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A select group of chefs in metropolises worldwide is
rewriting the story of Chinese food identity through
dishes that speak of memory, culture, and technical
accuracy. In a world seeking authenticity and sense,
Chinese haute cuisine emerges as an initiation journey.
Chinese cuisine, relegated for years to the low-cost cliché, In Macao, The Huaiyang Garden, awarded a double Michelin
has returned as one of the new frontiers of taste at the table. A macaron, celebrates the food tradition of Huaiyang in a setting
select group of chefs in metropolises worldwide – from Hong Kong that recalls the elegant compositions of Suzhou gardens. Chef
to Singapore, to Shanghai and London – is rewriting the story Zhou Xiaoyan, a historical character for South-Eastern Chinese
of Chinese food identity through dishes that speak of memory, cuisine, puts his signature on a menu where every dish is an
culture, and technical accuracy. No longer “ethnic cuisine”, but exercise of balance and purity, following the natural rhythm of
haute cuisine that can touch the most demanding palates. time.
In Hong Kong, The Chairman restaurant was a trailblazer. In Shanghai, innovation also comes through greens. At Fu
It was the first Chinese facility to climb the ladder among Asia’s He Hui, a restaurant freshly awarded with two Michelin stars
50 Best Restaurants by bringing back the focus on seasonality and boasting 15th place in Asia’s 50 Best, chef Tony Lu explores
and local ingredients: fresh prawns, locally-raised poultry, and Buddhist tradition through strictly-vegetarian tasting menus.
tofu fermented in-house. Its founder, Danny Yip, has elaborated Each dish revolves around a single ingredient, which is also used
a philosophy founded on authenticity and respect for raw as the heart of a story.
ingredients. An emblematic example is the river crab served with Among the most respected voices in this new wave is Jereme
chicken oil and rice noodles, which pays tribute to a family dish, Leung. Following an international career, he has chosen to
revisited with technical accuracy. return to his roots and open Yì in Singapore: a restaurant that
130 Food Protagonist