How Do I Love Thee, Nana Chan Gregoire Michaud Founder of much-loved tea café Teakha and Founder and award-winning pastry specialist tea purveyors, Plantation chef behind bakery-café Bakehouse, and wholesale bread and pastry suppliers Bread There’s something inexplicable about the Elements Hong allure of cha chaan tengs—they somehow capture the heart and soul of the city. Arriving in Hong Kong 21 years ago, what That’s the type of food I crave when I’m struck me most were the vegetables; the away from Hong Kong, and my favourite world of diversity here was unreal! Also, of them all is Yue Hing on Stanley Street. the way they were cooked—a quick, high I love their spiced pork, scrambled egg and temperature wok-fry for vibrant crisp greens, Kong? melted cheese sandwich; it’s the layer of and mind-blowingly intense pickled and peanut butter and shredded cabbage, adding preserved fruit and vegetables—made me another level of flavour and texture, that fall in love with vegetables all over again. Let Us Count makes it so addictive. One of my fondest memories is visiting Zen Organic Farm in Fan Ling, and discovering The Ways… so much amazing produce grown locally by wonderful people. In celebration of the vibrancy and community of Hong Kong’s dining scene, Rachel Read spoke to some Peggy Chan of our F&B industry’s Former chef-owner of pioneering vegetarian leading lights—capturing restaurant Grassroots Pantry and founder of Grassroots Initiatives Consultancy, who Ringo Chan the cherished memories, help businesses implement sustainable, Award-winning executive pastry chef at plant-based food operations Hong Kong’s Four Seasons Hotel, where he delicious ingredients, has worked since its launch in 2005 favourite meals and One of my favourite local ingredients is the firm tofu from Sun Fat Heung [one of Hong Traditional Hong Kong sugar egg puffs— unforgettable experiences Kong’s last tofu factories]. They make the sha yung—are engraved in my childhood best tofu scramble and no other Western- memories. Every time I pass Jordan, it that best encapsulate their style firm tofu can compare. As for my transports me back to my mum taking me love for this city favourite Hong Kong food memories… how on a sha yung expedition; I had my first and about hawker-style curry fishballs? People best sha yung here, and I still remember it to lining up to eat fishballs from a cart, poked this day. That shop closed down many years by a hawker with a cigarette dangling from ago, so nowadays I love the ones from Tai his lips. Hong Kong-style curry fishballs are O Bakery—fresh, warm and with generous one of the greatest local food inventions. amounts of sugar sprinkled on top.

36 WWW.TATLERASIA.COM TATLER DINING BEST RESTAURANTS GUIDE 37 When I was younger, choosing dim sum from the mobile carts passing your table must have been every child’s highlight at lunch. I remember how some of the ladies would cook the dim sum straight away for you table-side and for the really popular items, we needed to line up besides the cart and “fight” for our order! Gisela Alesbrook JJ Acuna Victoria Chow Head chef at Hotal Colombo, Black Sheep Founder and creative director of JJ Acuna Founder of nomadic cocktail bar and Restaurants’ first Sri Lankan restaurant / Bespoke Studio, the design brains behind creative caterers, The Woods restaurants such as Tate Dining Room and One dish that really stands out for me is Hansik Goo I’ve been going to Graham Street wet market the thick flat rice noodles with sliced beef for as long I can remember. My mom would at Good Companion on Peel Street. It’s One of my earliest Hong Kong food bring me for our weekly shop—as a kid, I takeaway only and you can basically see the memories is from when I first moved here, remember picking tiny caterpillars from whole kitchen from the counter. Their chef 15 years ago. I’d just got my keys for my first our fresh greens on the way home. When I is usually dressed very casually, but don’t flat in Wan Chai; hungry, I walked round started The Woods, we became friends with let that fool you; the beef is tender like it’s Lam Yuk-Ming the corner, and there was Happy Cake Shop. the fruit stall owner there, who would always been marinating all day, and the noodles are Chinese cuisine executive chef at Spring Because it all looked so impressive and I was let us know which produce was at its prime. so soft and filling. It’s such a Hong Kong Moon, The Peninsula Hong Kong’s shopping on an empty stomach, I ordered So much has changed on that street in the experience—something so delicious being renowned Cantonese restaurant a pineapple bun, coconut tart, cream cone, past few years, but I hope it’ll always be there made in such a small space. meat floss bun, egg tarts and a Vitasoy. I in one form or another. I always visit a shop in Kowloon City that went back to my flat, spread it all out on the sells local Chiu Chow products, and organic empty floor, and finished every last bite. To fruit and vegetables; Chiu Chow dried this day, every time I pass there, I’ll grab a seafood has a slight difference in taste, with pineapple bun—I still think it’s one of the a distinct fragrance. Every time I go there, city’s best. I feel like I’m visiting a friend—the owner and I always talk about how our kids are, their schoolwork, their exams… it feels great having someone who understands exactly what you’re going through as a father. Kosei Kamatani Rohit Dugar Founder of popular noodle chain Ramen Jo Founder of Young Master Brewery, one of and soft-serve specialists Via Tokyo Hong Kong’s earliest craft brewers, and several taproom-restaurants including I love the street food here; whenever I’m in Second Draft and Alvy’s Mong Kok, I’ll brave the lines at Fei Jie for Gloria Chung the skewered squid tentacles with hoisin Writer, food stylist and founder of The Props One of my most memorable meals was sauce and mustard. I’d be there all the time Dept, a food styling agency at Dai Lee, in Sham Shui Po Cooked after school back in the day, up to no good Food Centre. In the midst of the 2019 in the streets of Mong Kok with my friends. Growing up in Yuen Long, I remember protests, a group of us craft beer fans I always craved it then, and I crave it now! If Gigi Paulina Ng my mum bringing me to the busy wet gathered for a feast with course after I were to have one final meal in Hong Kong, Fourth-generation owner of Ser Wong market there. We’d grab hot pineapple buns course of quintessentially comforting you know where to find me. Fun, one of Hong Kong’s longest-standing from Tai Tung Bakery, one of the oldest Hong Kong dishes, washed down with restaurants famed for their snake soup bakeries in Hong Kong, then have wonton copious amounts of brewery fresh beers, noodles in Ho To Tai Noodle Shop. As a plus impromptu karaoke and dancing in I love the shrimp paste from Tai O; cooking kid, my favourite dish was their sweet spicy the middle of a brightly-lit cooked food it simply with large dried shrimp and fat marinated pork noodles, but as time went centre. With most means of transport ribbons of fettucine, or even just adding it by, I began to appreciate their homemade closed, getting home afterwards was a to morning glory, never fails to make my dumplings with fish skin… I guess that’s nightmare—but it didn’t matter. day. Another local favourite is Kowloon what is called growing up! Soy’s sesame oil. I’ll braise that with Tell us why you love Hong Kong—tag us chicken, spring onions, fungus, cabbage at @tatlerdininghk on Instagram with your and noodles for an extra boost to my energy best memories. Yvonne Kam and immune system—it’s like a miraculous Third-generation owner of Hong Kong food medicine to me. roast goose institution Yung Kee, and its contemporary spin-off Yung’s Bistro

38 WWW.TATLERASIA.COM TATLER DINING BEST RESTAURANTS GUIDE 39