At a glance:
- One Michelin star (MICHELIN Guide Hong Kong and Macau 2025) helmed by Singaporean Chef de Cuisine Pan Sihui
- Boundless Asian Bistronomy concept
- French technique fused with Asian ingredients
- Counter experience for tasting menu experiences
Aji at MGM COTAI. It got its first Michelin star a couple of months ago, right?
Yes! It earned its very first Michelin star back at the ceremony in March, just months after a much-anticipated reimagining with a new chef at the helm.
The restaurant is set against the jaw-dropping backdrop of MGM COTAI’s Spectacle atrium, which – fun fact! – has a Guinness World Record for the largest free-span, self-supported gridshell glazed roof.
Who is the chef?
The man behind it is Pan Sihui, a young chef hailing from Singapore and a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America. He’s honed his skill in luxury hotels in places like Shanghai, Beijing and Cambodia.
Ah, so he’s been around. Does that influence his cooking?
For sure. Dining at Aji lets you savour the melting pot of flavours that Pan was exposed to in Singapore – growing up in one of the region’s most vibrant culinary landscapes – and elsewhere in Asia. He’s managed to beautifully meld this eclectic food culture into innovative dishes using French technique. “Asian Bistronomy” is how he describes it.
“Cross-cultural cooking is a marriage of flavours, born of audacity,” he told us. “There are no references, yet it needs to be cohesive. It has to make sense.”
So, does it?
It does! Pan’s cooking is deeply informed by the region’s varied cuisines – without any of the pretentiousness that can at times characterise award-winning restaurants.
Unpretentious is good. What should I be having?
First time visitor and want to rub shoulders with the chef? Then go for the Michelin Star Discovery Menu. It’s the latest iteration of Aji’s tasting menu, which changes seasonally, and gets you a seat at the counter, so you get to see the chef in action and interact with him too.
What about à la carte though?
You can’t go wrong. Start with Pan’s famous Smoked Salmon, which uses a vodka and beetroot vinegar marinade. The beetroot vinegar lends more colour than flavour, and the vodka is super soft on the palate (as you want it to be). The standout is the rich smokiness of the fish, smoked à la minute with lychee wood. Served along Thai basil and a mango turmeric oil, it’s a must-have signature dish.
The young Singaporean’s creativity particularly shines through the Foie Gras with Hazelnuts and Spiced Caramel, one of Aji’s best selling dishes. It exemplifies the chef’s skill in blending the region’s profiles with French technique. The spiced caramel is a smooth emulsion made from Chinese five-spice and Sichuan peppercorns melted into golden coconut sugar.
The foie gras is topped with the chef’s favourite fruit, Japanese rose apple, for crunch and acidity too. A dish that reveals itself through textures.
What about main courses?
The Grilled Octopus, served with mashed potatoes and parsley cream, is a knockout. It looks like a Western dish. The octopus first undergoes a traditional marinade of olive oil, thyme, garlic, before being prepared sous vide, pan seared and flame grilled. But then comes the Asian twist: sambal (the ubiquitous chili paste of Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia), and a drizzle of calamansi.
For the chef’s take on Japan’s hot pot dish, sukiyaki, try the A4 Kagoshima Beef with yuzu-infused somen (thin wheat noodles) and grilled maitake mushroom in onion consommé, finished with sansho leaves.
Both are outstanding dishes that are representative of the chef’s approach.
Presumably this is not a place for skipping dessert?
Right! Don’t miss the Pandan Brûlée. It draws inspiration from Guangdong’s double-skin milk pudding – Pan’s treasured childhood memory, but in Asian brûlée form, featuring pandan, kaffir lime and gula melaka (coconut sugar).
Sounds amazing. Aji in a nutshell?
Pan-Asian cuisine at its best, executed with confidence and boldness, but also easy to relate to.
Address: MGM COTAI, Avenida da Nave Desportiva, Cotai, Macao
Hours: Monday, Wednesday through Sunday from 6 to 11 pm
Reservations: (853) 8806 2308
