that despite the ‘Girlpower” theme also had a lot of teenage boys singing along enthusiastically.
Girlfriend, which has received non-stop airplay in MTV and the radio, received a second airing - the remix version, with Avril’s troop of dancers showing off their break dancing moves.
She then turned back the clock with more mellow tracks from her break out album Let Go and Under My Skin. The enthusiastic response from the crowd earned them an earnest “do jeh” (thank-you in Cantonese) from Avril after most songs.
At times it seemed like a sing-along comedy session with Avril not letting the language barrier getting in the way of interacting with her adoring audience. Simple games like raising her arms to start the music, and dropping them to stop it, accompanied with a cheeky grin earned her raucous applause.
She also gained brownie points from the appreciative audience when she showed off her musical abilities by singing while playing the guitar and playing the piano. So when she asked the audience if they wanted her to play the drums - they responded with a deafening “yes!!”.
For the record, she’s a good multitasker, balancing the instrument playing and singing skills well.
In the second half of the show, she intrduced her “special guest”, who turned out to be none other than Deryck Whibley, the lead singer of US pop punk Sum41 and Avril’s husband.
Although Deryck helped produce Avril’s latest album The Best Damn Thing, he took the limelight at her concert, playing Sum41’s biggest hit, In Too Deep, which is ironically about breaking up with someone. No hidden meaning here, as the 2 have been inseparable since they tied the knot in 2006, and had attended Cirque Du Soleil’s Zaia at The Venetian the night before.
After over an hour of performance, Avril came back in a hooded sweater with pointy ears to perform a song that had a lot of special meaning to her. “Complicated”, she explained was her breakout song and the one that first thrust her into the media spotlight, so it was only fitting that she ended the night with a rousing rendition.
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Without question, Mahjong is one of the most popular games in Asia.
Now, the World Series of Mahjong is turning the game into a star-studded tournament, with contestants from around the world recently competing in Macau for one million US dollars in prize money.
This year, 302 contestants from 15 countries battled it out for the title of "World Mahjong Champion", with the 1st place winner taking home a cool 500,000 US dollars.
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