How one Hong Kong chef has big plans for burgers and the aesthetic of slow fast food
In just three years, Butchers Club co-founder Jonathan Glover has set up a slow-aged Australian beef business for high-end diners, opened four Hong Kong restaurants, has an Asia expansion plan, and a small business award under his belt
Setting up a restaurant is like making a burger – there are many ingredients that go into it. You need top quality produce, a great taste, and spot-on presentation.
Then, as managing director and co-founder of Butchers Club Jonathan Glover knows full well,
you need to tell people about the product.
But in his case, that last bit proved easier than the winner of this year’s SME Award at the DHL/SCMP Hong Kong Business Awards might have hoped.
Throughout his career, Glover’s noticed a correlation between media coverage and lines stretching out the door. On a Thursday lunchtime in October, there are very few spare seats in the Butchers Club in Tsim Sha Tsui. Locals and expats alike chow into burgers, something Glover prides himself on.
“As soon as there’s a little sniff of the economy taking a hit, the bankers are gone … If you rely on them, it’s going to hurt you eventually.”
Glover hails from Yorkshire in the north of England, but has built a brand that depends on Australian produce, and his company most definitely has its roots in Hong Kong.