Chef David Gallienne has conjured a reputation for artistic local cooking. Now, he is exploring opportunities in our Fragrant Harbour
Chef David Gallienne is the recent 2027 Gault&Millau d’Or winner for Normandy, chef of one Michelin-starred Jardin des Plumes, and a true Normandy culinary patriot. His next adventure has taken him east to Hong Kong on a recon trip to test how far his region can travel.
With experience at Normandy’s top Michelin-starred restaurants across Alençon, Rouen, and Bagnols-de-L’orne, David led the kitchens at three-toque Manoir du Lys and later joining chef Éric Guérin at the Jardin des Plumes in 2017, before taking over the restaurant in 2020.
An hour away from Paris, in the quaint village of Giverny, David tends the garden of his one Michelin-starred hotel restaurant, a garden once owned by impressionist artist Claude Monet. The scene of Monet’s Bridge over a Pond of Water Lilies, his neighbourhood, and neighbouring Normandy towns inspire his hyperlocal and artistic menu.
Mackerel, zucchini, and melon make up The Appetizers at Jardin des Plumes, tarragon flavouring The Eggplant, haddock and watercress forming The Potato Cake, tomato and cockles bringing out the gameyness of The Guinea Fowl, and spring onion and almond colouring The Apricot, ingredients all sourced from Normandy farms.
His connection to Asia dates back to 2007 and a win at the International Skills Festival for All in Tokyo, excelling with a culinary performance that earned him gold at just 17 years old. 19 years later navigating the streets of Hong Kong during a warm October week, his energy for the region has been reinvigorated.
David’s focus is on Normandy, with two restaurants in the region, including his new bistro Oscar inspired by Monet and other impressionists, but his ambition is international. A restaurant opening in Marrakech and exploring opportunities in Hong Kong.
“I wanted to discover Hong Kong and find a common ground in the passion of food between here and Normandy,” says David Guillenne.
“As the chef of Jardin des Plumes, with our connection to the garden of Monet and his approach to impressionism with food and place, I can see this same sensitivity and passion in Hong Kong. There is a bridge that we can naturally link here.”
Over a week in late October, David and his team explored Hong Kong’s burgeoning French restaurant scene and perused markets, witnessing a piece of Normandy in the Fragrant Harbour. “I felt the same kid-like feeling that I have in the markets in Normandy as I did in Hong Kong. My team even had to pull me away from the markets otherwise we would be late to our meetings!”
Supported by Florian Lang, founder of Libertify, David’s trip also included a special evening on Oct. 21. The chef prepared for an intimate 24-seat dinner at the French Consulate of Hong Kong to inaugurate the French May Arts Festival 2027 in May.
Would his project in Hong Kong exist in the same format as his Normandy operations? Not particularly. His journey as a Normandy chef is a theme central to every restaurant he opens, a region rich with excellent products, but localisation is key.
In Hong Kong, he is interested in bringing his painter-like impressionism approach with different touches of Asia to the table. There are few countries in the world with a heritage of cuisine like France’s, with China sharing the same passion and history. “Building on this relationship would be very fascinating,” he shares.
“French cuisine has a worldwide heritage. It is a cuisine of multiple dimensions with its food and fantastic wine legacy and potential. I want to build on this chemistry and define it with new borders and new frontier discoveries.”
By way of an invitation from Vivian Koo of the Private West Management Association and support of InvestHK, David’s trip to Hong Kong is part-recon, part-planning, and part-pre-opening, followings meetings with key decision makers, restaurateurs, hotels, and lovers of French cuisine.
Sindy Wong, Head of Consumer & Hospitality of InvestHK, sees the chef’s exploration of Hong Kong as indicative of the city’s embrace of international flavours and a fitting location for foreign chefs to expand in Asia.
“Chef David Gallienne is a key figure in France’s culinary scene and his study of Hong Kong signifies the city’s strength in attracting the world’s top industry figures to share their flavours locally.
“InvestHK is primed to support chefs from France, Europe, and beyond to explore opportunities in Hong Kong, joining a mature F&B industry with diners hungry for foreign flavours.”
At only 37 years old with his recent Gault & Millau d’Or success and on the hunt of a second Michelin Star for his Giverny restaurant, the time is now for this new adventure into Hong Kong.
Whether or not his Hong Kong restaurant may take the shape of fine-dining gastronomy or a bistro serving homely Normandy recipes, David Gallienne’s impending story in Hong Kong is one to keep an eye on.
In partnership with InvestHK.
