Authenticity as a local accomplishment: naming, taste, and heritage in Macau’s egg tart culture

This article examines how the pastry known in Macau as the “Portuguese egg tart” became a locally authoritative form whose authenticity no longer depends on fidelity to a single Portuguese original. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork in Macau, semi-structured interviews, archival and media materials, and a qualitative analysis of user-generated platform posts, it argues that authenticity is produced locally rather than inherited with a recipe. The tart acquired its position through adjustments to sweetness and texture, routinized production, everyday practices of consumption, and public recognition. Naming is central: the label “Portuguese” indexed Macau’s own cultural distinctiveness during the late-colonial transition as much as it identified provenance, which is why a British-devised pastry with a largely Chinese clientele could be authenticated as Portuguese. Heritage recognition later accommodated different recipes rather than certifying one, and the arrival of a Lisbon chain in 2025 shows how claims to Portuguese origin are assessed against established local expectations rather than displacing them.