Lord Stow’s Bakery

1 R. do Tassara, Macau

The little fishing village of Coloane, just south of the Macau Peninsula, has become famous around Asia as the birthplace of Lord Stow’s Egg Tarts. Created by Englishman Andrew Stow (the “Lord” bit is a local nickname) in 1990, these tarts are like an Asian version of the Portuguese pastel de nata, with a touch of English influence thrown in. If that sounds like a complicated mouthful, it’s a simple matter to join the line and try one for yourself. (Don’t worry, the line moves quickly, and there are industrial quantities of these treats being batched out.) The tart looks exactly like the Portuguese version, right down to the caramelized sugar marbling on top. When you bite into it, however, it’s different: The filling is still creamy, but it’s much lighter and fluffier than in its Portuguese cousin, and perhaps a touch eggier, too. The crust is delicious, all flaky and buttery. If you’re a big fan of pastel de nata, eating Lord Stow’s tarts is a bit disorienting; I found I liked them better after they’d been in the fridge a while and had firmed up. According to Lord Stow’s, these tarts were insanely popular, and the company rapidly expanded onto mainland Macau and then into Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, and South Korea. Along the way, an “Egg Tart War” kicked off, with rival joints springing up everywhere! I don’t know how true any of this is, but one thing is certain: The original Lord Stow’s Egg Tarts are from Coloane, and they taste damn good.

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The little fishing village of Coloane, just south of the Macau Peninsula, has become famous around Asia as the birthplace of Lord Stow’s Egg Tarts. Created by Englishman Andrew Stow (the “Lord” bit is a local nickname) in 1990, these tarts are like an Asian version of the Portuguese pastel de nata, with a touch of English influence thrown in. If that sounds like a complicated mouthful, it’s a simple matter to join the line and try one for yourself. (Don’t worry, the line moves quickly, and there are industrial quantities of these treats being batched out.) The tart looks exactly like the Portuguese version, right down to the caramelized sugar marbling on top. When you bite into it, however, it’s different: The filling is still creamy, but it’s much lighter and fluffier than in its Portuguese cousin, and perhaps a touch eggier, too. The crust is delicious, all flaky and buttery. If you’re a big fan of pastel de nata, eating Lord Stow’s tarts is a bit disorienting; I found I liked them better after they’d been in the fridge a while and had firmed up. According to Lord Stow’s, these tarts were insanely popular, and the company rapidly expanded onto mainland Macau and then into Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, and South Korea. Along the way, an “Egg Tart War” kicked off, with rival joints springing up everywhere! I don’t know how true any of this is, but one thing is certain: The original Lord Stow’s Egg Tarts are from Coloane, and they taste damn good.

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