Source:
https://scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3014576/hospitality-was-his-blood-tributes-wayne-parfitt-australian
Lifestyle/ Food & Drink

‘Hospitality was in his blood’: tributes for Wayne Parfitt, Australian restaurateur in Hong Kong

  • Larger-than-life Australian who in 1992 opened pizzeria Pepperoni’s in Sai Kung, the first of 90 restaurants in Hong Kong and Vietnam, loses battle with cancer
  • The man behind Jaspas, Oolaa, Piccolo and Wagyu, who brought Krispy Kreme doughnuts to Hong Kong, once said: ‘I’ll never leave. They can bury me in Sai Kung’
Wayne Parfitt with wife Andrea and sons Jack (second from right) and Michael outside High Street Grill in Sai Ying Pun, one of some 90 restaurants the family’s Castelo Concepts group runs in Hong Kong and Vietnam. Parfitt has died after losing a battle with cancer. Photo: Bruce Yan

Popular Hong Kong-based restaurateur Wayne Parfitt has died after a battle with cancer, according to friends.

The Australian, who lived in Sai Kung, founded Castelo Concepts, which operates close to two dozen restaurants in Hong Kong, including Jaspas, Pepperoni’s and Wagyu, and more than 60 in Vietnam.

“A larger than life human with a giant heart, a passion for life, a great businessman and a pillar of all that is good in the Hong Kong and Sai Kung community. Heartfelt condolences to the family,” a member of a Sai Kung Facebook group wrote.

Another comment read: “Sincerest condolences to the whole Parfitt family – I will never forget Wayne personally delivering pizzas all over Sai Kung back in 92-93 in rain or shine, and personally welcoming, seating and giving menus to guests at every new restaurant for at least the first 2 weeks of operation. A professional in hospitality, through and through.”

Wayne Parfitt at Pepperoni’s in 1999. Sai Kung residents recall him driving around the former fishing village personally delivering takeaway pizzas in the restaurant’s early years. Photo: SCMP
Wayne Parfitt at Pepperoni’s in 1999. Sai Kung residents recall him driving around the former fishing village personally delivering takeaway pizzas in the restaurant’s early years. Photo: SCMP

Parfitt moved to Hong Kong from Queensland in 1990 and launched his hospitality career in the former fishing village, opening the Pepperoni’s pizza shop there in 1992. It’s now an institution, and still in the same spot on Po Tung Road.

He brought in his brother Brian to help, and Castelo Concepts began opening popular and reasonably priced Western restaurants and bars such as Jaspas, Oolaa, High Street Grill and K-Town Bar & Grill. The Parfitt brothers’ establishments have never been known for gourmet fine dining, but they had great appeal to middle-class diners looking for a simple burger or reliable weekend brunch.

Restaurateur Wayne Parfitt pictured on his junk in Pak Sha Wan, Sai Kung, in 2004. He launched a fleet of Jaspas junks for rent. Photo: SCMP
Restaurateur Wayne Parfitt pictured on his junk in Pak Sha Wan, Sai Kung, in 2004. He launched a fleet of Jaspas junks for rent. Photo: SCMP

Their restaurants also include Piccolo (Italian), Mr Wolf (British bistro), Missy Ho’s (Asian fusion), Tai Hang Bar & Grill, and St. Barts. Castelo has a strong presence in the Discovery Bay plaza on Lantau Island, with TigerLily, Zaks, MooFish and Figos.

Parfitt’s love of the Sai Kung lifestyle led to him buying a family junk, which then led to a side business running a fleet of Jaspa junks for rent.

He made a splash on the Hong Kong food scene in 2006 by launching a franchise of the American doughnut chain Krispy Kreme in the city. It was an immediate hit and long queues snaked around its seven shops for a time, but the buzz died down and just as quickly as it had appeared, the brand disappeared.

He was always so generous and not competitive Andy Curtis, who ran a pub next door to a Parfitt restaurant

In 2015, he told the Post this experience was a valuable business lesson. “It taught me to stay away from partnerships unless they are family because they just don’t work,” Parfitt said. “At least with family, if there are things you don’t like you can meet at the table. Not franchising may restrict your growth, but you will be 100 times happier because you’ve got control and that’s the nicest thing to have.”

Fellow food and beverage operator Andy Curtis used to operate a Kennedy Town pub next to one of Parfitt’s Castelo Concept restaurants.

“He was always so generous and not competitive. When I had my bar, he said, ‘You know, what you need is a couple of big wine barrels out front for tables’, and he then gave me two large barrels.”

It taught me to stay away from partnerships unless they are family because they just don’t work Wayne Parfitt on being a Krispy Kreme doughnuts franchisee

“I knew him from Pepperoni’s,” Curtis adds. “There weren’t much around then for expats to eat in Sai Kung and I remember Wayne used to personally deliver pizzas in his car. Even though his business grew quite large, he would always be on site welcoming people. He wasn’t too big to do that. Hospitality was in his blood.”

Another of his daring business gambles was investing in farming wagyu cattle in Australia in order to give his steak restaurant Wagyu a steady supply of the speciality beef.

Speaking of his love of Hong Kong to Expat Parent magazine two years ago, the restaurateur said: “I’ll never leave. They can bury me in Sai Kung.”

Parfitt is survived by his wife, Andrea, daughter Jessie and two sons, Jack and Michael, who in recent years have been actively involved in the business.