Ah, the magnificent fading opulence of old Macao.
While it currently holds rank as the Asian Las Vegas, you might be interested in its history as a
Portuguese colony, drunken port town and culinary melting pot. That's where Macao Trading
Co.—opening today in Tribeca from the Employees Only crew—comes into play.
Walking into Macao, you'll feel as if you might end up in a barroom brawl with Indiana Jones and a nefarious
antiquities dealer. You'll want to bring your own Marion Ravenwood—or a group of fun-loving
explorers—and settle in for a night of spiced cocktails, exotic delicacies and colonial
merriment.
Start at the massive front bar, built out of old prison gates (moving up the "bar" food chain from prison to
cocktail), where drinks like the Yellow Fever and Drunken Dragon's Milk are flavored with
five-spice bitters and other Macanese delights.
Once whet, lead your party into the main room (basically a large portside warehouse full of old opium
pillows, roulette wheels and other distant curios) and signal to keep chef David Waltuck's (Chanterelle)
adventurous Portuguese-Chinese sharing plates coming (see the menu here).
And since nothing completes an epic feast like a little underground
drinking, a bordello/opium den, complete with low tin ceilings, ornate banquettes and all sorts of
cherry-red paint, will open up in the basement in two weeks.
Think of it as your new expat den of iniquity.
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