Celebrity Life

There's no better way to mark the occasion than with good food — and lots of it. Here's our pick of the best Chinese New Year luxury puddings and treats.

With the start of the new lunar year just around the corner, stock up on the best desserts on offer. Turnip puddings (also called radish cakes) are traditional Chinese dim sum snacks, commonly served in Cantonese yum cha. Don't underestimate the small dish — in Cantonese, its name “leen goh” or “loh bak goh” is a homophone for “year higher”, ushering in new heights of prosperity for the coming year.

And we adore the Chinese New Year chuen hup, or traditional candy box, portion of the holiday. A bright red circular box set enticingly open upon coffee tables, filled with all kinds of sweet and savoury treats — it's a time-honoured custom, along with the coconut and turnip puddings. Each neat little segment houses a treat with an auspicious meaning of its own: lotus seeds are symbolic signs of improved fertility; lotus root, of love; tangerines and kumquats sound phonetically similar to "gold"; melon seeds to money and wealth. Chocolate coins, well, are coins.

To celebrate new beginnings and the new year, we've compiled the best Chinese New Year luxury puddings and treats for you and your loved ones to welcome the Year of the Tiger with.

The Best Chinese New Year Luxury Puddings and Treats

China Tang

China Tang's artisan Chinese New Year puddings are a modern take on the classic recipe, serving up two whole new flavours to welcome the Year of the Tiger: a turnip pudding with dried tiger prawn and local preserved meat and a handmade rice pudding with Taiwanese brown sugar and purple rice. Both are crafted by executive chef Menex Cheung and dim sum chef Mok Wing Kwai, and come in these stunning gift boxes decorated with China Tang’s signature Narcissus pattern — symbolizing grace and fortune. You can order the puddings and pick them up from the restaurant.

China Tang Landmark, Shop 411-413, 4/F, LANDMARK ATRIUM, 15 Queen’s Road Central, Central; +852 2522 2148

Duddell’s

Michelin-starred Duddell's selection of Chinese New Year puddings is a trio of classic favourite flavours: turnip (HK$348), taro (HK$348) and a "New Year" Pudding (HK$298). Pick up one, all three, or a gift set including the restaurant's signature X.O. Sauce. It's all packaged in a specially designed gift box created in collaboration with G.O.D. (Goods of Desire), with an ornate hand-drawn pattern typical of the embellishments found on Chinese teacups and soup bowls, a nod to its Hong Kong heritage. You can purchase at the restaurant or order online for delivery — find out more here.

We also love the look of the "Prosperous New Year Hamper", stocked with six traditional delicacies: a new year pudding; braised South African 5 head abalone with Duddell’s Abalone Sauce; a signature X.O. Sauce; homemade walnut cookies; Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin, Yellow Label Brut, Champagne; and Fook Ming Tong Fuding Jasmine Mao Feng Tea.

Duddell’s, 1 Duddell Street, Central; +852 2525 9191

Godiva

To no one's surprise, it's all about the chocolates at Godiva. The Belgian chocolatier has drawn up a new motif for the Year of the Tiger, auspicious red and gold packaging printed with swimming koi and a tiger portrait set amongst crackling fireworks as a symbolic image of wealth. For the chocolates, the bijou creations feature the same lucky tiger motif over the surface and are packed in three distinct flavours: Raspberry Orange White chocolate, Pecan Praliné Milk chocolate and 85% Dark Ganache chocolate. Order before 31 January to enjoy special offers including free gifts, including a complimentary box of chocolates, or 10% off any purchase of HK$688. Find out more and order here.

Godiva, various locations across Hong Kong

Little Bao

Little Bao is paying tribute to lucky colour red with a beetroot turnip cake, replacing turnip with fresh beetroot for a natural bold red cake. Ingredients include Sam Hing Lung rose wine sausages, Thai dried shrimp and natural seasoning for extra-healthy eating. You can also opt for the taro cake, made with Okinawan sweet potato and fresh taro for an extra soft and pillowy texture, and also to help boost the immune system. You can order them and more here.

Little Bao, 1-3 Shin Hing Street, Central; +852 6794 8414

Marco Polo Hongkong Hotel

Marco Polo Hongkong Hotel is celebrating the new lunar year with traditional Chinese recipes, serving up three classic puddings — a savoury Chinese Turnip Cake with Conpoy made from Chinese sausage and Jinhua ham; a sweet Coconut Pudding with Gold Leaf decorated with golden leaf glutinous rice and coconut milk; and a Water Chestnut Cake filled with crunchy water chestnut pieces. Bottles of homemade XO Chilli Sauce are also available to order. You can find out more here.

Marco Polo Hongkong Hotel, No. 3 Canton Road, Harbour City, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon; +852 2118 7283

Ming Court

Located inside Cordis, Michelin-starred Ming Court is offering an array of festive treats to ring in the Lunar New Year. Executive Chef Li Yuet Faat has prepared three auspicious puddings: a coconut Chinese New Year Pudding; an abalone, conpoy, and air-dried preserved meat and turnip pudding; and a red date and coconut pudding. Go for the deluxe Chinese New Year hamper, with a coconut pudding, homemade XO sauce, South African premium 12 head abalone and more. You can order it here.

Ming Court, Level 6, 555 Shanghai Street, Cordis, Mong Kok, Kowloon; +852 3552 3301 

Rosewood Hong Kong

Rosewood Hong Kong is offering an array of Chinese New Year sets for gifting, featuring everything from traditional puddings to homemade XO sauce, festive candies, afternoon tea sets and more. Don't miss the well-wishes themed hampers: Harvest (HK$9,988), Fortune (HK$3,388), and Joy (HK$2,288) — for every CNY hamper purchased, Rosewood will donate 5% of the proceeds to support ImpactHK and their work to support those experiencing homelessness in Hong Kong. Find out more here.

We also love the clever Chinese New Year advent calendar from Rosewood — rather than counting down, you count on from the first day of the lunar calendar into the new Year of the Tiger. The whole set holds 15 special treats from the hotel, one for each day of the Chinese traditional holiday that lasts for two weeks. Tug open the jewel-toned drawers to discover a selection of delicious snacks from fortune cookies and egg rolls to XO sauce, palmiers, nougats, ginger candies and crunchy peanut bites. Much better than your usual melon seeds. You can order it here.

Rosewood Hong Kong, Victoria Dockside, 18 Salisbury Rd, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong, +852 3891 8732

Paul Lafayet

No crème brulée from Paul Lafayet this Chinese New Year. What you can get, though, is the patisserie's Lucky Tiger Gift Box with French illustrator Emilie Sarnel's hand drawing of two dancing tigers. The gift box set pulls open to reveal three different tiers featuring a whole afternoon experience: “Cookirons" — a cookie-based iteration of the brand's famous macaron; jasmine and hojicha tea tins with pots of honey in the second and a special fine bone china porcelain dish at the base to hold it all. The plate is specially tailored to the Year of the Tiger, featuring a sketch of two smiling tigers amongst a flowery meadow filled with macarons. You can order it online here.

Paul Lafayet, various locations across Hong Kong

Saicho

So this might not fit into traditional Chinese candy boxes, but it will still sit very prettily amongst red-adorned decor around the home. For the Year of the Tiger, Saicho has launched a very special creation of only 900 bottles — Eight Immortals — featuring the special Dan Cong Oolong tea grown atop Phoenix Mountain's Tian Liao village in Guangdong. From harvest to roast and rolling, the Dan Cong Oolong leaves are looked after by a qualified tea master. The result is a fragrant blend that adheres to the leaves' distinct complexity: bright notes of ginger mango and tangerine that rounds into a bitterness, then herbal, the likes of anise, fennel and tarragon. With Eight Immortals' earthy savouriness, Saicho recommends pairing with traditional Chinese New Year dishes including Chinese steamed fish and tang yang (glutinous rice dumplings). You can shop Saicho's Chinese New Year selection here.

Smith & Sinclair

Candy box fillings will be extra exciting with the addition of Smith & Sinclair treats, they're made after your favourite tipples! The UK-based brand crafts vegan-friendly gummies — or "Edible Cocktails" — from anything, including classic Gin & Tonic to special concoctions like Passionfruit Mojito. For the Year of the Tiger, the brand has designed a special red, tiger-printed sleeve as a symbol of good luck and fortune. These can be fitted over any of Smith & Sinclair's nine signature sets, from spirit-based "Gin Obsessed" or "Tequila Time" to themed "Love Box" or "Night In". You can order and find out more here.

Sugarfina

Sugarfina's candy cubes are a delight, both to give and receive. For this Chinese New Year, the confectioner has crafted a series of Candy Bento Boxes for easy gifting (and enjoying!) — with anything from a single cube to a lucky set of eight, featuring the brand's sweet creations in fun, auspicious names. There's the Lotus Flowers flavoured with lychee, Tangerine Bears, berried-flavoured Royal Roses and Golden Pearls. If not for the sweets within, get this set for the beautifully artistic packaging: a hand-crafted shadow box of red and gold decor motifs of lanterns, flowers and a temple to mark new beginnings.

Sugarfina, various locations across Hong Kong

The Peninsula Boutique & Café

One of the traditional elements of the Year of the Tiger is the big cat's head, symbolising strength and good health. Inspired by traditional Chinese "tiger head shoes" worn by children, the Peninsula Boutique & Café is celebrating the new year with plenty of tiger head-decorated gift sets — you can hang the box up as a Chinese New Year decoration! Pick up the festive "Robust Tiger Gift Set" (with cookies, candies, chocolate, tea and more), and any of the Chinese New Year puddings. You can find out more here.

The Peninsula Boutique & Café, The Peninsula Arcade, Salisbury Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon; +852 2696 6969

Venchi

You may be spoilt for choice with Venchi's range of Chinese New Year gift boxes, but one thing's for sure: the range of lucky red and gold packaging all feature the Italian brand's signature 140-years, Piedmont Master Chocolatiers-approved sweets. Pick up The Chinese New Year Double Layer Hexagon Gift Box, an extensive collection of the brand's favourite chocolates: Cremini, Chocoviar, Truffles, and Dubledoni. Or consider the Chinese New Year Round Hamper, which features Venchi's latest creation Gianduja N.3 with Hazelnut, and is a close replica of the traditional chuen hup with the rounded exterior and organised sections within.

Venchi, various locations across Hong Kong

Yat Tung Heen

Led by celebrated chef Tam Tung, Michelin-starred Yat Tung Heen is celebrating the new year by bringing back its highly sought-after turnip pudding, classic Chinese New Year pudding and the restaurant's signature gift box (which includes housemade premium XO sauce, candied walnuts and hand-selected Ginseng Oolong tea leaves). And to minimise the environmental impact of the gifting season, each pudding is thoughtfully packaged in a 100% recyclable eco-friendly paper box. You can find out more here.

Yat Tung Heen, Level B2, Eaton HK, 380 Nathan Road, Kowloon, Hong Kong, +852 2710 1093

Ying Jee Club

Two Michelin-starred Cantonese restaurant Ying Jee Club is serving the finest delectable pastry duo, a savoury turnip pudding with conpoy and air-dried meat and a sweet coconut milk pudding with red bean and Ceylon tea. Both are handcrafted daily by executive chef Siu Hin-Chi, who has amassed 20 Michelin stars over the past decade alone — rest assured, the preservative-free puddings epitomise the highest standard of Cantonese cuisine in both texture and flavour. You can order in-person at the restaurant, or by calling 2801 6882 or emailing reservation@yingjeeclub.hk — find out more here.

Ying Jee Club, Shop G05, 107 & 108, Nexxus Building, 41 Connaught Road Central; +852 2801 6882

(Hero image courtesy of Yat Tung Heen, featured image courtesy of Duddell's, image 1 courtesy of China Tang)

The post Inside Pangaia’s Debut Denim Range with Jonathan Cheung appeared first on Prestige Online - Hong Kong.

Aside from his property investment interests, businessman Jonathan Cheng tells us about the things he loves, from fast cars in Europe to hopping on a motorbike for roadside breakfasts in Koh Samui.

On first glance, you’d think that Jonathan Cheng -- tall and casually dressed in faded jeans and collarless dark blue shirt -- was an impresario or perhaps a successful restaurateur, or maybe the director of an international advertising agency. Your first impression would almost certainly be wrong; in fact, you could spend hours making wild guesses as to what exactly it is that Cheng does and it’s odds-on that you still wouldn’t get it right.

“Even when I go to meetings with banks or other financial institutions I dress like this," says Cheng, who’s actually the CEO and managing director of Hong Kong-based LC Capital, a boutique Asia Pacific-oriented private-equity fund that -- partly thanks to a holiday he took several years ago -- focuses on property development among other multi-strategy plays.

Cheng explains that his foray into real estate began almost as an aside when, on a skiing trip to Niseko in northern Japan, he found a plot of land. “I’d been running a private-equity fund -- a lot of equity trading, company restructuring -- very different from what we’re doing now," he says. “But when I saw the property in Niseko I fell in love with it. So I rang up some people to see if we could do it together."

It turned out to be the foundation of a portfolio of properties currently worth in the region of US$175 million, in locations as far-flung as Japan or Perth in Western Australia, the city to which Cheng had moved to attend high school and university. “When it started," he says, “it was a kind of a one-off thing, more of a fun project than anything else. But it took off, and because I was often in the area I went around looking - not actively, but when they’re on the radar they’re on the radar, right? And then other things popped out of the woodwork and the numbers made sense, so we got into it full-time. We started Infinity Capital Group as a property developer - and the next thing we know, after having two or three people in the office, we’ve got 25 or 26."

Although clearly a man of taste and with a penchant for design, Cheng doesn’t get too involved with the architectural side of the properties he develops. “I have my likes and dislikes and always give my input," he says, “but I see things more from a numbers perspective. In areas where we’re able to control construction quality, construction timetables, we’ll go in that way because there’s more value to extract. But right now we’re trying to grow the brand and get into more areas, and when that happens we need to take a look at mature properties as well. Now’s a good time, because tourism’s been hit a lot, things are coming out on the market and there’s a lot of value to be had."

In fact, so busy is he these days that Cheng doesn’t have much time for many of his favourite activities. “I enjoy skiing a lot and I still go snorkelling if I can get the chance. I used to enjoy golf, but I’ve got a bad back so these days it hasn’t been much of a priority for me. And from a work perspective I don’t have much time. Skiing’s definitely nice but obviously with the business I can’t go around the globe chasing the snow like some people can."

Of the passions that he is able regularly to indulge, watches and - perhaps not surprisingly - cars feature high on the list - indeed the first time I met him I couldn’t help noticing the Patek Philippe discreetly strapped to his wrist. “I’ve got several watches and I like to be understated. It’s the only accessory I wear except for a necklace, which was given to me by my mum many years ago. I think men should keep it simple.

“I rotate the watches and wear a different one every couple of days. I don’t keep them on a winder because if you don’t wear them and they stop, you’re not wearing down the mechanics. This is purely my own opinion and I know a lot of people think otherwise, but I think the more you use them the more worn out they get, just like a car."

Which brings us - and all very naturally - to the photograph in his office lobby of Cheng posing with a Lamborghini at a roadside in what looks very much like Europe. I can’t help asking him if it’s his.

“I used to go over to Europe every year with my mates," he explains. “There’d be nine or 10 of us and a friend who’d organise it for us. We’d pick up a fleet of supercars and drive through France - Champagne, Burgundy, places like that - and end up in a quaint hotel or castle where we’d unwind every night with a wine dinner, and the next day we’d continue on our way. So yeah, I love cars, I love driving and I love getting it out of my system once in a while. A few years ago, we started in Munich and ended up in Monaco for the Grand Prix, and there are stretches of autobahn and autostrada where you can really give it a squeeze...

“Here in Hong Kong, I’ve got a Ferrari 488 - a beautiful car - and a Bentley Continental [both of which he tells me are coupes]. I like convertibles but over here it’s like you’re getting too much attention sometimes, especially if you’re caught up in a jam and you feel like an animal in a cage. I remember telling myself when I was 35 that I wanted to buy a Bentley, but one of my mates told me, 'Hey, it’s a bit early for you - you should get one after you’re 40.’ I’m 45 now, and I’ve got this bad back, and it’s really, really comfortable.

Although Cheng jokes that he hasn’t reached his mid-life crisis quite yet, he does admit to looking around for an older Porsche. “I’m a 911 fan boy," he says, “and the 993 [the last of the air-cooled 911s, which ceased production more than 20 years ago] is beautiful. I’m looking around for one that I can register and put on the road. I try to drive every day and swap the cars around, just like my watches, but sometimes I have to use the company car, especially if I’m having a little bit of a drink after work with clients."

And what about those increasingly rare occasions when he’s able to get away from Hong Kong to relax and unwind? “I feel most comfortable in a beach-resort setting," Cheng says. “So every two or three months I try to get away for a weekend, to Bali, Samui or Phuket. The Maldives are beautiful but it’s not something you can do for two or three nights, just nip out and nip back in - plus if you go to islands that require a seaplane transfer it gets even more complicated.

“I like Samui a lot, because it’s not so commercial, it’s not crowded, not many cars and I feel safe alone on a motorbike. Contrary to what you might think, I like going to roadside stalls, so I rent a motorbike and go to the little stalls for breakfast, just in flip flops and a singlet. If I can get out every couple of months to places like that, it would be fantastic. I think that would be perfect."

The post LC Capital CEO Jonathan Cheng’s Driving Passion appeared first on Prestige Online - Hong Kong.