Advertisement
First Venezuelan chef with a Michelin star talks arepas, hallacas and promoting national dishes at his French fusion restaurant in Hong Kong, Mono
- When Ricardo Chaneton became the first chef from Venezuela to earn a Michelin star he became a social media celebrity across Latin America
- He describes Venezuelan food favourites – arepas and hallacas – and how he educates diners at his French fusion restaurant Mono about Latin American cuisine
Reading Time:3 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
1
When Hong Kong restaurant Mono, which serves contemporary Latin American-influenced French cuisine, earned a Michelin star earlier this year, its chef-owner, Ricardo Chaneton, became a celebrity overnight.
The first Venezuelan to earn the accolade from the global dining guide, he was tagged in an Instagram post about the Michelin star by compatriot Federico Tischler, a chef in Miami, Florida. Soon Chaneton, 34, was fielding inquiries from media in Brazil, Colombia and Argentina.
“We had 12,000 followers on Instagram and within four days it was 40,000,” recalls Chaneton. “It was crazy and beautiful too.” Restaurant staff needed three laptops to get through the 10,000 messages, including interview requests from the media.
He says one recurring question the Latin American reporters asked was: how is Venezuelan cuisine seen in the world?
His answer? Very little. At Mono in On Lan Street, Central – which rose from number 44 to 32 on the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list 2022 announced this week – he aims to educate diners about Venezuelan dishes.
Bernice Chan is a former SCMP Culture writer who is now based in Vancouver, Canada, where she writes compelling stories about food and drink, lifestyle, wellness and the Asian diaspora. She previously co-hosted the award-winning Eat Drink Asia podcast and received a SOPA honourable mention for a video story about a Jamaican-American looking for her Chinese grandfather.
Advertisement