M+, Asia’s first global museum of contemporary visual culture in the West Kowloon Cultural District of Hong Kong, is set to open to the public on Friday, 12 November 2021. Mosu Hong Kong brings to the city’s new culture hub contemporary cuisine from the fine-dining pioneer Mr Sung Anh who earned two Michelin stars for Mosu Seoul. ADD+ is an all-day dining concept created by Lai Sun Dining’s renowned culinary talents. In addition to offering guests the best of international dining culture, the two restaurants seek to create a seamless experience with the world-class presentation of visual culture in the M+ galleries.

Lai Sun Dining and M+ invited guests and media to attend a launching ceremony hosted by Dr Peter Lam Kin Ngok, Chairman of Lai Sun Group; Dr Victor Lo Chung-wing, Chairman of the M+ Board; Ms Betty Fung Ching Suk-yee, Chief Executive Officer, West Kowloon Cultural District Authority; Ms Suhanya Raffel, Museum Director, M+ and other guests. Speeches were delivered by Mr Anthony Lau, Executive Vice President, Lai Sun Group and Ms Kirstin Mearns, Head, Museum Retail and Commerce, M+.

The guests announced the two new restaurants on the stage, followed a roasted pig cutting ceremony, lion dance, a toast and a group photo taking session for the guests.

Following the official announcement of the new restaurants, the host, Ms Nicole Leung Lai Kiu, invited Mr Sung Anh, Executive Chef of Mosu Hong Kong, who earned two Michelin stars for Mosu Seoul; Mr Daniel Chan, Executive Chef of ADD+ carrying an all-day dining concept, and Mr Otto Ng, design director of the architectural art firm LAAB, for an on-stage interview. The attending media was introduced to the philosophy, cuisines and interior design concepts of the 2 dining brands. After the ceremony, attending guests and media tried a variety of food in various catering zones of the event venue.

Lai Sun Dining announces two stylish dining concepts at M+, the first global museum of visual culture in Asia, in the West Kowloon Cultural District. Mosu Hong Kong brings to the city’s new culture hub contemporary cuisine from the fine-dining pioneer who earned two Michelin stars for Mosu Seoul. ADD+ is an all-day dining concept created by Lai Sun Dining’s renowned culinary talents. In addition to offering guests the best of international dining culture, the two restaurants seek to create a seamless experience with the world-class presentation of visual culture in the M+ galleries. In advance of the public opening of M+ on 12 November 2021, the two new restaurants’ grand announcement ceremony was held on Thursday, 28 October 2021 at M+ in the West Kowloon Cultural District.

Mosu Hong Kong

Cuisine pioneer from Seoul – 2 Michelin-starred Korean Tasting Menu

Mosu Executive Chef, Sung Anh, is among the leading innovators in the fine dining world. Born in Korea, Chef Sung grew up in the United States, where he honed his skills at landmark restaurants, including The French Laundry and Benu. In 2015, Chef Sung opened his own restaurant, Mosu San Francisco, named after the Korean pronunciation of cosmos, a flower that Chef Sung remembers vividly from his childhood memories of a flower field near his childhood home. It inspired both the name he chose for his restaurant and his wish to bring rich sensory experiences to visitors. Embracing the meticulous attention to detail characteristic of contemporary French fine dining, Mosu became known for weaving culinary narratives through its menu, which brought together sophisticated Asian flavours and the best seasonal California ingredients. For his ambitious debut, Chef Sung was honoured with his first Michelin star. In 2017, he returned to Korea, where he deepened his exploration of the distinctive flavours he remembered from his youth. Mosu Seoul, his next venture, not only earned two Michelin stars, but catalysed the country’s contemporary fine dining scene and encouraged a rediscovery of traditional Korean cuisine.

Reconstructing the tradition – From burdock bark to dongchimi

Sung Anh tells stories through the dishes he creates, often drawing upon his childhood memories for inspiration. He develops sophisticated flavours with rustic Korean ingredients, from simple burdock bark to savoury seaweed to handmade dongchimi. Carefully balancing traditional techniques with the judicious use of cutting-edge molecular gastronomy tools, Chef Sung’s approach reflects his experience at the highest level of international fine dining. His ability to experiment without obscuring the fundamental essence of his ingredients leads to a dining experience in which moments of beautiful innovation give way to the simple joy of encountering a beloved taste. Most evident in the narrative arcs of his tasting menu, Sung Anh’s ingenuity infuses long-standing Korean dining culture with the nuances of contemporary global cuisine.

Connecting the Gallery – The intersection of technology and nature

Designed by LAAB architects, the Mosu Hong Kong interior connects seamlessly with the architecture of M+ while reflecting the values of Chef Sung’s cuisine. Located on the third floor of the M+ building, Mosu Hong Kong is surrounded by the verdant roof garden, while directly above the venue rises the M+ Facade, a digital screen embedded with thousands of powerful LED lights. In response to this unique setting, LAAB developed the concept of “digital nature”: the space employs raw, natural materials in homage to the Mosu culinary experience as well as an advanced digital illumination system that animates the space with a play of light and shadow. Looking beyond the roof garden, restaurant guests enjoy a dazzling view of Hong Kong’s iconic skyline. Directly below, visible through a band of windows, is the concrete-clad Focus Gallery, one of M+’s signature exhibition venues. Diners enjoy Mosu Hong Kong cuisine while immersed in an integrated experience of urban nature, digital design, and visual culture.

ADD+

All Day Dining – Interconnection and interaction with the museum

ADD+ offers all-day dining at Hong Kong’s new museum of visual culture. One of the most expansive museums of its kind anywhere in the world, M+ will welcome Hong Kong locals and international guests throughout the day, from opening in the morning to late in the evening when the M+ facade illuminates the skyline. Lai Sun Dining is pleased to offer a dining experience that caters to the cadences of visitors throughout the whole day. ADD+ is a convenient stop for a nourishing breakfast, the perfect setting for a business lunch, and relaxed venue for an afternoon tea. In the evening, guests can enjoy happy hour wine and snacks before settling down to a bountiful dinner destination. Bringing together the classic dishes developed in collaboration with the Lai Sun Dining group, ADD+ adds a sophisticated touch to international favourites. From Hong Kong classic snacks to fresh takes on global cuisine, ADD+ aims to welcome locals and international visitors alike.  With a total area of over 10,000-square-feet, the restaurant is divided into an expansive casual dining zone, an inviting bar table, as well as a Grab & Go section catering to those eager to get back to the galleries or the explore the nearby Art Park and West Kowloon Cultural District.

Additive Reflection – Multi-angle of Dynamic Harbour View

ADD+ is located in the M+ building adjacent to the Art Park promenade. Easily accessible to all M+ visitors, the designers ingeniously adopted the “Additive Reflection” as a concept to multiply the ways of seeing. The space is designed with a zig-zag glass wall that animates the space with new views and perspectives. Every corner of the room has its own unique harbour view. Inspired by the evolution of Hong Kong’s skyline throughout the day, from calm mornings to glowing nights, the glass wall changes from morning to evening, offering different moods and tones throughout the day.

Lai Sun Dining believes the establishment of two brand-new catering projects, Mosu Hong Kong and ADD+ in M+, can further promote and support the development of M+ and bring a refreshing experience to the visitors.

Mosu Hong Kong Executive Chef

Sung Anh

Born in Seoul, South Korea, Anh was raised on his grandmother’s cooking, which melded North Korean and Japanese traditions. At a young age, he moved to California, where he had his first experience in a restaurant kitchen helping his parents run the Chinese restaurant they owned. Anh began his career as a chef following his service in the US Army in Iraq. He gained experience at several Michelin-starred restaurants, including The French Laundry, Benu, and Urasawa, before opening Mosu San Francisco in the summer of 2015. The popular restaurant, which received a Michelin star in its first year, featured Anh’s distinctive style of cuisine that harmonises his multi-cultural experiences with meticulous attention to detail. Anh relocated to Seoul in Autumn of 2017 to be closer with his family and currently leads his two-Michelin-star restaurant, Mosu Seoul. This time, Chef Sung Ahn and Lai Sun Dining would turn a splendid new page together, and offer Hong Kong and even global diners refreshing Asian contemporary cuisines.

ADD+ Executive Chef

Daniel Chan

Daniel Chan’s passion for cooking took hold when he was a teenager earning his first professional restaurant experience at the Clear Water Bay Golf Club in Hong Kong. Daniel trained in Western cuisine at the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong, advancing from Commis to Chef de Partie at the hotel’s Banquet Kitchen and Grissini restaurants. In 2000, he accepted the role of Junior Sous Chef at Café Deco, a popular destination on the Peak known for attracting chic clientele. Daniel made a subsequent move to the Macau Tower Convention & Entertainment Centre in Macau and The Miramar Hotel Group in Hong Kong before re-joining the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong as Sous Chef and eventually earning the title Chef de Cuisine. Chan has subsequently led major restaurant opening projects, at Hotel VIC (now Hyatt Centric), and Hotel Alexandra in 2019. Keeping pace with changing market trends, he has also consulted Ali Oli Bakery for the central Bakery Kitchen, take-away business, and catering service. With ADD+ Daniel rekindles the early passion that he found in the restaurant field in Hong Kong, now with the experience of an Executive Chef.

About Lai Sun Dining

Lai Sun Dining – a member of the Lai Sun Group, is a Hong-Kong based, leading hospitality group, operating 19 distinctive brands across 30 venues worldwide, with a total of 9 Michelin stars counted in the group’s portfolio plus 2 exclusive private clubs. (https://laisundining.com/)

About M+

M+ is a museum dedicated to collecting, exhibiting, and interpreting visual art, design and architecture, moving image, and Hong Kong visual culture of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. In Hong Kong’s West Kowloon Cultural District, it is one of the largest museums of modern and contemporary visual culture in the world, with a bold ambition to establish ourselves as one of the world’s leading cultural institutions. M+ is a new kind of museum that reflects our unique time and place, a museum that builds on Hong Kong’s historic balance of the local and the international to define a distinctive and innovative voice for Asia’s twenty-first century.

About the West Kowloon Cultural District

The West Kowloon Cultural District is one of the largest and most ambitious cultural projects in the world. Its vision is to create a vibrant new cultural quarter for Hong Kong on forty hectares of reclaimed land located alongside Victoria Harbour. With a varied mix of theatres, performance spaces, and museums, the West Kowloon Cultural District will produce and host world-class exhibitions, performances, and cultural events, providing twenty-three hectares of public open space, including a two-kilometre waterfront promenade.