Macau, China, Oct. 16, 2025 (Lusa) - A Mediterranean cuisine restaurant officially opens on Saturday in a Chinese special economic zone, on the doorstep of Macau, where Beijing has devised the next step in integrating the former Portuguese territory into the rest of the country.
Located in the Huafa shopping centre in Hengqin (Mountain Island), on the border with Macau, the Vivo restaurant is a project by two Portuguese entrepreneurs who saw an opportunity to bring two geographical areas closer together - China and southern Europe.
This is not fusion cuisine. Nevertheless, several traditions coexist in this restaurant: Portuguese, Spanish and Italian cuisine, prepared by a chef from Shanghai using Chinese ingredients.
"We are in China, we want to focus on fresh Chinese products," one of the partners, João Maria Pegado, told Lusa.
So much so that, for now, the traditional octopus à lagareiro (roast octopus) is not on the menu. We have to keep searching the local markets until we find the ideal product, explains Pegado.
"We could go to Macau to get frozen octopus, but our main goal was to work with fresh products in China. In terms of cost, it is much more profitable, but we also want to take advantage of this fusion between Chinese products and Portuguese dishes," he says.
Vivo has been in “soft opening” mode since 18 July. And João Maria Pegado has no complaints about the journey so far, despite the language barrier.
He tells Lusa that he will soon apply for support from the Macau Government, at a time when the authorities are encouraging investment in the Macao-Guangdong Deep Cooperation Zone in Hengqin, a special economic area created in 2021 with a view to economic diversification and regional integration of the special administrative region into the rest of the country.
And Hengqin is attracting more and more visitors from Macau, says the investor. In this area managed by both sides of the border, Macau drivers are already allowed to drive there, for example, upon application for a licence, Pegado points out.
But there are other attractions: petrol is cheaper - "cars from Macau come to fill up at the weekend, it's just like Portuguese drivers crossing the border with Spain to fill up" - supermarkets are cheaper, there is more space and more green areas.
"Open space where you can relax without being in the middle of the city. That's the main reason why people swap Macau for Hengqin at the weekend and sometimes even during the week, at lunchtime," he reflects.
Hengqin also seems to be a more economical option for Chinese people visiting Macau, where, according to data for August, the average price of a hotel room is 1,461 patacas (around €156).
"Hengqin has increasingly become a hub, a place to stay, used by many visitors. The government has granted licences to many of the buildings that were built as offices (...) to be converted into Airbnb-style hotels [short-term rental accommodation]," he said.
Hong Kong and Macau are currently the source of most of the restaurant's visitors, but João Maria Pegado also hopes to reach more consumers from mainland China.
"There are still few people who know what [the concept of] Mediterranean cuisine means," he points out, noting, however, that for many who have visited Vivo, black paella has been a recurring choice.
This dish is joined by other house specialities, such as fisherman's rice, garlic prawns and barbecued chicken, says Pegado, who left a career in sport to devote himself to the restaurant business.
"It's special," he says. "I felt that there was a need for a Western restaurant, and that it could be successful in that regard (...). I have been living in Hengqin for three years and it is a place I like very much, as it allows me to be close to Macau, the city where I grew up and with which I identify," he concludes.
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