A 21-year-old chef of Chinese lineage who was born and raised in Hawaii has been identified as an upcoming talent in the gastronomic world. He now has the opportunity to spend three months working with world-leading chefs Mauro Colagreco, Leonor Espinosa and Luke Dale-Roberts as part of the 50 Best BBVA Scholarship 2020
Many of Andrew Wong’s most cherished memories revolve around food. Born into a Chinese family living in Hawaii, he fondly remembers his grandmother making nian gao, Chinese New Year cake, for the family when he was a child. When a friend offered him traditional Mexican agua de Jamaica – sweet hibiscus tea – Wong immediately felt more connected to him, his family and his home country. Experiences such as these led him to believe that food is a meaningful tool that can be used to express love, gratitude, nostalgia and much more.
After graduating from the Culinary Institute of the Pacific in Honolulu, and despite his deep connection to Hawaiian food, Wong decided to move Los Angeles in order to further his culinary skills. Here, he gained experience at new American restaurant Redbird and now holds a chef de partie position at Auburn, the fine dining restaurant led by chef Eric Bost that pays homage to the city’s ‘uninhibited culinary identity’.
Hawaiian food culture, however, was the source of inspiration for the dish Wong created as part of his application for the 50 Best BBVA Scholarship 2020, which was key in his winning this life-changing opportunity. “I wanted to show something that is close to my heart and that I would be proud of, and that for me is Hawaiian food,” he says.
Wong was inspired by the traditional dish laulau for his creation, preparing a kombu-cured quail stuffed with black trumpet laulau mousse and served with taro espuma and caviar. He highlighted that the taro plant used to be a sacred ingredient in Hawaiian culture and thus chose it as one of the key ingredients for his dish, using everything from the leaf to the stems and root.
Andrew Wong at the farmers' market in LA and learning to bake bread at Auburn
The 21-year-old cook wins the opportunity to complete three six-week stages in the kitchens of some of the best restaurants in the world, starting in France with chef Mauro Colagreco at Mirazur – No.1 in The World’s 50 Best Restaurants 2019 – followed by experiences at The Test Kitchen in South Africa with Luke Dale-Roberts and at Leo in Colombia with Latin America’s Best Female Chef Leonor Espinosa.
“I’m still in total disbelief about receiving this year’s 50 Best BBVA Scholarship,” says Wong. “This is an amazing opportunity and I’m incredibly lucky to win the privilege of working in some of the world’s best restaurants. I owe it to every person who has bettered me along the way and can’t thank them enough. I can’t wait to push harder and learn as much as I possibly can in France, Colombia and South Africa.”
Wong will be formally presented with the scholarship at The World’s 50 Best Restaurants 2020 awards ceremony in Antwerp, Flanders, on Tuesday 2nd June. The upcoming trip will mark Wong’s first opportunity to work outside the US.
To secure the scholarship, Wong took part in a three-part selection process, which included written submissions, self-produced videos and an interview, during which his creativity, passion for gastronomy and vision to use food as a tool for progress shone through. “One day, I plan to return to Hawaii to share my knowledge and experience with others. I want to show how inspiring food can be and improve local perceptions of food,” he says.
Wong will complete the three kitchen stages between June and November 2020 and will share his journey, learnings and highlights on 50 Best’s social media.
Header images: Andrew Wong and his stuffed quail dish
Now read tips from chefs Mauro Colagreco, Luke Dale-Roberts and Leonor Espinosa on how to make the most of a restaurant stage, their culinary inspiration and their own restaurant education, and check out the advice by Andersen Lee, who completed the Scholarship in 2019.
Follow 50 Best on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube for more on the scholarship and Andrew Wong's experiences.
