Macau Kitchen, Progressive Macanese Kitchen, Edinburgh

To paraphrase the words of Hill Street Blues Sgt Phil Esterhaus, be careful out there. The big wide world of eating out can be a dangerous place, especially if you don't know your way round town. Disappointments and worse can lurk round every corner, and there are many unreliable guides.

In other words, be wary about accepting recommendations on where to go. So many people have questionable standards. Dining out is an expensive business these days. Satisfy yourself that the advice can be trusted. Read Tom Eats! for example, but do remember that places can change quite quickly, or disappear overnight. But who better to consult than Lee H, founder of Edinburgh Food Review on Facebook, and influencer supreme on Instagram (@veggieburgh)? We met her here in April.

You must go to Macau, she said forcefully. I don't know the south side of Edinburgh all that well, but after a Fringe show we managed to secure the last table in this eccentric, cosy, welcoming dining room. My geography is so awful I couldn't have told you where Macau is, and I certainly had no idea what to expect on the table. Well, like Lord Reith's BBC, this column aims to educate.

Now part of China, Macau is 60 km west of Hong Kong. It was leased to Portugal by the Ming dynasty in 1557, becoming a Portuguese colony in 1887. Handed back to China in 1999, it is perhaps best known today for its gambling industry. I read that that is seven times larger than that of Las Vegas.

Chef-patron Kei de Freitas was born in Mozambique into a Eurasian family. Qualified as an Oriental Medicine Practitioner, his travels took him through China, Thailand and Malaysia. As he says, even if he wasn't a chef by profession, he would still be cheffing. His influences include the food of Goa, Malacca and Macau, as well as the cuisines which his parents knew.

Kei's sparkling wife Hoeyyn Ngu is front of house and will guide you through a short unfamiliar menu. In addition there will always be another four dishes and two puds on the blackboard headed Progressive Macanese Menu. You can book the Chef's Table, with a seven course meal for four. Also to be booked in advance is the option of a three hour Secret Menu. I can't tell you much more about that, which suggests that the name is quite appropriate. The place is unlicensed, but you can bring your own. The corkage charges are modest: £5 for wine, £1.50 for beer (per bottle or can).

Starters don't come much simpler than their house salad. It's just finely shredded cabbage, carrot and pepper. But there were little bits of (home made) potato crisps for texture, and a glorious dressing. It was described on the menu as sweet and sour. I thought the base was maybe orange or yuzu, but I gather it was lime. Indefinable, a forerunner of the subtleties to come. Rather oddly, out of five choices in the Small Plates section there were two octopus salads on offer, one spicy, one not. That left spring rolls or a classic Portuguese not-at-all fusion dish, Bolinhos de Bacalhau, salt cod croquettes. Flawless, served with a nice garlicky mayo.

I was intrigued by Classic Minchi. Apparently a Macanese standard, it looks like a plate of mince, served with rice and a fried egg. But it's not mince as would be served by your mammy (or by me, for that matter). Think mince with extra mince taste. The depth of flavour has something to do with soy sauce, wine and molasses. And, as you'll gather I enjoyed it very much, but I really, really am saving the best till last.

Kei will describe his Aromatic Crispy Coconut Duck as one of his signature dishes. I know this because you'll meet him in Chef Watch next week. We have four months still to go in 2024, but I can tell you without doubt that Tom Eats! has found its Dish of the Year. The menu will tell you that it's in a sweet and sour aromatic coconut sauce with a kick of spice. And, praise be, they serve you lots of it. We oohed and aahed; we slurped and swooned. We paused, ate and enjoyed the Minchi. Then, like the most joyous homecoming, we returned to the duck, scoffed every morsel and almost came to blows over who should be allowed to lick the plate.

 I think we'll leave it at that. I'm already planning the next visit.