Overview
Victor Liong, the man behind CBD sensation Lee Ho Fook, is opening a new chapter. And more importantly a new restaurant. The name is SilkSpoon, after the famous Silk Road trading route, and Liong has already said he'll be drawing on a broader culinary map than Lee Ho Fook's elegant, 'new style' Australian-Chinese.
The idea is to trace food culture along the old Silk Road — then serve that trek on a plate. At the moment, SilkSpoon is a construction site. It'll be part of the new-look 500 Bourke St precinct, along with flagship venues Rosa's Canteen and Movida Aqui, when the building opens later this year following an eye-watering $150m facelift.
Image: Image: Lee Ho Fook Yum Cha, 2020
Still, there's a lot to get excited about. Lee Ho Fook has been around so long, people forget how revolutionary it really was, all those years ago when it opened in Collingwood. It was a glorious mash-up of Liong's culinary journey: Chinese tradition, French techniques, Japanese and Australian ingredients, all rolled into one. And it helped crystalise the potential of that amorphous category known as 'Australian Chinese'.
SilkSpoon promises to be more laid back than its fine-dining sibling, however. Liong has already flagged he'll be focusing on casual dining, light meals and grower vegetables. Lee Ho Fook is where you go for an occasion. SilkSpoon is where you go for lunch, preferably every week.
Image: Victor Liong as part of the Piccolina Project, 2021
"SilkSpoon is all about social gathering in a welcoming atmosphere. We're passionate about providing a vibrant space for people to catch up, whether that's for work or leisure," Liong says.
"We're noticing that people in the city are preferring earlier, more casual dinners after work, and there's a regular, steady buzz, from mid-morning through to early evening."
Buzz is the right word. And when you think about what Liong achieved with his last restaurant, the sky's the limit for SilkSpoon. We'll be watching this one very closely, so stay tuned for more information later in the year.
SilkSpoon is set to open at 500 Bourke Street, Melbourne, sometime early in 2024. We'll keep you updated as more information drops.
Images: supplied.