How team at Francis, Middle Eastern restaurant in Hong Kong, learned ‘an expensive lesson’ before expanding with Francis West, focused on food from North Africa

The opening of Francis West, by the team behind Middle Eastern spot Francis, is testament to the persistence of James Ward, Asher Goldstein and Simone Sammuri

Having survived anti-government protests in 2019, a big financial setback and the Covid-19 pandemic, the team plan on extending the brand’s reach further

Reading Time:3 minutes

Published: 12:45pm, 14 Apr 2023

Fans of Francis – a popular Middle Eastern restaurant in the Starstreet precinct in Wan Chai on Hong Kong Island – have a new location in which to linger over dinner and drinks. Francis West recently opened on Peel Street in SoHo.

The restaurant’s location came as a surprise to Francis’ co-founder James Ward, as he had never considered having a restaurant in Central.

Fellow co-founder and chef Asher Goldstein, however, was familiar with the district – and even more so with the space where Francis West has opened, as it had formerly housed an Italian wine bar where he had worked for five years.

“It has a lovely neighbourhood vibe, with Fineprint making coffee and avocado toast, and The Shady Acres serving cocktails,” Ward explains, referring to two other food and drink spots on Peel Street. “[At Francis West] we can offer a glass of wine and dinner.”

Francis West, on the upper slope of Peel Street in SoHo, Hong Kong. Photo: Francis West

While the new outlet features menu items cherry-picked from the original – such as its signature hummus and lamb ribs – Francis West leans more towards North African cuisine, with dishes including lamb merguez sausage; spanner crab with chraime, a spicy sauce made from tomatoes and paprika; and mashwiya, a Tunisian grilled salad made with aubergine, tomato and labneh.

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