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Andrew Sun

Christian Le Squer is something of a legend in fine-dining circles. For 22 years, the chef at Le Cinq, at Paris’ Four Seasons George V Hotel, has maintained the restaurant’s vaunted three-Michelin-star status.
During that time, lesser chefs have turned themselves into global brands, but the unassuming Le Squer has mostly stayed kitchen-bound.
That is changing. Le Squer has now aligned himself with a restaurant in Asia. It is not in Tokyo, Singapore, Hong Kong or Bangkok, though.
Rather, the Frenchman went off the beaten path to become consultant chef of La Maison 1888.

The uber-upscale restaurant is set in a historic Indochinese mansion in the sprawling grounds of the InterContinental Da Nang Sun Peninsula Resort, in Vietnam.
“When I came for the first time, I was so surprised. It’s rare to find a place like this, with the jungle and monkeys around,” Le Squer says, through an interpreter, about the hotel in Vietnam’s third largest city, on the scenic Son Tra Peninsula.
“Before, you only had great, famous institutional restaurants in major cities. Nowadays, more resorts are creating unique restaurants,” he continues.
“In the South of France, lots of chefs are opening prestigious places in resorts. And the people who go there have time to enjoy it because they’re on holiday.”
To be fair, La Maison 1888 is far from unknown. It is Danang’s one and only Michelin-star restaurant, the accolade earned under Pierre Gagnaire, who headed the restaurant for almost seven years. Before that, it was under the creative direction of the late Michel Roux Snr.
There has to be a certain standard, a level of luxury, and a certain know-how in the cuisine in terms of ingredients – even the glassware, cups and ceramic
Christian Le Squer on his principles
Le Squer, who officially joined in June, acknowledges his predecessors and likens his role to that of a designer in an elite haute fashion house.
He aims to uphold the institution, while imprinting his ethos and aesthetic on the cuisine.
“Obviously, a smaller restaurant is not likely to call me,” says the chef, who is originally from France’s Brittany region.
“They won’t have a budget so my collaborations are likely to be with bigger properties. For me, there still has to be a certain standard, a level of luxury, and a certain know-how in the cuisine in terms of ingredients – even the glassware, cups and ceramic they use.
“I also look at how they treat people, the well-being of the workers. That’s very important too – how happy people are in the kitchen. Here you can tell everyone is very kind, but they work hard. The kitchen is very clean. Hygiene is very important for me.”

Convincing Le Squer to join this gastronomic house of luxury fell to the resort’s long-time general manager, Seif Hamdy, whose high ambitions for the property are clear.
“We want guests to enjoy food experiences at the highest possible level. We don’t just want one Michelin star. We want three,” Hamdy says.
“The country’s reputation is still not where it should be. People do not think of Vietnam for fine dining. The reality is we’re a bit underestimated in the international market. We want the hotel to be a destination.”
Before, I only wanted to stay in France, partly because I don’t speak English well.
Christian Le Squer
Le Squer’s inaugural 10-course menu for La Maison 1888 is something of a greatest-hits package. He has a knack for reinventing comfort flavours in surprising and disarmingly simple presentations that disguise the artisanal intricacy behind them.
Included are signatures from Le Cinq, such as the light/heavy contrast of sea bass in fermented buttermilk, langoustine with warm mayonnaise and buckwheat pancake, and his famous “standing spaghetti” dish, architecturally constructed with ham, mushroom, black truffle and a gratin of vertical pasta.
The dinner costs a hair under 6 million dong (US$236). It is pricey, especially by Vietnamese standards, but in comparison, Le Cinq’s current eight-course tasting menu is €595 (US$630).

Le Squer’s sudden enthusiasm for travel and new horizons came from not being able to cook at a restaurant at all during the Covid-19 lockdowns.
“I stayed inside 17 months without really working and I had a very good time,” the 62-year-old chef says. “I thought, what a pity that I used to turn down so many chances to travel, refusing everything. Now, I still feel young so I’m ready to do new things. I told myself, after the Paris Olympic Games, I’m going to stop working so much.
“Before, I only wanted to stay in France, partly because I don’t speak English well. When my office secretary brought me collaboration offers, I didn’t even look at them. Now, I look at everything.”
So far this year, Le Squer has taken part in exclusive dinners in Dubai and four-hands dinners in The Maldives.
Some projects seem like pure vanity fun, such as partnering with fellow star chefs Masaki Saito and Didier Leroy to open a nine-seat French-Japanese tasting room called LSL, in a suburb of Toronto, Canada.

“The fact is I have a big team behind me, allowing me to do all this. But it’s also a chance for them to have more experiences too. One of my chefs in Toronto, they get to travel to try new things, to see the world.”
In Da Nang, Le Squer has resident chef de cuisine Florian Stein, a Gagnaire holdover, in charge.
The two have developed a good rapport, with Le Squer relying on Stein to source and vet local ingredients and produce that meet his standard, for eventual use in the dishes.
With Vietnamese cuisine, what I like are the broths and soups
Christian Le Squer
One thing Le Squer laments is not having enough time to fully explore what Vietnamese cuisine offers. However, so far he likes what he tastes.
“Vietnamese food is very refined. I like Thai food too but often it is too spicy for me,” he says.
“With Vietnamese cuisine, what I like are the broths and soups. Even at the airport, I like to have the noodle soup. It’s also what I enjoy here every morning. It’s healthy, with lots of freshness.
“It’s complicated to do a good broth. It’s not easy. I also like spring rolls a lot. There’s a lot of balance and it’s hard to do.”
Beyond La Maison 1888, Le Squer wants to launch a second restaurant at the resort.
“I like the idea of doing something more casual so we’ll be creating a bistro here next year,” he says. “It will be more animated, busy and lively.
“With my cuisine, I don’t like things too concentrated, too rich. I do prefer more fresh and light flavours, to adapt to the temperature in Vietnam.
“For example, with the bistro, I might do something more Mediterranean to match the hot weather.
“I will try to incorporate local ingredients. The basil here is incredible. More complicated is finding suppliers that meet international levels in terms of hygiene and procedure, to make sure the product is of top quality.
“We want to use as many local suppliers as possible. But this takes time. Everything takes time.”


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Food and Drinks

French chef Christian Le Squer makes first foray into Asia, but not where you’d think

French chef Christian Le Squer is broadening his horizons at the only Michelin-star restaurant in Da Nang, Vietnam. Photo: La Maison 1888

The interior of La Maison 1888. Photo: La Maison 1888

Le Squer’s signature canapés at La Maison 1888. Photo: La Maison 1888

Le Squer’s signature “standing” spaghetti gratin. Photo: La Maison 1888

Le Squer (left) with La Maison 1888’s chef de cuisine Florian Stein (right). Photo: La Maison 1888

How Korean food is rising across the world and the chefs transforming traditional cuisine

A dish at Baroo, in Los Angeles. Photo: Wonho Lee

A course at Baroo, in Los Angeles, fusing Korean and Chinese ingredients. Kwang Uh and Mina Park, the chefs behind the restaurant, are just two of those pushing the boundaries of Korean cuisine around the world. Photo: Wonho Lee

Kristian Baumann, the Korean-Danish chef behind Copenhagen restaurant Koan. Photo: Neve Q Photography

Sundae at Koan. Photo: NeveQ Photography

Junghyun “JP” Park of New York restaurants Atomix and Atoboy, and his wife and co-owner Ellia Park. Photo: Atomix

A dish at Atomix. Photo: Evan Sung

Mina Park and Kwang Uh of Baroo in Los Angeles. Photo: Silvia Razgova

A dish at Baroo featuring dried Korean wild mountain greens and rice served with an XO sauce made from dried scallops and shrimp, gochujang and doenjang. Photo: Wonho Lee

A chilled corn purée with apple, celery and cucumber, paired with a fermented red yeast makgeolli bread with nduja, Gouda, and lemon balm, at Baroo. Photo: Wonho Lee

Woongchul Park of London Korean restaurant Sollip. Photo: Sollip

A beef tartare course at Sollip, featuring house-made aged gochujang red chilli paste, cured daikon and truffle cream. Photo: Sollip

Dana Choi offers both Japanese and Korean dishes at her new London restaurant Jang. Photo: Eleonora Boscarelli

Choi’s Jang salad is inspired by tangpyeong-chae, a mung bean jelly salad. Photo: Victoria Burrows

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Kirk Westaway at a market in Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Kylie Knott 

The Albion Tomato is one of Westaway’s favourite dishes. Photo: The Albion

Westaway (right) and head chef Chris Clarke in the kitchen of The Albion by Kirk Westaway. Photo: The Albion

The langoustine cocktail at The Albion by Kirk Westaway. Photo: The Albion

The Albion’s Eton Mess is a refined take on another British classic. Photo: The Albion

How Japanese chef of 3-Michelin-star restaurant Ta Vie in Hong Kong fell for French food

Chef Hideaki Sato of Hong Kong’s three-Michelin-star Ta Vie restaurant at La Table des Chefs, by Champagne brand Maison Mumm, in Reims, France. Photo: Maison Mumm

Hideaki Sato’s grilled pigeon with sesame oil and truffle at La Table des Chefs in Reims, France. Photo: Eric Vanden

Sato puts the finishing touches on a dish at La Table des Chefs in Reims, France. Photo: Maison Mumm

Sato with his wife and Ta Vie co-owner Hiromi Takano at the Michelin event in which Ta Vie received its third Michelin star, in April 2023. Photo: Charmaine Mok

The 19th-century mansion that is home to Maison Mumm, and La Table des Chefs, in Reims, France. Photo: Maison Mumm

Sato’s grilled pigeon with sesame oil and truffle is served at La Table des Chefs. Photo: Eric Vanden

Hong Kong noodle history and the different noodle styles explained

Shrimp roe thick noodle lo mien from Kwan Kee Bamboo Noodle in Hong Kong. Photo: Llewellyn Cheung

Roast goose with lai fun rice noodles from Yung Kee in Hong Kong. Learn about the different kinds of noodles served in the city, how they are traditionally made, and the foods they are typically paired with. Photo: Llewellyn Cheung

Wheat noodles originate in Northern China, while rice noodles have Southern Chinese origins, says Dr Siu Yan-ho, a lecturer in Chinese language and literature at Baptist University. 

Marco Li Ka-chi of Kwan Kee Bamboo Noodle balancing on a bamboo pole to make noodles. Photo: Llewellyn Cheung

Shrimp roe thick noodle lo mien at Kwan Kee Bamboo Noodle. Photo: Llewellyn Cheung

 Cheung Wing Kee started making noodles in the 1950s, producing small quantities using labour-intensive methods.

Roast goose with lai fun rice noodles. The thicker, neutral-tasting noodles are perfect for absorbing the flavours from the roast goose and broth. Photo: Llewellyn Cheung

Lifestyle

Food & Drink

Christian Le Squer, of Paris’ three-Michelin-star Le Cinq, talks about taking on a whole new challenge at La Maison 1888 in Da Nang, Vietnam


Christian Le Squer, of Paris’ three-Michelin-star Le Cinq, talks about taking on a whole new challenge at La Maison 1888 in Da Nang, Vietnam.


Vietnam

France