Interview with Chef Greg Malouf: Chef's are just like everybody else

Australian Greg Malouf, master of modern Middle-Eastern cuisine and all 'round nice Aussie, was in Hong Kong recently as guest chef at Olive -- possibly one of the most popular restaurants in Soho, packed even on a rainy Monday night.

Malouf created a special menu for the Middle Eastern and Greek restaurant, that will be available until the end of this year. CNNGo grabbed the chef to ask him a few questions.

 

CNNGo: Which is your favorite dish on Olive’s menu?

Duck Bistayeea. This dish is based on Morocco’s celebrated pigeon pie, but Olive’s version uses duck legs instead of pigeon. The legs are cooked gently with saffron, cinnamon and ginger. The meat is removed from the bone and baked in wafer thin pastry with eggs and fresh herbs. The pastry is dusted with cinnamon-icing sugar and caramelized with a hot branding iron to form a trellis pattern.

CNNGo: Which is your favorite restaurant in the world?

M at the fringe in Hong Kong. Australian chef Michelle Garnaut opened M at the Fringe in the Dairy Farm building and, in my mind, changed dining culture in Hong Kong. Ten years later, she opened M on the Bund and did the same for Shanghai, where she also launched the city’s first Literary Festival and opened The Glamour Bar. I try to eat there as often as I visit.

CNNGo: What would you make your last supper?

My last supper would be in bed watching Jerry Lewis movies with my wife-to-be, Chalice. We would be eating Lebanese mezza, labneh, kibbeh nayee, tabbouleh, hummus, baba ghanouj, stuffed vine leaves, olives and feta, sambousak, ma’hanie sausages and falafel. Followed by icy cold watermelon with rose water, peaches, grapes nectarines, cherries and a French white mould cheese called Bouche D’affinoir.

CNNGo: What's the fastest you’ve ever prepared a gourmet meal for someone?

It was a homecooked meal for my family. I had two hours to shop, cook and serve a Lebanese banquet. It was great but there were some tense moments! Yoghurt-cucumber dip, smoky eggplant salad, tabbouleh, poached chicken with cinnamon rice, pumpkin tagine. Followed by cheese and fruits.

CNNGo: Who was the most demanding customer you ever served?

Gregory Peck. Actually it was a pleasure cooking for him, I was more demanding on the staff and myself!

CNNGo: What makes chefs different from everybody else?

Chefs are no different from anybody. Their hours are certainly different and their social and family life can suffer but they share the same frustration, go through the same emotions, and contribute as much as anybody.

 

Olive

At Soho: 32 Elgin Street, SoHo, Central, tel +852 2521 1608
At Elements: Shop R008, Garden Rooftop, Civic Square, 3/F Elements, 1 Austin Road, West Kowloon, tel +852 2810 8585
www.diningconcepts.com.hk