Daft Punk’s designer gave this Hong Kong nightclub a makeover – just in time for social distancing restrictions to relax in LKF
- As opening hours are extended and social distancing regulations are rolled back, some of Hong Kong’s hottest nightlife venues are ready to unveil new looks
- Dragon-i Group founder talks about why he turned to former Daft Punk creative Cédric Hervet to redesign Cassio – over lunch at neighbouring Tokio Joe
With all the ongoing restrictions on nightclubs, bars and restaurants due to the Covid-19 pandemic, some savvy owners have used this time to revamp their venues in a bid to offer customers a more exciting experience when doors finally reopen. In Hong Kong’s Central nightlife hub, Lan Kwai Fong, the 25-year-old Japanese-inspired eatery Tokio Joe has completely redone its interior and menus, offering new dishes in an ambience inspired by an old Japanese gaming den.
[Now] I try to go out, because I like to be at home ... And I also like to wake up without a hangover!
The new-look Tokio Joe is still buzzing when we sit at the back for a late lunch away from the bustle. Our first dish is a deliciously light tuna salad made with lean Japanese bluefin tuna, paired with seasonal greens and dressed with the chef’s family recipe.
“This is so fresh,” says Yeung, who at 53 and with a young family – his daughter is six and son three – takes health and wellness seriously.
“I started yoga seriously after my daughter was born. I had been doing it sporadically over the last 20 years. My yoga teacher showed me a DVD which said most practitioners who started yoga did it for aesthetic reasons but when the spiritual comes in, that’s when it really grabs you. And it happened to me about two years after that. I stopped eating beef and pork and started eating cleaner. Two years ago I started meditation and my daily habits changed. It was a gradual change,” says Yeung, who used to be more known for his late-night celebrity parties at his first nightclub, Dragon-i, than spirituality.
“Everyday I wake up and meditate on an empty stomach because I read up a lot on yoga and Ayurveda, which says purification only starts in your body when your stomach is empty so it is good for you,” he continues. “In the morning, I just have a cup of water or tea and then meditate before picking up my son from school. At night I try to eat healthy and after dinner I try not to eat anything.”
The chef’s selection of sushi arrives and the conversation stops while we enjoy the hamachi, sweet shrimp, eel, uni with salmon sushi and the seasonal needlefish from Kyushu. Then the hot dishes of shrimp and white fish tempura arrive, paired with home-made tempura sauce and green tea salt. There’s also grilled sea bass, which had a sweet aftertaste, having been marinated with saikyo miso, egg yolk, mirin and sugar for at least 24 hours.