La Rambla and Elephant Grounds co-founder lets us poke around his pantry
Gerald Li, the man behind some of Hong Kong’s hippest eateries, opens his cupboards to reveal a fittingly cool cache that can be enjoyed by adults and kids too
The contents of Gerald Li Hong-yan’s pantry look like a trend round-up in a food magazine. This is hardly surprising, Li is the co-founder of several hip Hong Kong eateries – high-end Spanish restaurant La Rambla, cafe chain Elephant Grounds and the North American-style Morty’s Delicatessen. He was also behind the now-closed haute private kitchen Liberty Private Works.
Nevertheless, Li tends to eat simply at home. “We have very traditional Cantonese food – recipes from when I was growing up. My helpers were trained by my grandma, so [we eat] dishes like steamed pork patty, steamed egg – just Cantonese-style comfort food,” he says.
One of his current favourites, however, comes in a packet and can be ready in under five minutes – instant noodles by Kiki, the Taiwanese brand that has attracted a cult-like following. Li discovered the naturally air-dried wheat noodles through his wife, who works in finance.
“Her office gets gifts from clients; she brought some Kiki noodles home and they were really good. We love Sichuan mala, and this version has so much flavour. They’re so small though, it’s like a snack,” he laments.
Li says his children – a six year-old daughter and three year-old son – love to snack, but not on spicy food. “They eat everything – everything in moderation. We don’t say that they can’t eat ice-cream, or can’t eat candy – just not too much and not all the time. We’re pretty laid back. Some parents want to control every part of their children’s diet, and that’s weird to me.”
