Private Kitchens

Dining is a true event in Hong Kong. Meals take several hours to savor and enjoy. Even lunch is taken seriously. It is not gulped at your desk. Most workers take a full one hour lunch break.


Dinner is an entire evening out and the cuisine choice is limitless. Do you prefer Cantonese, Shanghaiese, Shezun, Vietnamese, Manchurian, Korean, Thai, Japanese, Indian, French, Italian? The list literally goes on and on and this only includes restaurants. What about Private Kitchens?


I had never heard of Private Kitchens before moving to Hong Kong. They are rather intimate dining establishments that definitely require reservations. They do not advertise therefore information about them is word of mouth only. They do not have an official restaurant license so a “Members Only” sign is posted outside the door. Some even require a discreet knock at the door to be admitted, rather reminiscent of the old speakeasy days. They also are not at street level (as all interesting things in HK are not) and you must really know where and how to find them. 


Most Private Kitchens have a rather limited menu which may change daily. Sometimes they may only offer one or two entrees each evening. Each Private Kitchen prepares a specific type of cuisine. They also do not have liquor licenses, but customers may bring their own wine and there may or may not be a corkage fee. 


Now I have heard two very different yet equally intriguing explanations as to the origin of Private Kitchens. I will share both with you and let you decide which seems more plausible. I personally believe both are possible especially here in Hong Kong.


The first theory I heard claimed that there were many fine chefs in Hong Kong who became tired of the long hours working for demanding restaurant owners. These chefs wanted to open their own restaurants, but the cost of renting a suitable location and paying for a license was too high. The chefs then opened their own private dining establishments. Since they are not opened to the “public” they are not required to obtain the different licenses. Therefore the cost of doing business is much lower, but the quality is much higher. Sounds plausible to me.


The second theory I heard claimed that during the SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) outbreak many restaurants were closed and people were told not to dine out. Hong Kongers love their dining so chefs opened private establishments were customers could eat without fear of infection. As I stated most of the Private Kitchens are rather small and tables may even be partitioned off thus providing a hygienic eating environment. This also seems plausible. 


I have no idea if either theory is true, but this week I was invited to a French Private Kitchen for an evening out with my FY (Foon Ying) ladies. We were taking our intrepid leader, Susan, to dinner to thank her for a wonderful Foon Ying class. 


The five of us met at the MTR and took it to the Wan Chai station. From there we walked to a very nondescript building and road the elevator up to the 6th floor where yes the sign said “Members Only”. This Private Kitchen was actually very large, but with curtains partitioning off each table area. There were private areas for two and larger ones for groups of four or more. The ceiling was low with pipes running overhead, but intertwined in them was fake greenery, silk flowers and little white lights. On the walls were numerous silk wreaths. The tables were covered with layers of table clothes, table runners and place mats. Very kitschy French!


We had brought two bottles of wine and they were immediately opened and placed in a wine bucket. The menu was much more extensive than I had anticipated and the choices were excellent. My meal consisted of escargot, spinach and scallop soup and duck. The duck was possibly the best I have ever eaten - extremely tender and tasty. 


Being ladies who enjoy their food we each ordered a different dessert and of course we shared and compared our choices. Obviously we are not very germ conscious ourselves. We all agreed the best was an apricot and dark chocolate tort - simply scrumptious. 


After tea, laughter and more conversation we realized we had just spent over three hours enjoying dinner. Yes, our dinner was an event and for most of us it was our first Private Kitchen experience. How very HK of us!