The chef’s creative crossover of complementary cuisines is one way to travel this season
From October 27 to 30, Ray Choi takes the baton from his fellow head chef Devon Hou of Cobo House as he launches his Nordic Japan pop-up at Tatler Dining Kitchen. The one-off menu draws upon his experience of working with Japanese and Nordic flavours and techniques, and uses his curiosity as a springboard for new and creative ideas. The sensory-driven menu celebrates the commonalities between the two cuisines, using culinary methods popularised by both traditions for a six-course dinner that skitters across continents.
See also: Cobo House's Devon Hou Presents A Hakka Tapas Pop-Up At Tatler Dining Kitchen
Born and raised in Hong Kong, Choi’s experience in restaurants include The Hong Kong Jockey Club’s Derby Kitchen, Mandarin Grill, L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon, Tate Dining Room—where he worked for six years—and Arbor, where he worked as sous chef. Hungry to explore the culinary world outside of his home city, Choi then spent time at La Cime in Osaka and at Relae in Copenhagen—both tenures that have inspired and changed his approach to gastonomy. Upon returning to Hong Kong, he joined Butler Hong Kong as head chef, and later opened Cobo House with Hou.
For Choi, the marriage of Japanese and Nordic sensibilities comes naturally to him—the freshness and quality of Japanese ingredients is superb, as is their considered approach to seasonality. Meanwhile, his time in Nordic countries through work and travel has brought cooking methods such as fermentation and ageing into his arsenal.
In this special menu for Tatler Dining Kitchen, diners will get an insight into Choi’s most creative work yet; for the first course of sea bream, he uses the technique of kombu-jime (wrapping the fish in seaweed to cure it) to boost the umami factor, and pairs it with a zingy house-fermented tomato juice and sweet confit tomato. His love for dark beer also forms the backbone of his Japanese potato and sweet potato course, where the richness of the pecorino Romano and cream sauce is balanced by the bitterness of the beer.
Don’t miss your chance to try this menu at Tatler Dining Kitchen this October.
