THISPAGEANDOPPOSITE: JASONMICHAELLANG
firstIhadtobrag, tellinghimthatI’dbesup-
pingthateveningatoneof thetopCantonese
restaurants intown.
WhenheheardwhereIwasgoing,
though,heregistereddisappointment.
Betweenpullsonhiscigar,Leungopined,
“Forthatsortofmeal,youreallywantto
gotoLungKingHeen intheFourSeasons
Hotel. It’sgotthreeMichelinstarsand
isknown forbeingthebestCantonese
restaurant inHongKong.”
Unfortunately, itwasmy loss: Iwas
flyingoutthenextdayandmydinner
planscouldn’tbechanged.That’swhenI
promisedmyself thatonmynexttripto
HongKong, I’ddothingsdierently. I’d
tapthecity’sbestchefs fortheirtopdining
choices.And,ofcourse, Iwouldbelatedly
takeLeung’sadvice.
INFRONTOF
theFourSeasonson
acloudyafternoon, there isabitofa
kerfue.Paparazzi elbow forphoto-
graphsofBenignoAquino,presidentof
thePhilippines,who is in town tosmooth
outacontroversywith theHongKong
government.Minutesafterhisarrival, as
Isitdown formy long-anticipated lunch
atLungKingHeen, IseeAquinoandhis
entourageentering thesleekwood-and-
glassdiningroom.Theyproceed toa
privateenclave inback, but Iknow their
mealwon’tbebetter thanmine.
Itstartswithperfectlydelicatesoup
dumplings; thencomespan-searedgrou-
perspiceduptotaste likethesouthwestern
ospringofChineseparentsand, inacity
whereroastedporkreignsubiquitous,a
superiorversion inabutterypastryshell
exudesFrenchélan.
Themastermindbehindthemeal is
chefChanYanTak,who impartsChinese
disheswithEuropeantechnique.Tak’s
friedrisottoepitomizeshisopen-minded
approach. “I’malwaysthinkingofhowto
applyother foodstoChinese food,”hesays.
“[Forthe friedrisotto,]Iwasflyingona
planeandeatingItalianrice,whichIreally
like. Iwondered,whynotuse it for fried
rice inHongKong?ThenIdid.”
My lunch is fairlymassive,andall told,
itwouldbeeasytoskipdinner,butI’m
heretoexperiencethebest food inHong
Kong,andpassingupameal isnotan
option—plus, I lackthestrengthtoresist
yakitorigizzards, chickennecksandwings.
Yardbird, theplacewhereI’mgoing for it
all, isalsosupposedtobeoneof thehottest
joints intown,packednightlywithHong
Konghipstersandtheircasuallygorgeous
girlfriends.
WhenImakemywaytherethatevening,
Igrabaperchatthebar,wherecocktails
tendtobespot-on(theJollyRancher,made
withshiso-infusedshochu, isnoexception).
Before long, theguynexttome inspiresan
orderofchickenoysters.
Eventually,Yardbird’sacclaimedchef,
MattAbergel,aChinese-foodobsessive
fromCalgary,Canada,buzzesby.Hehas
promisedtotakemetohis favorite foodie
hauntsthenextday,andoveranightcaphe
tossesoutaverbal itinerary forourouting.
Afterward,asImakemywaybacktomy
roomattheMiraMoonHotel,abeautifully
appointed,high-serviceboutiquealterna-
tivetotheFourSeasonsandThePeninsula,
Imakeamentalnotetoskipbreakfast.
THENEXTDAY
atnoonsharp,Abergel
andImeet in frontofTheChairman,half-
wayupasidestreet inthecity’sbustling
Centraldistrict.Acoupleofdoorsdown,
someofAbergel’sbuddiescelebratethe
impendingopeningof theirnewrestaurant
byroastingapigoutsideandburning fake
money.Theswine lookstasty,butwehave
a lotofeatingaheadofus.WeenterThe
Chairman,which iscrisplydesignedand
perfectlycomfortable.Abergeldispenses
withthemenuandordersussteamedflow-
erycrab inanagedShaoxingwinesauce.
It’sagoodchoice.Locallycaught, the
seacreaturesburstwith freshandtender
meat insidepartiallycrackedshellsthat
Wemake it about halfway throughour noodles before
AUTUMN
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