If Hong Kong was a dish, what would it be? Top chefs plate up their answers
Pizzas, hamburgers and sushi – these are just some of the foods that have come to define certain cultures. But a cuisine is about more than an iconic dish, and every dish contains much more than its ingredients. It can reflect not only a historic time and place, but also modernity and a chef's creative flair.
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So if Hong Kong was a dish, what would it be? That is the question put to Luke Armstrong, head chef of L'Envol restaurant at The St Regis Hong Kong, and Alicia Castillo, pastry and bakery chef at The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong.
'It would be something vibrant,' Armstrong says, acknowledging the city's multicultural dining scene and availability of the finest ingredients. 'But what defines me is saffron and white asparagus.'
He continued: 'If Hong Kong was a dish, it would be charcoal-grilled Japanese Wagyu beef from Kagoshima with Loire Valley [French] white asparagus cooked en croute and a nice spring bearnaise. A distinct influence of Hong Kong, Japan and France.'
Luke Armstrong, head chef of L'Envol restaurant at The St Regis Hong Kong, acknowledged Hong Kong's multicultural dining scene and global selection of ingredients in the dish he created to represent the city.
Originally from Perth, Western Australia, Armstrong – who arrived in Hong Kong last November after working at acclaimed restaurants in Europe, Singapore and Japan – has developed an affinity for the city's mix of calm and frenetic energy.
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'I like to live my life with order and chaos,' he says. 'That's what you see when you walk through the city; some parts are chaotic, and some parts are very peaceful.'
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