Cover Percy Ho (left) and Vicky Lau (right). Source: Mora

What goes into opening a restaurant that revolves entirely around one ingredient? We spoke to the chefs behind newly-opened Mora to find out

What's white, wobbly, and wholesome? The answer has been an obsession of chef Vicky Lau and partner Romain Herbreteau for the past two years, culminating this past January in the opening of Mora, an elegant bistro on quaint Upper Lascar Row in Sheung Wan that is focused solely on exploring the possibilities of tofu and soy. 

Mora's philosophy is a natural evolution of chef-owner Lau's "Ode To..." series of lunchtime tasting menus at her first restaurant, Tate Dining Room, each of which focused on a single ingredient as the main character, ranging from eggs and rice, to tea, mushrooms, and (at the time of writing) seaweed. "It allows me to go really in-depth into one ingredient, which a lot of the times you’re not able to do that in one or two dishes," Lau explains. "One of our strong points is to make innovative dishes and change the menu quite often. It’s also what a lot of guests come to Tate for."

The cuisine at Mora builds on Lau's learnings from her Ode to Tofu menu in June 2020, which featured the likes of cold noodles with yuba and fermented tofu; as well as the Ode to Soy Sauce menu in January 2021. But to fully realise the ambitions of a wholly dedicated restaurant, Lau had to go so far as acquiring her own dedicated factory, along with countless hours of research and experimentation to create a cuisine representative of soy and tofu across East Asian food culture. 

Heading up the kitchen is head chef Percy Ho, an alum of David Lai's Neighborhood, Bistronomique and On Lot 10, whose impressive head-to-toe tattoos nonetheless contrast with the restrained aesthetic of the restaurant interior, and his deft hand in teasing out the delicate flavours of the starring ingredient. He, along with Lau, sat down with Tatler Dining to shed light on the process of opening Mora, tofu's more esoteric varieties, and the culinary culture of China's Song dynasty from which they source ample inspiration. 

See also: Now Open: Vicky Lau’s New French-Chinese Restaurant Mora is an Ode to Soy

Tatler Asia
Above Stir-fried soy milk with Hokkaido scallop and tea pairing (Photo: Gavin Yeung/Tatler Dining)
Tatler Asia
Above One-sided crispy threadfin with tofu skin fish fumet (Photo: Gavin Yeung/Tatler Dining)

How did the idea for Mora come about?

Vicky Lau: There’s two types of restaurants—those that people go to for a new journey and every time it’s a surprise; and other restaurants like a traditional Italian trattoria where you get the veal Milanese every time. Tate is very much the first kind, so that's how the idea to focus on one ingredient for the "Ode To..." menus evolved. Tofu was one of our earlier menus, and that’s when I went deep into understanding the history behind tofu. Coincidentally there was a lot of news about tofu restaurants closing down. I actually considered buying out some of them, but I went there and the machines were so old that I didn’t even know what I was buying.

I’ve had great experiences at tofu restaurants in Japan; the versatility [of the ingredient] is really attractive, like how it can absorb so much sauce. The most important thing is the texture—ranging from super soft to super hard. A lot of people are also wanting to eat mock meats nowadays, but back in the Song dynasty we were already doing that, using tofu sheets to make mock chicken and more. It’s a very sustainable ingredient to use.

All this evolved and we always wanted to open a restaurant that is more casual. We have a lot to give and this time the most important topic is sustainability. I feel tofu can really reduce the protein consumption and it’s just a good way to remind people not to eat so much meat every single day.

Percy, what was your experience with tofu before you began at Mora?

Percy Ho: I wasn’t super familiar with cooking it, but I’ve always liked soy milk and tofu fa. Now that we’ve opened Mora I’ve learnt so much more about tofu. Back in the day they would use gypsum to make tofu, but today people are concerned about what goes into gypsum; so we use some more chemically neutral ingredients to coagulate the tofu instead.

See also: Why Snake Soup is Vicky Lau's Comfort Food

Tatler Asia
Above Cold chicken soy milk bouillon noodle with bean paste (Photo: Gavin Yeung/Tatler Dining)
Tatler Asia
Above Stinky red tofu marinated crispy three-yellow chicken (Photo: Gavin Yeung/Tatler Dining)

Do you think tofu is underrated?

VL: Maybe in some cultures, like if you ask a French or American person, tofu is for sick people because they’re used to the supermarket kind that’s been sitting around in plastic for ages. But in general, Asians like Chinese, Korean and Japanese people are very into tofu.

Did you encounter any difficulties when coming up with the first menu for Mora?

VL: Not too much to be honest. We still have a lot of ideas; today I’m testing a fermented tofu where you sprinkle probiotics on it, age it for a day or two, and all these hairs grow on the surface. The taste is very nutty, like Camembert. We’re going to pan-fry it.

What kind of relationship does Mora have with its surroundings on Upper Lascar Row?

VL: I just really like cultural places, and I think this place is very rare around the world. Sheung Wan I love in particular, because there’s a lot of old and new. We want to blend into the street; it’s very important to be part of the culture. It goes with the whole topic of sustainability, which is not only about the food itself.

PH: It’s strange because I grew up in this neighbourhood; I went to school just around the corner so I would pass this street every day. I've always wondered how the antique stores have survived for so long. They’ll take their wares out in the morning and put them away at night having done no business at all. But everyone who comes to Hong Kong will come here for certain. It’s a signature place in Hong Kong, a place full of treasures.

Does history also play a role in the menu?

VL: When we looked into dishes like mapo tofu, we realized that they’ve been around since the Song dynasty. During that time, society really valued pursuits like flower arranging and poetry, and they ate for enjoyment, not just to become full. I believe that was a time that gave birth to a new era of Chinese cuisine. With vegetarian food, people tended to be healthier back then and tofu was a huge part of that. Many dishes were created during that time. I would love to recreate those dishes but the recipes are really hard to come by.

There’s a lot we can play with though, like a dish called “Moon Shines on Twenty-Four Bridges”, where balls of tofu are placed into a hock of ham that's had holes cut out of it. Then it's steamed so that the tofu absorbs the flavour of the ham; and only the tofu is served in the end.

PH: Only the emperor could eat those dishes since the ham goes to waste! [Chuckles] But we don’t only stick to Chinese cuisine at Mora as we also take influences from Japan and Korea.

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Tatler Asia
Above Lobster "mapo tofu" (Photo: Gavin Yeung/Tatler Dining)
Tatler Asia
Above Sweet potato brulée with soy milk vanilla ice cream (Photo: Gavin Yeung/Tatler Dining)

What was the inspiration behind the tea pairings?

VL: We use a lot of tea from Plantation. When you think of tofu, you think of something soothing, so it goes well with tea. The percentage of people who order tea, given that we don’t yet have a liquor license [at the time of writing], is very high. I’m actually surprised at the versatility of tea; how much it gives to the dish.

PH: I’m not a big fan of tea, because I can’t sleep when I drink it. But previously at Tate we were able to try a lot of different teas, not only to drink but also to infuse or use to smoke ingredients with.

VL: We’ll change the tea pairings with the seasons. For example, there are deeper flavours like the golden needle tea paired with the sweet potato dessert, which matches cold weather well and brings out the sweetness [in both the tea and the food].

Is there a difference in diners’ expectations between Mora and Tate?

VL: Since Tate it’s a fine dining restaurant I need to provide a more refined level of service, plating and ingredients. At that price, guests have an expectation that not all the ingredients are sourced locally, because they want to enjoy things which you can’t find in Hong Kong. So even if I have alternatives, I need to fly some ingredients in from abroad, and the meat needs to be the best we can find from overseas. At Mora there isn’t this limitation because the price is lower, and as long as the produce I use is the best and the freshest I can find, it doesn’t necessarily need to be flown in. It’s not good or bad, just different price points.

These two years were during the pandemic of course, and we wanted to open sooner. But we’re happy to be here and we hope to bring the trend of tofu and soy milk. I want to make a hat that says “Make Tofu Cool Again”!

Mora
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40 Upper Lascar Row, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong

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