Lau Yiu Fai joined InterContinental Hong Kong in 1980, has been Executive Chef of Yan Toh Heen since 2001, and creates contemporary Cantonese dishes.
I was born in 1960, so I’m 52 now. I first joined InterContinental Hong Kong in 1980, when the hotel first opened, and worked my way up the culinary ladder in the hotel’s Chinese Banqueting Kitchen. Then I was on the opening team when the hotel’s Cantonese restaurant opened in 1984. I have been Executive Chef of Yan Toh Heen since 2001, and I’ve been working as a cook for over 30 years.
First of all, I love to eat! Although there are no chefs in my family, I started cooking at 14, when I became an apprentice at a famous Cantonese restaurant in Hong Kong. I remember that the head chef there had such dignity and integrity that all his junior chefs admired him. He really encouraged me to become a chef and was a great mentor.
Every day at work is interesting for me, because I enjoy what I do. I feel fortunate to have been invited as a guest chef to several prestigious venues and events. In 2011, I was invited as one of Hong Kong’s Michelin star chefs to cook at an exclusive charity event at Asia House in London, held to benefit the “First Initiative,” which helps nurture young talent.
I was also a guest chef at the famous Imperial Hotel in Osaka and at the InterContinental Yokohama in Japan. It was fascinating to visit these places and to share my passion for Cantonese cuisine with a high-profile clientele in the UK and in Japan.
My first choice is the cuisine of Guangdong Province, the area near Hong Kong formerly known as Canton. Cantonese cuisine uses fresh ingredients and incorporates unique items from all over the world. Alongside traditional Cantonese cuisine, I enjoy creating contemporary Cantonese dishes in which I can be creative and innovative.
I’m easy to satisfy and happy with a simple meal. Still, for inspiration I like to try all types of cuisine, cooking styles, and methods, because this opens my mind and helps me become more creative.
When I was young, in my twenties, I enjoyed Thai boxing. Now I enjoy doing tai chi and yoga.
I love traveling around the world. Seeing different places and experiencing different cultures opens your mind: you learn more and find inspiration, and traveling the world helps me create new, innovative dishes.
In China, I have traveled a lot through all the different provinces, and each has its own cooking style. In Beijing, the food is heavier and oilier because of the cold weather. In Sichuan, they use a lot of chili, and the food is very spicy. In Cantonese cuisine, thanks to the long coastline, we use more seafood, and I find that Cantonese cuisine offers more choices.
To the readers, I’d like to say: “To be a good cook, you can’t simply follow the recipe. Besides learning practical cooking methods, you need to try the recipe several times in order to succeed and to create your own cooking style and character.”
I chose the dish in the picture because I’m proud of it: our Yan Toh Heen team worked together to create it. We showcased it at the HKTB (Hong Kong Tourism Board) “Best of the Best” Culinary Awards in fall 2012, and the dish won a gold medal. This dish, Poached Lobster and Bird’s Nest in Egg White, is easy to prepare at home, and it is simple yet elegant.
