World-renowned 2 Michelin-starred Korean chef Mingoo Kang joins the Hong Kong gastronomy scene with his new restaurant, Hansik Goo.

The much anticipated yet delayed Hong Kong debut from Mingoo Kang, the chef of Mingles, which has 2 Michelin stars and ranked 14th in Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list, has begun welcoming guests in collaboration with local restaurant group ZS Hospitality. Being an instant hit with Korean food, Hansik Goo received wide acclaim and made a start befitting chef Kang. Celebrity chef Kang said in his statement to Tatler: “About three or four years ago, one Hong Kong developer asked if I would be interested in opening a Korean restaurant in their mall. It didn’t happen, partly because at the time I didn’t feel ready to open a new restaurant abroad. Mingles hadn’t settled in very well and I didn’t have any confidence to open another place, especially outside of Korea. It wasn’t until last year when we opened Festa, a casual European restaurant in the Banyan Tree Hotel in Seoul, that I realised: if I have a good system and good chef and good team, I can open another restaurant, and I can run the restaurant without me physically being there.”

Celebrity chef Kang, who prepared the restaurant opening by working with his team remotely for months, said, “Directing the restaurant remotely was really a new thing for me. I was worried about not being able to come to Hong Kong, but with the help of my restaurant partner and the team in Hong Kong, we were prepared. After service at Mingles I would get home around 11pm, and the guys here at Hansik Goo would finish at midnight my time. Then we’d do a video conference over wine and beer, and talk about our plans for two or three hours. They’d share their preparation processes over WhatsApp dozens of times a day, too. And then, Hansik Goo opened—but I could only imagine it and dream about it.”