Hong Kong family's one-bedroom home makes for open-plan living
Lindsay Jang, restaurateur behind Yardbird and Ronin, and her photographer partner Alex Maeland didn't hesitate when they saw a light-filled, one-bedroom space in Kennedy Town, even though it meant they'd be sleeping in the living room
Lindsay Jang and Alex Maeland were looking for a two- to three-bedroom rental flat two years ago when their real-estate agent found them the “perfect” place.
At 900 square feet, the property was a bit smaller than they and Jang’s two children would have liked, but it was bright, open plan, loft chic and in up-and-coming Kennedy Town. It had a roomy kitchen and a bathroom that, in space-saving Hong Kong at least, could be faulted only for its size: extra large. Oh ... and it had only one bedroom.
Regardless, the couple, who were out of Hong Kong at the time, were smitten.
“We virtually committed to it without seeing it,” says Jang, a Canadian-born-Chinese entrepreneur who, since moving to Hong Kong eight years ago, has opened yakitori-ya Yardbird, in Central; Ronin, a Japanese restaurant, in Sheung Wan; online liquor and lifestyle-goods store Sunday’s Grocery; and MissBish, an online publication with a focus on fitness.
Figuring out the living logistics was straightforward. The children, now eight and five, would sleep in the bedroom and, just outside, in a far corner of the living area, Jang and Maeland would have their Californian king bed (longer than a king but slightly less wide).
