(Last updated: June 30, 2026)
I’ve now eaten at Antica Trattoria Da Isa four times, and after my latest visit in June 2026, I’m finally giving it the full five stars. Previous meals were always very good. This time, Antica didn’t miss once.
The Meat and Cheese Platter ($170) came with Parma ham, salami, cheese, olives and garlic bread, all of it remarkably fresh. Most importantly, the cured meats hadn’t dried out. They remained soft, moist and exactly how imported ham should taste.
The cheese was mild enough for almost anyone to enjoy. Most meat platters in Macau aren’t this good, MacauSoul included, and that’s about the highest compliment I can give. 5 stars
The Portuguese Clams with Lemon ($190) were every bit as good as I remembered. They have an unusually chewy texture, but also a distinct ocean flavour that most clams simply don’t have. Ask most people and they’ll tell you clams don’t really taste of anything. These do. The buttery lemon sauce added plenty without burying them.
The waitress later told me they only use fresh clams each day. They never see tomorrow and nothing there gets out alive. The generous portion and complete absence of sand only made them better. 5 stars
Take a swim in the sea!
The Seafood Soup ($90) absolutely explodes with seafood flavour from the very first spoonful. The broth isn’t especially thick, but it doesn’t matter when the flavour is this intense. Long after I’d finished the bowl, I could still remember the taste. Masterful. 4.5 stars
The 350 gram Wagyu Rump ($360), available only as a daily special, was another winner. This was one of those steaks where you just keep chewing and more juice keeps coming. Every bite was loaded with pure beef flavour.
A few pieces were fattier than I would have liked, but the fat tasted so good that I barely cared. 4.5 stars
The Pork Ribs ($220) completely caught me by surprise. Oddly enough, they reminded me more of the lamb chops at Nga Tim than pork ribs.
A little smoke came first, followed by an absurd amount of juice. They ate more like a great steak than the steak we’d actually ordered. 5 stars
What finally pushed Antica over the line wasn’t one spectacular dish, but an entire meal without a weak one. Everything was very good or better, and I’d happily order all of it again. After four visits, I’ve finally run out of excuses not to give Antica 5 stars.
***
What follows are a procession of different reviews from 2013 to 2025. The first one just sets the scene, as it was being run by someone else then.
While Macau definitely has more well known and highly acclaimed Italian restaurants, Antica Trattoria Da Isa is probably just as good, if not better, than all of them. Located near MGM Macau, it’s an extremely warm welcoming space rife with wooden furnishings, decorative plates and other nostalgic features that are sure to make you feel right at home.
Staff is among the friendliest in town, smiling all the time, and if you’re a fan of cocktails, they do great personalized ones at the minibar, which I recommend you hit before (and after!) your meal.
The food is consistently on target, no matter if you go for pizza, pasta, steak or starter, and I particularly enjoyed the marinated octopus with seafood, squid, prawn and mussels ($135) and spaghetti with broccoli, prawn and florets ($168).
Fresh and light, it was pasta at its finest, just oozing with taste and texture.
I wasn’t as enthused about the T-bone steak for $218 though. Smothered in garlic, it was carved carpaccio style and not my conception of what a good steak should be.
Regardless, I still could see how some people might like it.
My friend and I also tried the anti terra ($185), a tasty starter plate of parma ham, copper ham, and salami milanese, as well as the minestrone soup, which was very good value for only $48.
Online reviews also rave about the pizzas, which I will definitely try during my next visit there.
Look, I’ve been to all the high brow big name Italian restaurants in Macau: Terrazza, Casa Don Afonso, Don Alfonso 1890, and Antica Trattoria Da Isa is right on their level and way cheaper to boot.
All told, our bill for two ran $754, which is terrific value all around. If you want a quality Italian meal in a warm cozy venue, and not take a beating doing so, then Antica is the place to try. It’s been great since it opened, and it still is now.
***UPDATE***
Antica Trattoria Da Isa switched ownership in 2017 and I finally managed to swing by in late 2019 to see if it was still as good as before. Not only has the restaurant not skipped a beat, it’s probably better than it’s ever been. They pared their menu down quite a bit compared to my first visit, something that the owner said had to be done, in order to ensure standards stay strong.
True to form the four dishes we ordered were all outstanding, in particular the Grilled Octopus for $250. I don’t know how they did it exactly, but I consider it an act of sorcery or magic to have achieved the outcome that they did.
The butter sauce gave the octopus such gorgeous texture and it somehow managed to be meaty yet soft at the same time, with all the consistency of a great steak. I don’t even like octopus particularly but this is by far the best I’ve ever had of it.
The lamb rack for $240 was another fine choice, the meat so tender and tasty the closer it got to the bone.
Regarding our starters, we had no complaints with either the prosciutto with melon for $90, or clams in lemon ($170) that were drowned in the most perfect lemon sauce known to man.
The clams were unusually chewy as well, which gave them a lot more texture and taste.
After dinner we had a couple of tasty Caipirinhas that only ran $60 each, much less than what you pay in most bars.
Including one bottle of wine for $260, our bill ran $1243 in total for two, which is excellent value considering the quality of food and amount of drinks we had.
If Antica Trattoria Da Isa isn’t the best Italian restaurant in Macau these days, then I don’t know what is.
**Update**
You may not know it to look at these two girls, but they’re just about the two hardest people in Macau to meet up with and have a meal. And just looking at their sly mischievous smiles below, they absolutely know it’s true!!
I’ve been trying to get us all out together again for six months now, but the stars have yet to align. My former co-workers at one of the city’s most terrifying English training centres, the aptly named ‘Cherry Tears/Cherry Toxic/Cherry Trauma’, this single solitary evening in February 2024 was the only time we ever met up after work.
And what a night it was, getting down to business at Macau’s best Italian restaurant, in celebration of my blue card finally being processed, something I thought might never happen.
The best part of the meal for me was the white Sangria ($200) which Miss Gigi insisted we try, even though I intended to order a red. It only took one sip for me to see that it was some dangerous, dangerous stuff. So smooth and citrus fresh, you can pound it back like juice and not even feel its alcoholic. Suffice to say, two jugs met their maker that night, never having stood a chance.
In line with previous visits, Antica Trattoria continues to be in fine form, and I thoroughly enjoyed everything I ordered: Mixed Salad ($60), Cream Soup ($70), and Rib Eye Steak ($300).
Why anyone pairs steak with a sauce is beyond me, because it was beautiful on its own.
Miss Elaine’s tenderloin wasn’t my style, only good for people who like their steak moist and watery. I just chewed and chewed but got no payoff, fruitlessly searching for char and flavour that just wasn’t there.
Miss Gigi orders the Polpo Agio ($340) every time, so octopus lovers can hit that every time with confidence. Admittedly, I have no idea what it’s all about, but she sure left the restaurant with a smile on her face.
I also got very positive feedback with the Beef Carpaccio ($160) and Buffalo Caprese ($120) starters, the latter of which I believe is somewhat akin to a salad.
Antica Trattoria just keeps delivering, time and again, year after year. Not only does it serve the best white Sangria in town, it’s also the best place for Italian food bar none.
Now, let’s see if we can ever meet again!
