Sai Kung

Sai Kung’s flavours begin with immediacy — an instinctive, almost tidal pull towards what tastes best right now. Before modern cafes and Michelin-star kitchens lined the waterfront, Sai Kung was a bustling fishing harbour. Sampans sold live catch straight from the sea, dragon boat rituals offered protection to those heading out and villages like Po Toi O preserved traditions that still echo today. Even as the fishing industry declined in the 1970s, the town kept its maritime spirit — one of the few coastal districts where boats, markets and seafood culture continue to thrive.

Today, chefs carry this heritage forward in deeply personal ways. Chef Sze Chiu-kwan, Executive Chef of Dong Lai Shun at The Royal Garden (Tsim Sha Tsui), approaches modern Chinese cooking with generational depth. “The kitchen is my world, and the cacophony of the wok and spatula is music to my ears,” he says. His food draws from the emotional honesty of his mother’s cooking: “It was more than just taste — it represented all the love she had for me.” Chef Yuen Pak-fan, Group Executive Sous Chef of Mott 32, shares a similar lineage. “I grew up in a family of F&B connoisseurs — my grandfather and dad were both chefs,” he reflects. “Tasting all those exquisite flavours from such a young age really shaped my love for cooking.”