Peter Klimenko first visited Revolving 66 - the restaurant atop the Hopewell Centre - in 1989, the year he arrived in Hong Kong. 'It was the talk of the town. The Hopewell was the tallest building around at the time,' he says.
The 360-degree rotating platform exploited the venue's sky-high location: taking in Wan Chai's mountainous backdrop, a crowded Victoria Harbour and the canyons of tower blocks sandwiched between.
But while the ever-changing views impressed diners, the mediocre menu of tired dishes did not. 'It was bad,' Klimenko recalls. 'The international menu was a bit of everything ... and nothing.'
The Los Angeles native, who made Hong Kong his home, returned to Revolving 66 a handful of times, but only to show visiting friends the sweeping panorama.
As countless restaurants with comparable views and much better food joined the dining scene, the revolving room was left behind, never to recapture its late 1980s buzz. But all that is set to change with its latest incarnation as View 62, which opens next month when two-Michelin-star chef Paco Roncero will be at the helm to present a Spanish-inspired European menu.
The dated and dark interior has been replaced by an altogether brighter space bristling with high design. The ceiling, for instance, has a cloud-like textural effect accomplished by suspending 50,000 pencil-like fixtures.