Street food, sushi, Indian: favourite Hong Kong restaurants of a fermentation expert

Fermentation enthusiast Tommy Leung is the founder of HakkoBako, a food tech start-up that builds fermentation chambers for chefs and mixologists. He also runs Mealthy, a meal prep service in Hong Kong. He spoke to Andrew Sun.

My dad went from Hong Kong to Sweden in the 1970s and opened Chinese restaurants there. I am blessed to have been immersed not only in Chinese food culture but also Swedish.

My Swedish grandparents were enthusiastic outdoor people. From an early age, I foraged for blueberries, cloudberries and chanterelle mushrooms in the forests. We travelled back to Hong Kong for the summer holidays.

I am a big fan of the city’s modern Indian restaurants, especially their super-thick and creamy curries. Two favourites are Tagline (Shop G02-G04, G18-G22, Empire Centre, 68 Mody Road, Tsim Sha Tsui. Tel: 2329 3311) and Bengal Brothers (Shop D, Man Hee Mansion, 6 Johnston Road, Wan Chai. Tel: 9245 8774), especially for their Chettinad-style lamb curry. Somehow, these places pack twice or three times more flavour and richness, and I have no idea how they do it.

Cauliflower kurma thali from Bengal Brothers. Photo: Instagram/bengalbrothershk

As a fermentation enthusiast, I love the city’s cocktail scene. It is among the best in the world, with a new generation of mixologists creating flavours and drinks that really blow the mind.

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