'He opened my eyes': Café Gray Deluxe chef Gray Kunz, who has died aged 65, recalled by a former protege, Michelin-starred Eric Raty of Arbor
'He didn't want to wait until next week to fix something - it had to be done right away, Arbor chef Eric Raty says of Swiss colleague who opened Cafe Gray Deluxe 10 years ago after a distinguished career in Hong Kong and New York.
The Singapore-born Kunz spoke to Bernice Chan In a 2017 Post Magazine interview
Chef Gray Kunz, who founded Cafe Gray Deluxe in The Upper House in Hong Kong over 10 years ago, has passed away. He was 65 years old.
While his culinary career flourished in the 1990s in New York at Lespinasse, before that he made a name for himself at Plume, the fine-dining French restaurant at The Regent Hong Kong (now InterContinental Hong Kong) hotel.
His death, after suffering a stroke, was announced on The Upper House website and social media accounts. The statement read in part: "More than 10 years of collaboration on Cafe Gray Deluxe in Hong Kong, and later in Shanghai, further strengthened both our friendship and respect. Gray was an integral part of the success not only of The Upper House and The Middle House, but of Swire Hotels as a whole."
One of his proteges is Eric Raty (pictured below, at Cafe Gray Deluxe), whose restaurant Arbor was awarded two Michelin stars last December, and attributes his culinary success to Kunz.
Raty worked under Gray for almost three years and says his mentor was an amazing man who was much more than a chef.