Jennifer Si Tou, deputy director of the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO), describes the expansion as a deliberate effort to deepen the festival\u2019s urban impact, and hopes it will help stimulate economic activity across the city using gastronomy not merely as spectacle but as a driver of local vitality.<\/p>\n
It is a vision that Macau\u2019s best restaurants are already working to realise. At Aji, inside the MGM Cotai resort, sustainability is an operating philosophy baked into every level of the business \u2013 from how the kitchen plans its purchasing to how imperfect produce is redistributed across the resort\u2019s 22 other dining outlets rather than discarded. Last year, that philosophy earned Aji a historic distinction: it became the first restaurant in Macau to achieve the highest three-star rating by the Food Made Good Standard, a rigorous global benchmark for responsible sourcing and operations in hospitality.<\/p>\n
![\"Wagyu](\"https:\/\/img.i-scmp.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/fit=contain,width=1024,format=auto\/sites\/default\/files\/d8\/images\/canvas\/2026\/03\/31\/75f84e76-46b2-418c-9915-739eddc64924_52ae140e.jpg\" "\\"Wagyu")
<\/div>\u201cI would say that it\u2019s a group effort,\u201d says Sihui Pan, executive sous chef of MGM Cotai. \u201cIt is not only about buying certain products, it\u2019s also about how you manage your business, your supply chain, whatever ways you\u2019re producing. We try to reach the optimum performance.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ruby O, assistant vice-president of sustainability and business synergy, adds, \u201cMGM has also invested in AI and digital tools to track and trace food waste, using data-driven insights to deploy ingredients more efficiently.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sourcing locally in Macau presents a particular challenge \u2013 due to its small size the city produces almost zero agriculture of its own. Around 90 per cent of Aji\u2019s vegetables and fruit come from China, predominantly from the nearest available supply. Pan is deliberate about countering the perception that regional produce is inferior to global imports. \u201cA lot of the suppliers have been certified for good practices,\u201d he says. \u201cAs people get more educated and sophisticated, you can see the change \u2013 even in a generic local supermarket in Macau, there is now a pesticide-free selection at an affordable price.\u201d<\/p>\n
O asserts that MGM dining establishments see their roles as making sustainable, high-quality regional ingredients more accessible and inclusive, as well as showcasing that luxury dining and environmental responsibility can coexist.<\/p>\n
That same spirit animates Mesa, also in Macau, where the kitchen\u2019s closed-loop philosophy takes local sourcing to its logical extreme. Herbs grow on-site; fruit remnants from the commissary are fermented into house-made kombucha and mead honey wine at Mesa Bar. Here, the restaurant menu is a product of what the kitchen grows and produces rather than the other way around.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
![\"Zinc](\"https:\/\/img.i-scmp.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/fit=contain,width=1024,format=auto\/sites\/default\/files\/d8\/images\/canvas\/2026\/03\/31\/688ce3c3-f12f-4dc4-85cd-66a9ee8ff32d_e0304210.jpg\" "\\"Zinc")
<\/div>The decision is not merely a sourcing one but a philosophical reconsideration of sushi itself. Edo-mae, he notes, was originally defined by the waters of Tokyo Bay. \u201cMy aim is to interpret this essence by leveraging Hong Kong\u2019s unique advantages, rather than blindly replicating the culinary techniques and dishes of Japan\u2019s historical Edo period.\u201d<\/p>\n
Among the species Leung has championed, none has generated more enthusiasm than the fourfinger threadfin \u2013 known locally as ma yau<\/em> \u2013 once considered a humble catch, now an omakase centrepiece. On one occasion, he staged an entire threadfin-themed dinner, featuring the fish in every course from appetiser to dessert. What distinguishes Hong Kong\u2019s waters, in his view, is something seasoned connoisseurs call a distinctive \u201csavoury fragrance\u201d \u2013 an oil-rich depth of umami that imported fish cannot replicate.<\/p>\n \u201cI believe this is a gift uniquely bestowed upon Hong Kong by nature,\u201d he says, \u201cand perhaps explains why locals have held seafood in such deep affection since childhood.\u201d<\/p>\n Elsewhere in the Greater Bay Area, across the border in Shenzhen \u2013 and at sister venues in Chengdu and Hangzhou \u2013 Pairedd takes on an even more ambitious project: mapping the micro-terroirs of China through a French tasting menu framework. Local Chinese ingredients account for 95 per cent of each quarterly menu.<\/p>\n \u201cFusion is never the goal itself; rather, it is a tool in service of the dish,\u201d says Toto Zhong, brand chef of Pairedd and research and development chef of By Little Somms Group. Farms sit typically within a 30-kilometre radius of each restaurant; the team practises full utilisation of all ingredients; and regional libations, such as teas and Shaoxing yellow wine, are woven into the beverage pairing alongside wine.<\/p>\n Our goal is to bring more of these high-quality organic Chinese ingredients to the global stage<\/p><\/blockquote>\n The relationship with producers runs deeper than procurement. Pairedd participates in seed conservation, purchasing heritage grains such as Guizhou\u2019s Green Aroma Rice at a premium to help preserve ancient Chinese varieties. Chef teams led by Cai Wenbin, executive chef of By Little Somms Group, and Kevin Tang, chef de cuisine of Pairedd Shenzhen, conduct regular field visits to farmers and artisans to build long-term supply relationships. \u201cOur goal is to bring more of these high-quality organic Chinese ingredients to the global stage,\u201d they say.<\/p>\n What connects these restaurants \u2013 from Macau\u2019s data-driven kitchens and zero-waste herb gardens to Hong Kong\u2019s seafood counters and Shenzhen\u2019s terroir-mapped menus \u2013 is a shared conviction that the most meaningful food is food that knows where it comes from. \u201cSustainability is not talking about one or two years,\u201d says Pan. \u201cIt takes a generation to change. But eventually, I\u2019m sure that we will get there.\u201d<\/p>\n As the International Cities of Gastronomy Fest brings the world\u2019s culinary attention to Macau this month, the timing feels apt. The best dishes on these menus will tell you, without a word of explanation, exactly where you are.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"An](\"https:\/\/img.i-scmp.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/fit=contain,width=1024,format=auto\/sites\/default\/files\/d8\/images\/canvas\/2026\/03\/31\/d5819425-2efb-4d61-b02c-9455e7004594_2a48f19f.jpg\" "\\"An")
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