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Danny Mok

Legendary Hong Kong restaurateur Yeung Koon-yat, dubbed the “Abalone King” and who once cooked for then-Chinese paramount leader Deng Xiaoping, has died aged 90.
Forum Restaurant, co-founded by the chef and which earned three Michelin stars, announced Yeung had died at Hong Kong Sanatorium and Hospital in Happy Valley on Monday.
He was suffering from an illness, which was not disclosed.
“We offer our deepest condolences to Yeung’s family and pray for his rest in peace,” it said.

Yeung, also known as Ah Yat, was famous for his signature abalone dish, which he perfected and popularised at the Forum Restaurant.
Born in Guangdong province’s Zhongshan in 1932, he came from humble beginnings and arrived in Hong Kong as a teenager in 1949, getting his first job at Tai Wah Restaurant.
His career went from strength to strength after that, with the chef co-founding the Forum Restaurant in 1977. The venue went on to receive its illustrious place in the Michelin Guide for Hong Kong and Macau in 2020.


Yeung also served his signature dish to China’s then paramount leader Deng Xiaoping and other dignitaries at Beijing’s Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in 1984, less than a decade after the mainland began to open up to foreign businesses.
“Without open reform, we could never have eaten this delicious abalone,” Deng famously said after he tasted the dish, which was recommended by late tycoon Yue-Kong Pao of Hong Kong’s Worldwide Shipping Group.
How Yeung Koon-yat became Hong Kong’s abalone king
The legendary chef’s reputation rose to further heights in 1988 when he was invited to preside over a three-day banquet in Singapore, where affluent diners had previously only enjoyed canned abalone.
“The entire world knows about my abalone,” Yeung told the Post in an interview in 2020. “The product used to be reserved for kings and emperors because it was so difficult to prepare.”
James Lee Man-kei, the general manager of Foo Ka Chinese Restaurant and Yeung’s apprentice from 1986 to 2003, recalled his mentor’s passion for researching abalone, especially in the 1980s, when he would hold an umbrella in the back alley of the restaurant to use a charcoal stove to grill the dried seafood even when it was raining.
“He learned with a teacher and continuously tried to make it better,” Lee said.
He said Yeung also brought a Western catering culture to the way abalone was served in Chinese cuisine.
“We had not been using knives and forks to eat Chinese meals, but after ‘Yat Gor’ (Brother Yat) excelled in his abalone dish, he told people that abalone had to be eaten by cutting it into long slices to get the best taste,” Lee explained.

Yeung won many accolades, including the Club des Chefs des Chefs gold award in 1996, and was the first to obtain the highest honour from the organisation in 2009.
The club is seen as the world’s most exclusive gastronomic society.
Yeung was also a holder of the Bronze Bauhinia Star, bestowed by the Hong Kong government in 2007.
Adam Wong Lung-to, executive chef of Forum Restaurant and a former apprentice of Yeung, said on Facebook his mentor would forever be in his heart.
Wong recalled when he visited Yeung half a month ago, the older man still seemed energetic and looked good.
He said Yeung would be well remembered for his generous guidance and teaching without holding back any knowledge, possessing a broad-minded and enthusiastic spirit.
“With an incredibly heavy heart at this moment, we will always remember and cherish the memory of Master Yat Gor. Rest in peace!”


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Hong Kong society

‘Abalone King’ Yeung Koon-yat, famous Hong Kong restaurateur, dies aged 90

Legendary chef Yeung Koon-yat has died at age 90. Photo: Thomas Yau

Chef Yeung is photographed in 1996 as he serves up a plate of roast duck, a traditional Lunar New Year favourite. Photo: SCMP

Born poor, Hong Kong’s ‘Abalone King’ worked his way up to found a three-Michelin-star restaurant by perfecting the cooking of the dried delicacy

In King of Abalones, Yeung Koon-yat explains what makes the ingredient, for which he is famous, so special. Photo: Dickson Lee

Yeung Koon-yat as a young man. He was born in 1932 in Zhongshan, Guangdong province, southern China.

The first Forum Restaurant in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong.

A spread of King of Abalones by Yeung Koon-yat. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

Forum Restaurant has three Michelin stars. photo: Forum Restaurant

Yeung Koon-yat with former French prime minister Alain Juppé (centre). Photo: Forum Restaurant

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Hong Kong

Society

Co-founder of three Michelin starred Forum Restaurant came from humble beginnings and famously served up his signature dish to former Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping
‘We offer our deepest condolences to Yeung’s family and pray for his rest in peace,’ restaurant says


Co-founder of three Michelin starred Forum Restaurant came from humble beginnings and famously served up his signature dish to former Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping.


Chinese cuisine