The Hong Kong Tourism Board brings world-renowned Chefs Vicky Cheng and Margarita Forés together for an unforgettable culinary showcase.
The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) had the star chefs from Hong and the Philippines prepare an unparalleled gastronomic experience entitled When Stars Align: A Four Hands Dinner and Culinary Showcase, at the Penthouse No. 66, Grand Hyatt Manila.
Local partners of the tourism board and content creators that frequent the world city were invited to the intimate dinner to celebrate the close relationship between Hong Kong and the Philippines. The dinner featured a special menu that highlighted the best of both cuisines through ingredients and techniques that are unique to Hong Kong and Filipino dishes.
Vicky is celebrated for his innovative approach to contemporary Chinese-French cuisine at his Michelin-starred restaurants VEA and Wing in Hong Kong. Wing was named the 5th Best Restaurant in Asia and was 20th on the World’s Best Restaurants this year. Margarita is a culinary icon in the Philippines known for her mastery of Italian and Filipino dishes and was Asia’s Best Female Chef 2016. Working together for the first time since 2017, the two crafted a menu that fused together their distinct styles and culinary philosophies, representative of the rich culinary traditions of both Hong Kong and the Philippines.
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Margarita said: “It’s truly an honor to be able to represent the Philippines and collaborate on a menu with my good friend, Vicky. Many know that Hong Kong is very close to my heart and is a city I frequent quite often – the culinary scene there is really one-of-a-kind and a treat for foodies from all over the world.”
Guests were also treated to catch all the kitchen action and got to witness firsthand the culinary artistry of the two star chefs via Penthouse No. 66’s show kitchens – allowing for the ultimate showcase of their talents and prowess.
More than just a dinner, each course was carefully selected with ingredients flown in straight from Hong Kong and various regions in the Philippines. The resulting dishes therefore featured a symphony of flavors guests are sure to remember and won’t get to experience anywhere else.
Vicky said “We wanted to collaborate together on most of the dishes to really bring out the best of both Hong Kong and Philippine flavors. From the first course up to the dessert, Chef Margarita and I used ingredients we sourced from each other, fusing together the flavors from our homes.”
The dinner started with a “show of snacks” where Vicky created a golden crystal egg (think of a clear century egg) with hand-pulled noodles in a mala chilli sauce and a smoked eggplant in house made sour sauce, similar to his braided eggplant in his restaurant Wing. Margarita prepared an ukoy (shrimp fritter) topped with malasugui kinilaw (blue marlin ceviche) garnished with shrimp roe from Hong Kong as well as her family’s recipe of banana heart salad with coconut milk, native corn, and fish maw from Bohol.
This was followed by Vicky’s white pepper virgin mud crab thick soup with steamed egg white and Tonkin jasmine and Margarita’s Bulacan river prawn served with Hong Kong noodles with etag (smoked Kalinga black pig) XO with Hong Kong noodles, dried fish and chilies.
There was a third course before dessert – sea cucumber spring roll with scallion sauce and palm hearts and a pomfret fish pares (a Filipino dish paired with rice) with abalone sauce rice, jackfruit, and preserved turnips.
The snow gum (from osmanthus flowers) with ube (purple yam) gelato, pili nut hojaldres (puff pastry) with pink guava, and Cebu mango mocha was a perfect ending for a very memorable four-hands dinner.
The four hands dinner also serves as a prelude to HKTB’s Wine & Dine Festival happening in October, an annual celebration of epicurean delights that positions Hong Kong as a premier capital for gastronomy in Asia. The Wine & Dine Festival showcases Hong Kong’s vibrant food scene and attracts food and wine enthusiasts from around the world proving that it is one of the most anticipated culinary events in the region.
“We are grateful for the opportunity to bring these two chefs together again to celebrate Hong Kong and the Philippines, we hope that this dinner will open more avenues for partnerships between our Filipino friends present today and HKTB.” shared Liew Chian Jia, Regional Director of Southeast Asia, Hong Kong Tourism Board.
Special cocktails featuring Hong Kong flavors were also created in partnership with Grand Hyatt Manila for the event.
To learn more about Hong Kong’s upcoming Wine & Dine Festival, visit discoverhongkong.com.
