Is Macau in danger of losing its soul?
Comment by Jennifer Welker
MACAU – On November 5, one of Macau’s most celebrated Portuguese coffee shops – Cafe Ou Mun – will close its doors.
Why? The rent is simply too high.
The cafe’s owner, Fernando Marques will focus instead on growing his bakery, and continue to sell his famous Portuguese bread throughout Macau.
Cafe Ou Mun (“Ou Mun” is the Cantonese word for “Macau”) is the second casualty in recent months to close because of rents going through the roof in downtown Macau, near the Senado Square along Travessa de S. Domingos. Its neighbour,
CaffeChocola, was forced to close its doors due to rent hikes and before that, another famous Portuguese cafe – O Barril – which was open for years had to close as well.
Fortunately, this little lane off Senado Square is still home to a popular Portuguese eatery, Platao; an Italian restaurant known as Caffe Tuscana, a more recent Portuguese restaurant known as Boa Mesa and a lovely French place called La Bonne Heure.
Sebastian Pompele, owner of La Bonne Heure is worried.
“I was really sad to see CafeChocola go, and now Cafe Ou Mun,” Pompele said. “We really hope to stay on, but the rents are getting really high. I had to close my other restaurant on Praia Grande for the same reason.”
—-
We want to know what you think. Is Macau at risk of losing its home-grown restaurants? And will this affect the soul of this city?
Please write with your views to [email protected]
Ian Jarrett
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
Higher departure tax and visa cost, e-arrival card: Japan unleashes the fiscal weapon against tourists
U.S.A. and Israel attacks on Iran impact air movements in the Gulf (Update 1.00pm CET)
Global tourism exceeds 1.5 billion travelers announces UN-Tourism
WTTC global tourism reached record economic impact of 11 trillion in 2025
Marginal increase for New York City tourism in 2025