A Designer For All Seasons: Celebrating 20 Years of Cindy Chao the Art Jewel

A landmark year for designer Cindy Chao, 20 years just floated by like a dragonfly in flight.

We’ve long covered—and not so secretly coveted—the exquisite works of designer Cindy Chao for years now as her sculptural, nature-inspired, museum-worthy jewels have been a point of fascination and debate: Is it jewellery, or is it art?

Her jewels have appeared in the pages of Robb Report Hong Kong’s annual Best of the Best, and intermittently in various iterations of Robb Report globally since 2012, such sporadic bursts of inspired creations finding a safe haven in the Best in Jewellery pages with increasing frequency. Chao’s earrings can be seen on the lobes of Academy-Award-winning actresses, her famed brooches on the lapel of gentlemen as they hit the red carpet. Chao’s singular sensations have also appeared in capital museums, guarded in enclosed glass cases, glimmering under a spotlight. How many jewellers can state that their work is part of the permanent collections at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, and the Smithsonian in Washington, DC?

Read the entire feature here at Robb Report Hong Kong.

Five Foot Road’s Yang Dengquan on How Authenticity and Accuracy Make Up the Spice of Life, and the Importance of the Historical Silk Road to Sichuan Cuisine

 

Historically, cuisine from Chengdu comes with baggage tags of spice and numbing spice, but the good chef assures that there’s much more to this regional style of food.

 

Not to use the terms lightly, but seated across the circular mahogany table of Five Foot Road, one can listen to an oral thesis on Sichuan cuisine by omniscient chef Yang Dengquan, who has devoted his life and career to the details of a culinary sect that not many are privy to. 

The broad brushstroke of claiming all the region’s cuisine as merely “spicy food” loses intricacies that the finer palate can detect. A sophisticated one can even find the elements of 24 intricate flavour profiles that stem from five basic tastes: sweet, sour, savoury, bitter, and spicy. The finest chef can summon root powers using indigenous ingredients, legacy recipes, and cooking styles passed on from one generation to the next, but only the chosen few are fully committed to authenticity and accuracy.

Read the entire feature here at Robb Report Hong Kong.

Inside Regent Hong Kong’s New Signature Suites, a Trio of Luxury Residential Retreats

 

In a city teeming with fabulous hotels and extraordinary facilities, the doors to the newest set of jaw-dropping suites are officially open.

While our earlier fashion spread provided a first look at the many rooms, hot spots, and glamorous locations dotted around Regent Hong Kong, earlier this month, yet another chapter of the hotel was unveiled. We take a close look at the most glamorous square feet of real estate within Regent Hong Kong, namely the CEO, Terrace, and Presidential suites.

The size and scale is formidable in each, but it’s the little details and big ideas that make them so impressive. Novel rooms (a Chinese tea room!) and amenities (a mahjong corner), multi-layered facilities, grand vistas, private hot tubs, and infinity pools add to the thinking outside of the box while fulfilling the parameters of what’s expected in the grandest rooms of a luxurious hotel. The thoughtful vision of Chi Wing-lo, legendary local architect and designer, comes to life and spreads out as each room is more expansive (and expensive) than the other.

Read the entire feature here at Robb Report Hong Kong.

Baan Tepa’s Chudaree “Tam” Debhakam on Passion and Perseverance, Gaining Two Michelin Stars, and Bringing Thai Culinary Excellence to Macau

Elevating easy-to-love, popular dishes from Thailand, the chef is winning over critics, patrons, and reality TV judges in one fell swoop.

As the new-age face of contemporary Thai cuisine, chef Chudaree “Tam” Debhakam (who found fame as the winner of the immensely popular reality TV cooking show Top Chef Thailand) is in the thick of a media frenzy. She is having her moment in the sun as every major publication in her native country and around Asia has featured her with glowing references and portraiture—and deservedly so. Bringing zest, novelty, and enthusiasm to one of the most beloved cuisines in the world, she is reminding the world yet again of Thai excellence, bringing it piping hot and steaming to the table. 

While many a young adult flounders before finding the chosen path, Debhakam set her goal posts early on, with her first steps as a graduate from the University of Nottingham in Food Science and Nutrition. A degree from the International Culinary Centre in New York followed suit, which led to working at the famed Jean-Georges, 11 Madison Park, and Blue Hill at Stone Barns. But it was back in her motherland where she found sure footing.

Read the entire feature here at Robb Report Hong Kong.

Chef Florita Morais Alves on Tradition, History, and Skilful Hands, and How to Bring Macanese Cuisine to the Table at MGM x RR1HK Culinary Masters Macau 2024

Representing a traditional approach to modern Macanese cuisine, this icon in the dining industry serves meals, history, and anecdotes with equal ease.

As you read these words, some of the finest chefs in the world are in their respective kitchens, mulling over recipes, ingredients, and ideas for plating and presentation as they prep for the grand return of the most-anticipated culinary event of the year: MGM x RR1HK Culinary Masters Macau 2024. Back in Macau from 28 to 30 June, flights are booked and prized equipment, fine produce, and a boatload of talent is eastward-bound, heading to MGM COTAI to pen the second chapter of RR1 Hong Kong’s Culinary Masters in Asia.

With an ambitious theme of “Savor 700 Years of Silk Road Flavors: A Gastronomic Odyssey,” this year’s event will bring together stellar chefs from Asia, Europe, and the Middle East for a series of captivating activities and meticulously prepared dinners, culminating with a 12-hand pièce-de-résistance dinner that promises to be a showstopper. 

Read the entire feature here at Robb Report Hong Kong.