Capella at Galaxy Macau is the change the city's been waiting for

The four-bedroom Sky Villa offers more than just two additional rooms—there’s a private entertainment room for watching movies or for a solid karaoke session after drinks at Capella at Galaxy Macau's whisky bar, Pony & Plume (more on that below). 

It also has a private gym. Here, you can customise the scent in the room via an app, and a mini fridge holds a curated selection of bottled water, along with a menu that details each brand’s mineral qualities, tasting notes and pH levels—it’s giving Colette Paris’s water bar circa 2016. 

Wine and dine 

Capella at Galaxy Macau's restaurant, Botanica, looks like a tropical sci-fi fever dream with soaring ceilings, lush hanging plants and tables floating atop a water feature. The kitchen is led by executive chef Stephen Hsu, who previously worked at the celebrated French restaurant L’Envol at The St. Regis Hong Kong.   

Hsu's menu—like him—is thoughtful, charming and refreshingly humble.  It’s not trying too hard because it doesn’t have to; the emphasis on quality seasonal ingredients does the heavy lifting. 

It starts with a delightfully fresh salad made from greens grown in the hotel’s organic garden, topped with Oscietre Prestige Caviar (obviously) followed by a buttery seared tooth fish on a Mediterranean-style bed of fregula in sauce vierge. The main is China's revered three yellow chicken, roasted and served two ways. 

Dessert is an unexpected nod to a Hong Kong icon—Vita Lemon Tea—in the form of iced lemon tea granita with almonds and limoncello. 

“I’m having a Ratatouille moment,” I tell my friend as I devour the dessert. “This literally tastes like my childhood.” 

The hotel's bar, Pony & Plume, is Macau’s new den for people who actually care what's in their glass. The bar leans hard into whisky, with a wild collection of over 650 bottles curated by consultant Blair Bowman and organised into eight flavour profiles that even the “I usually just order a highball” crowd (read: me) can navigate without panic.

Many of the cocktails arrive under the bar’s namesake plume of aromatic smoke.

Design-wise, Pony & Plume is tastefully equestrian: double-height ceilings, exposed timber beams, illuminated murals of galloping horses and subtle leather saddlery details nod to polo and Macau’s trading-port past.

Moinard says it's one of his favourite spaces in the hotel, with a glowing whisky “pyramid” taking centre stage. Add in Latin-leaning playlists, occasional live music and a cocktail list that riffs on local history, and you get a space that's theatrical enough for a night out in Cotai, but dialled-in enough for people who hunt down unicorn bottles for fun.

Bells and whistles 

With an emphasis on personalisation, Capella at Galaxy Macau's wellness model is tailored to the in‑room experience, where therapists perform spa treatments in the comfort of the guests’ own Capella penthouse or suite.

While we enjoyed a tea ceremony in the Living Room, we returned to our suite to find that a portion of the master bedroom had been transformed into a luxurious treatment room, complete with massage tables, gongs and soft lighting. 

Tatler tip: This is a great way to surprise a loved one with a private, five-star pamper session. Your butler can help arrange this for you. 

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