2011 Jul 31 What Would Be Your Last Meal in Beijing? Alan Wong

Every month, we ask noteworthy Beijingers to imagine their final meal before leaving the city for good. This month’s host: Alan Wong of Hatsune, Kagen and Karaiya fame.
The venue
I would want to host my final meal at my own home and invite all my friends and family to join me in a feast of my favorite dishes from all around the city. I’d have all the food served by veteran servers from the Hatsune family.
The starters
I’m a big fan of the pricey soups at Lei Garden, the spicy seafood glass noodle salad at Very Siam, and the Kobe meatball and prawn cappelletti at Modo.
The main courses
For the main course, I would choose a hodgepodge of different cuisines I've grown to love over the years. Soup dumplings and “hairy” crab from Din Tai Fung, Peking duck from Made in China, dim sum from Lei Garden, and the vongole pasta at Capital M. I know none of it goes together, but I would want to taste each of these one last time if I was leaving forever.
The desserts
For dessert, I’d have Brian McKenna make one of his crazy creations like his Breakfast Trio (French toast sticks with mango cream dip inside an egg and coffee crumble) or his chocolate bomb.
Something from your own restaurants?
Definitely the Kagen sukiyaki, Kagen’s teppanyaki sliced sirloin rolled with foie gras, the spicy tuna hand roll and “G” roll from Hatsune, and the steamed mandarin fish with peppers from Karaiya.
The drinks
I’ve amassed a huge wine collection over the years, so we'd destroy that as much as possible. Plus, I'm too much of a pansy now to be doing vodka to the face anymore.
The music
My all-time favorite DJ and friend Patrick Yu, who’ll also be gracing us with his presence for the Hatsune ten-year anniversary. Did anyone know his DJ name used to be ABCDJ? Haha …
Alan Wong entertains at Hatsune’s tenth anniversary party on Aug 4.
Photo: Courtesy of Hilton Beijing Wangfujing
You might also be interested in :
Last Chance to Buy Chi Fan for Charity Tickets!

Foodies and do-gooders unite – tonight’s the night you’ve all been waiting for. The third annual Chi Fan for Charity dinner will kick off citywide at 7.30pm, with the Hatsune after-party to follow at 10pm.
As expected, there is only a limited quantity of tickets left for both events. Just two days ago there were twice as many, so the few that are left will also probably be snatched up fast:
A Decade in Sushi: Hatsune Turns Ten Tonight

This evening, Hatsune hits a milestone achieved by very few non-Chinese restaurants in Beijing, as it celebrates its tenth anniversary. The original branch opened on Guanghua Lu in the fall of 2001, and was pretty much an instant success. In the ten years that have passed, Hatsune has gone from strength to strength, winning awards all over the place and opening a second branch in the heart of Sanlitun Village. For all the details on the party and a few anniversary party survival tips, read on.
No Reservations: Beijing Restaurant Week's Onno Schreurs

There are just a few days left until Dining City lift the lid on their first-ever Beijing Restaurant Week, which runs March 12 through to March 18 at around 30 participating restaurants. You can make reservations for Restaurant Week set lunches and dinners here, but to give you an idea of what the whole thing is about, we put a few questions to Onno Schreurs, founder and head of DiningCity China.
Gastronerd: How One Man Combines Food, Science and Literature

If you’ve ever wondered what’s happening at the molecular level as a hunk of parmesan ages, the New York Times’ “Curious Cook” Harold McGee is your man. Here, he gives us his take:
Another Tiger Woman, This Time in the Kitchen

After working her way through a series of respectable newspapers along America's East Coast, journalist Cheryl Tan soon found she wanted to reconnect with the food of her family's past. Of course, not only did she find pineapple tarts, braised duck and dumplings, she also found multiple wives, opium addictions and other family secrets. Read on as Tan talks to us about her wild ride as a writer, cook and Singaporean sojourner.



