Dombes frog legs

He says Hong Kong's open economy made it much easier and cheaper to import all kinds of ingredients. "But when I see promotions in Hong Kong for 'farm-to-table' concepts, I always want to ask them where the farm is. If there is anything Hong Kong is growing, it is growing buildings. Farming is left for financial guys who have gone bankrupt."

Ekkebus was in Shanghai for one of his consulting visits to the Mandarin Oriental's restaurant in Shanghai, which he finds rather liberating.

"For me, to do the Fifty 8° Grill is really fun. The grill is the fun dining, while Amber is fine dining. We need 75 people to make Amber run. There are certain things you cannot do. It's just like fashion, which has both haute couture and prêt à porter. For me, it's same with the cooking and very exciting to do both.

"For example, I don't get to do big steaks at Amber. But most of the time, it's not about what things I cannot put on your table, more a different style of cooking."

Hong Kong's Amber, in fact, has become a temple of modern French cuisine, winning both Michelin acclaim and perennial ranking on best-restaurant lists.

Signature dishes of the moment from Team Ekkebus include "Miyazaki wagyu beef, strip loin, barbecued with dulse and red cabbage slaw, oxalis, horseradish and pepper berry emulsion" (HK$ 1,548 or $199). The star of the dessert list is "Kacinkoa 85 percent chocolate, ganache, Fisherman's Friend dust, peppermint and white chocolate sorbet" (HK$180).