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Lisa Cam

Just how good can food scraps taste? That is what more than 200 guests attending the Rescued Feast at Soho House in Sheung Wan, on Hong Kong Island, were keen to find out.
Held on July 25, the event was a partnership between the private members club and the food-rescue app Chomp to shine a light on the problem of food waste in Hong Kong.
According to the city’s Environmental Protection Department, 3,300 tonnes (3,600 tons) of food went into landfills every day in 2022 alone.
When we think of food waste, the image of expired goods in our fridges going into the bin often comes to mind, but one of the greatest sources of food waste is excess and unused inventory from the restaurant industry.

This is food that is not necessarily expired or gone bad, but sometimes comprises parts of ingredients that are not on the menu.
Here to change that is Carla Martinesi, the founder of Chomp, which directs users to businesses selling their excess food and inventory at a deep discount.
The app sorts businesses according to the user’s geolocation, and they can reserve and pick up items such as pastries, bread and beer, saving some perfectly fine food from landfill.
Martinesi, who has worked in the food and beverage industry throughout her career, started the app in 2021 after witnessing first-hand the problem of food wastage around the world.
Today Chomp works with some 250 food outlets, including industry heavyweights such as Maxim’s and Shangri-La, and has more than 50,000 subscribers. It is estimated that the app has saved about 20 tonnes of food from landfill.

This is the second time Martinesi has collaborated with Soho House executive chef Chris Czerwinski on such a concept, the first being a smaller private gathering for the club.
“The dinner that Chris was participating in last time saved almost 50kg of food and that was a sit-down, family-style dinner for 60 people,” she says.
As for The Rescued Feast, “It’s presented in a buffet style and it’s the first time we’re trying to cater to 200 people”, says Martinesi.
Since one of the biggest parts of operating a restaurant is planning and consistency when it comes to food supplies, organising such a feast on what scraps are available is a challenge for the chef’s team.
While Martinesi would try to mediate this by providing the chef with a list a month in advance of the excess food he would probably receive, it was not until 24 hours before the event that Czerwinski was able to get the final list.

For the private dinner, the inventory included 6kg of egg whites from a ramen shop that only uses yolks for its sauce; bananas from a farm in Yuen Long; and plenty of prawns. What ended up on the menu was banana bread topped with Italian meringue, and prawn ravioli.
“It’s definitely a process,” Czerwinski says. “We are lucky that the kitchen we have at Soho House is diverse.
“We have Italian cuisine and Chinese cuisine where we can ask the dim sum chefs for help and we can use a wok to cook some noodles or fried rice. We can ask the help of our pastry team to make things like banana bread.”
The Rescued Feast held on July 30 received 350kg of food from donors including Conspiracy Chocolate, Jean May, LSG Sky Chefs, SpiceBox Organics, Slowood and TreeHouse.
The items included 100kg of white fish fillets, 5kg of moth beans, 2.5kg of jackfruit chunks, 7kg of spices, 200 cans of IPA beer, 14kg of fruit and 4kg of chocolate shavings.
The buffet was an elegant affair: a bohemian-style setting with copper heating lamps, and flowers and vegetables for decoration among the dishes.
The dishes served included jackfruit, coconut and lime leaf, and chargrilled cabbage hearts with a tangy marinade. There was a bread course of beer focaccia, and a seared tuna salad.

Biodegradable takeaway boxes were provided so guests could take any leftovers home.
The feast of scraps was delicious and showed how, with intent and creativity, there really is no reason for wasting so much food in Hong Kong.
Unfortunately, although it is noble to show that discarded food is perfectly fine and delicious, it is not a concept that can be scaled for a functioning restaurant – the planning and organisation is too labour-intensive.
“You cannot do this on a daily basis because of consistency and scalability,” Czerwinski says. Martinesi adds: “One of these events takes a month of planning.
“It’s not something we take on lightly, as it is very work-heavy. But it is something we want to make a series of over several months.”


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Food waste issue in Hong Kong highlighted in buffet to feed 200 made from discarded food

Italian meringue made with egg whites donated by a ramen shop. Photo: The Rescued Feast

Guests tuck into dishes from a buffet Soho House chef Chris Czerwinski and Chomp app founder Carla Martinesi put on using discarded food to highlight Hong Kong’s food waste problem.  Photo: The Rescued Feast

Carla Martinesi, the founder of food-rescue app Chomp, which links its users to businesses selling their excess food at a heavy discount. Photo: Chomp 

Chef Chris Czerwinski and his team had worked on a similar concept before, for 60 people. This time, they catered to 200. Photo: Soho House

Banana bread topped with Italian meringue. Photo: The Rescued Feast

The Rescued Feast buffet table. Photo: The Rescued Feast

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Lifestyle

Food & Drink

Private club Soho House and food-rescue app Chomp serve buffet meal for 200 made with discarded food to flag issue of Hong Kong food waste


A buffet with dishes made from discarded food is Soho House chef Chris Czerwinski and Chomp app founder Carla Martinesi’s way of highlighting just how much food is sent to landfill in Hong Kong every day.


Sustainability

Hong Kong

Hong Kong environmental issues