There are so many reasons I should have come back to Robuchon a Galera sooner: impeccable food, world-class and friendly service, an unbeatable bargain set lunch, and the bread trolley, to name a few. Macau is only an hour away by jetfoil so getting here is not a problem. The obstacle? Planning a trip that is months away, as it is not easy to get a reservation. A little easier for dinner but nearly impossible for lunch. So after the interview with the chef Robuchon himself, there was no reason not to stay for lunch.

When my dining companion and I sat down, it was only just before noon. We were the second party to be seated but the entire restaurant was filled within half an hour. This is not surprising as a three-course lunch is priced at MOP398, a four-course lunch at MOP498 and a five-course lunch at MOP638. Looking around the plush dining room with thick blue carpet and dark-wood interior, a wave of melancholy hit me because that would be the last time I dined at this location. We heard that in August, Robuchon a Galera will be moving into its new home at Grand Hotel Lisboa, just across the street.

When the butter deserves its own trolley, you know it is good. Two towers of Bordier butter, one salted and one unsalted, sat on the wooden trolley. The “butter lady” skillfully ran a dinner spoon up the side to create a curl. It was a very pretty sight. Then the bread trolley rolled up. The bread is made fresh in-house every day and although I was tempted to gobble down every single one, I stopped myself and only opted for the Comte cheese roll and the bacon and mustard mini-baguette. Both were salty and buttery enough to skip the butter. I slathered it on anyway. Expecting a big dinner, we decided to have the four-course lunch.

Amuse bouche #1 was a white asparagus panna cotta with sliced green asparagus and crouton bread, accompanied by tomato coulis. Although it was the end of the season for white asparagus, one could taste the delicate flavor of the asparagus, which was complemented nicely by the tangy tomato coulis. A very refreshing way to get my appetite ready. Amuse bouche #2 was le caviar, a signature dish of the restaurant. Underneath a thin layer of oscietra caviar (it is an amuse bouche after all) lies a bed of crabmeat, sitting on top of a layer of anise cream. The saltiness of the caviar and the sweetness of the crabmeat were bound together by the anise cream. If I have to be picky, there was a hint of fishiness in the crabmeat but it was not pronounced.

There were three appetisers to choose from and as I mentioned earlier, it was the end of the season for white asparagus so we purposely skipped that. Instead, I chose the tuna belly on heart of romaine with crunchy vegetable medley and tonnato sauce, while my dining companion picked the shaved foie gras and fine corn mousse with citrus jelly and green oil. Both looked beautiful on the plate, but I found my tuna belly to be a bit dry, although it should be the fattiest part of the fish. The tonnato sauce was a delight and managed to salvage the dish. The foie gras was delicate and acidity from the citrus jelly helped cut down on the grease. The sweet component of the dish, as with almost all foie gras dishes, came from the corn mousse. However, between the two of us, we could not finish the dish.

There were only two choices for the soup so it was easy for the both of us. My white mushroom veloute served with foie gras ravioli and Pata Negra ham julienne was my favourite dish of the day. The creamy mushroom veloute was poured at the table over four dainty ravioli. Each bite was a delight. The creaminess of the soup coupled with the salty and fragrant Pata Negra ham formed a nice background for the soft and delicate ravioli, which burst in my mouth, releasing the silky foie gras.

The crabmeat in tomatoes broth perfume with fresh herbs and thin waffle toast, on the other hand, was less impressive. I must confess I am not a tomato broth lover so when the broth hit my mouth, the first thing that came into my mind was Campbell tomato soup. Taking a bite of the crabmeat, I again thought it was a little fishy and even the shiso leaves on top could not save it. The highlight of the dish was in fact the two pieces of crabmeat panini served on the side. Those were divine and not fishy at all.

Next came the main courses. Whenever quail is featured on the menu, I would most likely order it and this time it was no exception, especially when the quail dish at L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon in Hong Kong is so delicious. On the menu that day was caramelized quail stuffed with foie gras and mashed potatoes. The wait staff recommended the slow cooked black cod fish in Provençale style with fresh garlic bouillon and new potatoes and so that was the other dish we ordered. The quail did not disappoint, and if I had to be fussy, it was a little too salty and a tad too dry on the outside. Luckily the stuffed foie gras kept it moist on the inside. Robuchon is the man who revolutionalised mashed potatoes and I could not find fault in the creamy and buttery, yet feathery light spud. The small herb salad served on the side kept the whole dish from being too filling.

When the fish arrived, the first thought that crossed my mind was spring. It was a relatively “pale” dish – the white fish meat sat in the off-white broth with a light green herb gratin on top. It screams spring. While the fish offered no surprises, the broth was light but flavourful, and the chewy periwinkle bits were a nice surprise against the velvety cod meat. The potatoes, au gratin, were served in a separate dish. Robuchon proved once and for all that he is the master of potatoes. Here the potatoes were miniature golden discs enrobed by a silky smooth cod fish cream.

As we were digesting our main courses, the cheese trolley rolled up next to our table. The selection of cheeses is very decent and possibly the best in Macau. We sampled a few, including the pungent Epoisses, also one of my favourite cheeses. To finish off the meal, we were offered a dessert of la fraise des bois: fresh spanish wild strawberry with vanilla cream and wild strawberry mousse in sugar ball, escorted by light cheese sorbet. I love wild strawberries. They are much smaller than the usual species of strawberries but also sweeter and the flavour more intense. Inside the pink sugar sphere were strawberries, strawberry cream and a light custard. The thin sugar sphere encases a combination of strawberry sorbet, wild strawberries and a light vanilla custard cream. It coheres with the perfect combination of strawberries and vanilla, yet the crisp puce of sugar shell brings a crunchy element to the velvety smooth custard and the crisp of strawberry sorbet.

Like the bread trolley, the dessert trolley is another item of marvel with the luxury of another kind in abundance. Divided between two tiers, the top tier consisted of fruit-based desserts including a fruit salad with passion fruit juice, poached pineapple slices with vanilla and cinnamon. The bottom tier are the pastries, with a wide range of selections in the French dessert repertoire – floating islands, chocolate opera cake, tarte au citron (lemon tart), and mille-feuille are only a handful of impressive desserts served. Having difficulty choosing, we picked two classics – lemon tart and mille-feuille.

The lemon tart has a gooey lemon filling, and it truly is edible sunshine that puckers. The thick citrusy filling is creamy, mildly sweet but pleasantly astringent while the tart crust is buttery and crisp. The surprise holds in the thin raspberry jelly coating on the base of the crust, offering an eye-catching layer of puce that brightens the gloriously golden lemon filling.

The mille-feuille is a fragile dessert, with three stacks of flaky pastries sandwiching alternating layers of vanilla pastry cream. The tiny dark specks of vanilla gave a wonderful flavour to the filling, while the sweet pastry yielded by each forkful, shattering into flaky shards of lightweight butteriness in each bite. It was a combination of good texture and uncomplicated flavors that transcend through years of its popularity among dessert lovers.

I was also happy to find out that the cooking at the new location will remain the same. Fans of Robuchon a Galera have been coming for the food and wine, and very soon, there will be a view to match.