https://www.scmp.com/rss/330739/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Victoria Burrows Victoria Burrows The steamed dumplings at Peking Restaurant in El Sheikh Zayed City, Cairo, have a filling of soft and salty minced beef inside thick skins, similar to boiled Northern Chinese shuijiao, but even more sturdy. The two dipping sauces served with it are tomato-based; one a thin ketchup, the other a far thicker, spicy sauce studded with chilli seeds. Instead of chopsticks, knives and forks are set on tables in the dining room, decorated with wooden Chinese lattice work on the ceiling and traditional... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3350158/how-chinese-food-took-root-cairo-60s-peking-restaurant-egyptianised-dishes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3350158/how-chinese-food-took-root-cairo-60s-peking-restaurant-egyptianised-dishes?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 17 Apr 2026 04:45:07 +0000 Tribune News Service Tribune News Service For Taiwanese-American comedian Sheng Wang, purple is more than a colour; it is a way of being. From his style to the way he floats through the world writing jokes based on the small, fleeting moments of life, the 46-year-old maintains a sense of tranquillity and creates impact with his art by not trying so hard. It is no shock that his second Netflix special, Purple, is the most revealing of who he is at a time when people are finally paying attention. Coming off the success of his 2022 Netflix... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3350103/asian-american-comedian-sheng-wang-netflixs-purple-ali-wong-and-his-love-cooking?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3350103/asian-american-comedian-sheng-wang-netflixs-purple-ali-wong-and-his-love-cooking?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 16 Apr 2026 09:15:07 +0000 Chloe Loung Chloe Loung Having one doctor in the family is impressive enough. But what about seven? Meet the Chens. Heading the household are Dr Leon Chen, a dental implant pioneer, and Dr Jennifer Cha, a co-founder of an international clinic chain. Their five children – Nina, Audree, Niq, Aleq and Nasdaq – all practise dentistry. They came to attention online three years ago when Niq started posting his personal vlogs, a form of visual diary, on YouTube and TikTok. The vlogs occasionally offered a glimpse into his... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/family-relationships/article/3349527/all-7-are-dentists-and-hot-meet-asian-american-family-blowing-social-media?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/family-relationships/article/3349527/all-7-are-dentists-and-hot-meet-asian-american-family-blowing-social-media?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 11 Apr 2026 23:15:07 +0000 Angela Hui Angela Hui Imagine this: a thick slab of golden-brown toast, topped with a perfect knob of butter melting slowly into the middle, finished with a drizzle of sticky golden syrup. For many Hong Kong diners, this variation on French toast is a familiar sight and a staple on menus across many of the city’s cha chaan teng. But don’t expect Cantoast Bakery in London to follow the mould. “A lot of the time, I get questions from customers,” says Haydon Wong, chef-owner of the pop-up bakery, which specialises in an... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3349463/how-chinese-takeaway-kid-brought-hong-kong-style-french-toast-london-twist?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3349463/how-chinese-takeaway-kid-brought-hong-kong-style-french-toast-london-twist?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Apr 2026 04:45:07 +0000 Tribune News Service Tribune News Service Hunched over a sewing machine, Kil Bae is in his tailor shop in Manhattan, New York, hemming a dress when a new customer stops by with a vintage Tommy Hilfiger jacket he wants taken in. The modelling agent paid US$20 at a thrift store for his reversible bomber-style jacket, which is plaid on one side and red on the other. He is willing to spend US$280 to have it slimmed down. Alteration requests with such a price disparity would have seemed odd a few years ago, the tailor says, but are helping... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/fashion-beauty/article/3349220/us20-jacket-us280-tailoring-how-demand-tailors-rising-us?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/fashion-beauty/article/3349220/us20-jacket-us280-tailoring-how-demand-tailors-rising-us?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 Apr 2026 11:15:08 +0000 Andrew Sun Andrew Sun Is the freedom to stink a right or a privilege? I started to ponder this question after a report last week that a Taiwanese restaurant in California had been ordered to stop selling stinky tofu after repeated complaints from a resident. Let me emphasise that these objections came from just one unrelenting individual. The neighbours in the commercial plaza did not seem to mind. Staff at the beauty salon next door said they could not smell the funky fermented bean curd. The restaurant’s owner... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3349249/stinky-tofu-ban-us-restaurant-discrimination-or-just-lack-common-scents?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3349249/stinky-tofu-ban-us-restaurant-discrimination-or-just-lack-common-scents?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 Apr 2026 00:15:07 +0000 Lisa Cam Lisa Cam Okinawa is famous today for its pristine waters, gaudy Orion beer T-shirts, stone lions and dishes such as taco rice, but in centuries past it was better known as the centre of the independent Ryukyu Kingdom, which thrived as a maritime trade hub from 1429 to 1879. The Ryukyu Kingdom connected Southeast Asia, China and Korea with Japan through trade, which included Chinese ceramics and Japanese silver. Over 450 years, these exchanges led to the development of the kingdom’s unique culture. Ryukyu... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3348777/how-food-japans-okinawa-evolved-chinese-influences-become-truly-unique?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3348777/how-food-japans-okinawa-evolved-chinese-influences-become-truly-unique?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 05 Apr 2026 09:15:08 +0000 Tribune News Service Tribune News Service Stinky tofu is no longer on the menu at Golden Leaf restaurant in San Gabriel, Los Angeles, after the city received complaints about the dish’s aroma. But the family behind the restaurant is fighting to bring back the street food, which is popular in mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan and prized for its distinct, potent stench. “The scene of stinky tofu in Taiwanese night markets is an invitation to community and tradition,” owner David Liao says. The dish is “a cherished taste of home and a... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3348652/forced-stop-selling-stinky-tofu-taiwanese-restaurant-fought-back?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3348652/forced-stop-selling-stinky-tofu-taiwanese-restaurant-fought-back?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 04 Apr 2026 20:15:11 +0000 Sumnima Kandangwa Sumnima Kandangwa HBO’s Primetime Emmy award-winning medical drama series The Pitt and its cast returned to our screens for a second season early this year. The new season introduced a host of new characters – including actress Irene Choi’s Joy Kwon, a sarcastic and no-nonsense third-year medical student who goes head to head with one of the least likeable characters on the show, James Ogilvie (Lucas Iverson). View this post on Instagram A post shared by HBO Max (@hbomax) In... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/people/celebrities/article/3348659/meet-irene-choi-who-plays-intern-joy-pitt-and-who-graduated-harvard?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/people/celebrities/article/3348659/meet-irene-choi-who-plays-intern-joy-pitt-and-who-graduated-harvard?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 04 Apr 2026 10:00:12 +0000 Chloe Loung Chloe Loung The story of Rocky’s Matcha begins not with a business plan, but with a shaman. It was the summer of 2020, and the Covid-19 pandemic had brought the world to a halt. At the time, Rocky Xu was working as the global head of brand partnerships for Beats by Dre. He had worked in the corporate world for a long time and, seeking clarity, he enrolled in a 21-day chakra cleanse with a shaman. It was easy enough, but, as Xu was leaving, he was given one final, gutting task. “He hit me with the Steve Jobs... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3348660/how-rockys-matcha-founder-built-blossoming-tea-brand-after-being-told-quit-coffee?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3348660/how-rockys-matcha-founder-built-blossoming-tea-brand-after-being-told-quit-coffee?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 02 Apr 2026 23:15:07 +0000 Bernice Chan Bernice Chan Drive about an hour north of Vancouver and you will reach Squamish. The quiet town in the Canadian province of British Columbia is known as a mecca for rock climbers and mountain bikers. One of the area’s famed natural landmarks is Shannon Falls – among the tallest waterfalls in the province – and straight across from it is the Klahanie Campground, where visitors can not only enjoy a picturesque view of the falls but also buy Hong Kong-style snacks and drinks. Unique Slow Rise Bakery serves... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3348498/how-hongkongers-bakery-giving-remote-canadian-town-taste-city?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3348498/how-hongkongers-bakery-giving-remote-canadian-town-taste-city?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 01 Apr 2026 23:15:08 +0000 Vanessa Lee Vanessa Lee “Have you ever had fried bananas in Chinese food before?” Lap-see Lam asks with a twinkle in her eye over our video call between Stockholm and Hong Kong. I admit I haven’t, at least not of the Chinese persuasion. The artist explains that fried bananas with syrup and ice cream is a typical Swedish-Chinese dish. Another is Swedish meatballs in tomato sauce served with rice. But the most remarkable is a dish called “four small dishes”. “It’s basically different dishes on the same plate, and... https://www.scmp.com/postmag/culture/article/3347328/multimedia-artist-lap-see-lams-hong-kong-show-explores-cultural-identity?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/postmag/culture/article/3347328/multimedia-artist-lap-see-lams-hong-kong-show-explores-cultural-identity?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Mar 2026 04:15:07 +0000 Victoria Burrows Victoria Burrows Partway through our meal at Surfers, a Chinese restaurant in Sweden’s capital of Stockholm, Ludvig Saaf bursts into song. It is a Mongolian drinking song about fermented mare’s milk, but few in the dining room can understand the Mandarin lyrics. We join in, though, answering each rousing “Hey!” with a rowdy one of our own. At the end, we shout “ganbei” – a Chinese term meaning “cheers” – and down our thimble-sized glasses of baijiu, a Chinese spirit. Saaf, tall and blond with a pierced lower... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3347152/trailblazing-chinese-restaurant-sweden-showing-what-culture-really-all-about?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3347152/trailblazing-chinese-restaurant-sweden-showing-what-culture-really-all-about?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 22 Mar 2026 04:45:11 +0000 Wee Kek Koon Wee Kek Koon I recently enjoyed a delicious dinner at a restaurant in Kuala Lumpur that specialised in Hakka cuisine. Hakka restaurants have long existed in the city and elsewhere in Malaysia, but anecdotal evidence suggests their numbers have been growing rapidly in recent years. Less widely known than Cantonese and several other Chinese regional cuisines, Hakka food may be enjoying its moment in the sun, at least in Malaysia, where the Hakka population numbers around 1.25 million. They form the largest... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/chinese-culture/article/3347186/how-hakka-spread-china-and-beyond-their-cuisine-reflecting-hard-lives?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/chinese-culture/article/3347186/how-hakka-spread-china-and-beyond-their-cuisine-reflecting-hard-lives?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 21 Mar 2026 00:15:09 +0000 Andrew Sun Andrew Sun Taiwan-born Eric Hsu never imagined his hard-earned chemistry degree would be put to use making tofu and soy products in Australia. “In Taiwan, I was working for international companies like Dow Chemical,” says the now 72-year-old pioneer, who immigrated to Australia in 1986. “At that time, I couldn’t find the same kind of job, so I was looking at whatever opportunities I could.” Hsu recalls one of his friends joking that they wanted to eat tofu, but there was “none on the market”, and that he... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3346739/how-taiwanese-chemist-built-australian-tofu-empire?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3346739/how-taiwanese-chemist-built-australian-tofu-empire?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 17 Mar 2026 04:20:09 +0000 Bernice Chan Bernice Chan When the University of British Columbia (UBC) in Vancouver, Canada, launched its Cantonese language programme in 2015, it was geared towards heritage speakers – second- or third-generation Chinese-Canadians who wanted to learn how to speak to their parents and grandparents in their mother tongue. By the following year, lecturer Raymond Pai, the director of the programme, observed that a third of the students were native Mandarin speakers. “Vancouver is linguistically diverse, and many students... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/chinese-culture/article/3346190/why-canadian-universitys-cantonese-language-course-85-cent-mandarin-speakers?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/chinese-culture/article/3346190/why-canadian-universitys-cantonese-language-course-85-cent-mandarin-speakers?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 11 Mar 2026 23:15:10 +0000 Ashlyn Chak Ashlyn Chak Being cast in the Netflix series Bridgerton has one clear perk – exposure. The streaming giant has unprecedented global reach, and the period romance drama, produced by Shondaland, is one of its largest franchises and has been extremely popular since its first season aired in December 2020. To Katie Leung Pui-sze, playing the series’ main antagonist in its fourth season – released in two parts in January and February 2026 – was rewarding in ways that differ from her younger screen partners. “You... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3345554/bridgertons-katie-leung-playing-evil-stepmother-harry-potter-brutal-cantonese?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3345554/bridgertons-katie-leung-playing-evil-stepmother-harry-potter-brutal-cantonese?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 08 Mar 2026 04:45:08 +0000 Tribune News Service Tribune News Service Named the “ingredient of the year” for 2026 by The New York Times, vinegar can have many uses and personalities far beyond its generic role in a salad dressing or as a decorative balsamic reduction. You can use a splash as a finish to lentil soup or chilli to add depth. Some bartenders are throwing it into mocktails. Some folks use raw vinegar for its supposed health benefits. It can even be lightly sprayed onto cookies. Long before its current moment in the spotlight, Filipinos used vinegar as... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3345360/how-vinegar-has-given-filipino-food-sour-kick-centuries-adobo-dipping-sauce?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3345360/how-vinegar-has-given-filipino-food-sour-kick-centuries-adobo-dipping-sauce?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Mar 2026 04:45:51 +0000 Lisa Cam Lisa Cam It is not uncommon to see a line outside Anajak Thai even on weeknights after 9pm. The family restaurant has raised the bar for the food and drinks scene in Sherman Oaks, a well-to-do Los Angeles suburb where award-winning bartender Max Reis opened his margarita bar Daisy less than a year ago. Behind Anajak Thai is chef Justin Pichetrungsi, who won the James Beard Foundation Award for best chef in California in 2023. He credited his success to his parents, whom he calls his greatest... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3345340/how-anajak-thai-chef-justin-pichetrungsi-pushing-his-familys-restaurant-forwards?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3345340/how-anajak-thai-chef-justin-pichetrungsi-pushing-his-familys-restaurant-forwards?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 04 Mar 2026 23:15:08 +0000 Chloe Loung Chloe Loung What happens when two artists fall in love? Here is an unlikely answer: a nugget is born, and a tubby one at that. The Adventures of Tubby Nugget: Escape from Nuggetville, a newly released graphic novel, is the result of a collaboration between illustrator Joshua Jackson and author Jenine Pastores. The pair met in 2015 when the then filmmakers were assigned to work on a short film called Heartsick. Today, they are still creating things together – only now, their canvas has shifted from screen to... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3345117/how-tubby-nugget-went-silly-doodle-viral-sensation-10-million-fans?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3345117/how-tubby-nugget-went-silly-doodle-viral-sensation-10-million-fans?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Mar 2026 23:15:07 +0000 Charmaine Yu Charmaine Yu It is 9.30pm in Scarborough, in Canada’s Ontario province, and just as most people are thinking of getting ready for bed, 28-year-old Anna Peng is about to get back to work – after already having put in a 13-hour shift. She has just closed Great Fountain Fast Food, her family’s beloved Hong Kong-style eatery, for the day, and now it is time for cleaning up. “I first started doing two-hour shifts at Great Fountain while I was still in school, just to help out my mum,” she says. That was the... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3345070/meet-family-running-great-fountain-fast-food-hong-kong-style-spot-viral-instagram?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3345070/meet-family-running-great-fountain-fast-food-hong-kong-style-spot-viral-instagram?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Mar 2026 04:45:08 +0000 Ushar Daniele Ushar Daniele Yik Wai Chee doesn’t think of himself as a believer. The 33-year-old senior executive at a Malaysia-based AI company is the kind of person who deals in data and decision-making frameworks, not destiny. Yet for years, he has consulted bazi, the ancient Chinese system of elemental forecasting, as a kind of strategic gut check on his life. “For me, it is just a long-term ‘luck check’ to see if there are general strategies I can adapt to get through some life challenges,” he said. “If it doesn’t... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3344153/ancient-chinese-astrology-gets-gen-z-rebrand-southeast-asia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3344153/ancient-chinese-astrology-gets-gen-z-rebrand-southeast-asia?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 22 Feb 2026 03:00:15 +0000 Matt Glasby Matt Glasby This is the latest instalment in a feature series reflecting on instances of East meets West in world cinema, including China-US co-productions. Sometimes seemingly modest films have the greatest making-of stories. So it is with the 2004 romcom Saving Face, the first American film about an Asian-American lesbian couple to get a cinema release. The story of New York surgeon Wilhelmina “Wil” Pang (Michelle Krusiec), her new love Vivian (Lynn Chen) and her pregnant – and, crucially, unmarried –... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3343990/why-alice-wus-saving-face-most-important-asian-american-lesbian-film-ever-made?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3343990/why-alice-wus-saving-face-most-important-asian-american-lesbian-film-ever-made?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 20 Feb 2026 09:15:08 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Taiwan-born chef George Chen, whose family immigrated to Los Angeles, in the US state of California, in 1967, remembers vividly how his classmates would look at his school lunch of braised pork and Chinese sauerkraut between two pieces of bread. “‘Oh, God, what are you eating? That’s gross,’” Chen recalls during a recent busy lunch hour at his San Francisco restaurant and bar, China Live, on the edge of the oldest Chinatown in North America. “And now everybody wants the braised pork and Chinese... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3343911/chinese-food-make-it-fine-dining-us-chefs-push-back-against-takeaway-stereotypes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3343911/chinese-food-make-it-fine-dining-us-chefs-push-back-against-takeaway-stereotypes?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 20 Feb 2026 04:45:07 +0000 Tribune News Service Tribune News Service Before hitting the stage, the comedians of the TV series Jokes with JoySauce have an on-camera ritual of exchanging immigrant stories about growing up with their families. There is no audience during these moments, just comics being vulnerable with one another. The tales give insight into the lives they live offstage and their perspectives as Asian-Americans that inspire so much of their material. It lets the audience know more about these up-and-coming comedians without the generic stage... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3343390/asian-american-comedians-get-platform-joysauce-have-their-voices-heard?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3343390/asian-american-comedians-get-platform-joysauce-have-their-voices-heard?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 14 Feb 2026 11:15:08 +0000 Nicole Chan Nicole Chan Across social media, a curious phrase has been circulating: “You met me at a very Chinese time in my life.” It appears under videos of hotpot dinners, DHGate hauls, Chinese streetwear fits and users joking about switching their phone interfaces into Chinese “for the aesthetic”. It has even spawned an ecosystem of spin-offs: “Chinamaxxing”, “you will turn Chinese tomorrow” and countless posts where people half-joke about becoming “more Chinese” by the day. But beneath the humour of what looks... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3342421/becoming-chinese-memes-reflect-world-shaped-chinas-ascent?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3342421/becoming-chinese-memes-reflect-world-shaped-chinas-ascent?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 Feb 2026 01:30:10 +0000 Victoria Chan Victoria Chan You can hear it before you see it: the chaos and clatter of shuffling tiles, the rhythmic tap-tap as miniature walls rise, followed by calls of victory erupting across the table. For Connor Wan Cing-tsuen, this isn’t just a game but the heartbeat of his culture and an echo of a childhood spent watching relatives play. Now, he’s determined to pass it on to future generations. Once seen as a pastime for aunties and uncles, millennials and Gen Z in Asia and across the Chinese diaspora are... https://www.scmp.com/postmag/culture/article/3342450/how-mahjong-keeps-finding-new-tables-one-tile-time?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/postmag/culture/article/3342450/how-mahjong-keeps-finding-new-tables-one-tile-time?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Feb 2026 04:00:14 +0000 Tribune News Service Tribune News Service China’s boba behemoth has landed in Hollywood. Mixue, the fast-growing megachain that boasts a bigger global retail footprint than McDonald’s, opened its first US outpost on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame last month, selling drinks for less than US$5 and ice cream for about US$1. Mixue spokesperson Xu Ping said in a written statement in Chinese that the company chose Hollywood, in the American state of California, as its first US location because the “movie capital of the world” attracts both... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3341376/chinese-boba-giant-mixue-hits-hollywood-stirring-us-market?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3341376/chinese-boba-giant-mixue-hits-hollywood-stirring-us-market?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 28 Jan 2026 23:15:11 +0000 Charmaine Mok Charmaine Mok In Brussels, few things are as they seem. As the Belgian city’s famed son René Magritte once said, “everything we see hides another thing”. I think of the surrealist painter, best known for hauntingly simple works such as The Treachery of Images (This is Not a Pipe) (1929) and The Son of Man (1964), often on this trip to Brussels. It is 8am when our flight from Hong Kong touches down, yet the sky is still inky, the air bone-chillingly cold. There is an eeriness to the streets as our car meanders... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3340827/craft-beers-dim-sum-chinese-hotpot-and-more-culinary-trip-through-brussels?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3340827/craft-beers-dim-sum-chinese-hotpot-and-more-culinary-trip-through-brussels?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 25 Jan 2026 04:15:08 +0000 Kavita Daswani Kavita Daswani Kathy Fang remembers standing on a little stool in the kitchen of her San Francisco home, learning to cook beside her grandmother. “She taught me how to cook using a wok when I was very young,” says the chef. “The first dish I ever made was stir-fried Shanghai baby bok choi. There were no measurements – just instinct, tasting, adjusting.” Those early lessons in intuition were reinforced daily in a very different kitchen: House of Nanking, the restaurant founded by her father, Peter Fang, nearly... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3340832/famous-san-francisco-chinatown-restaurant-house-nanking-gets-its-own-cookbook?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3340832/famous-san-francisco-chinatown-restaurant-house-nanking-gets-its-own-cookbook?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 24 Jan 2026 04:45:09 +0000 Gloria Tso Gloria Tso “It’s a story of potluck, karaoke, gambling, smoking,” London-based designer Hung La muses as he leans back into the sofa on a recent stopover in Hong Kong. He looks relaxed, making himself at home somewhere far from home, reflecting on the mix of influences behind his hit menswear brand Lu’u Dan, the Vietnamese term for a “dangerous man” or “bad boy”. All that’s missing as La tells this story is a cigarette dangling from his mouth. “I’ve come full circle in my life and career,” he says. “All... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/people/icons-influencers/article/3340981/designer-hung-la-inspo-behind-his-bad-boy-brand-luu-dan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/people/icons-influencers/article/3340981/designer-hung-la-inspo-behind-his-bad-boy-brand-luu-dan?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 23 Jan 2026 08:17:31 +0000 Bernice Chan Bernice Chan Lunar New Year is the biggest holiday of the year for people in China, as well as for the Chinese diaspora around the world. The celebration revolves around family reunions and sitting together eating delicious food. The festive dinner is all about eating dishes that will hopefully bring wealth and happiness in the coming year. In China these include dumplings (as they look similar to oval-shaped silver ingots), a whole fish, a whole chicken, deep-fried spring rolls, lion’s head meatballs, and... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/lifestyle/dining/article/3340364/our-guide-5-auspicious-foods-chinese-new-year-prawns-kumquats-and-more?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/lifestyle/dining/article/3340364/our-guide-5-auspicious-foods-chinese-new-year-prawns-kumquats-and-more?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 22 Jan 2026 05:00:14 +0000 Phoebe Amoroso Phoebe Amoroso There is a choice to be made at this Tokyo noodle bar, and misjudgment could be painful. The laminated menu lists increasing levels of karasa (heat from chilli oil) and shibire (numbing spice from Sichuan peppercorns) on a scale from one to five. There is a level six, too, but that invites an additional fee; any wanton spice masochism must be paid for in hard cash as well as incidental sweat and tears. This is Szechuan Tantanmen Aun, which has been operating in a corner of downtown Tokyo since... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3340671/how-chinas-dan-dan-mian-noodle-dish-made-its-way-japan-and-became-so-popular?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3340671/how-chinas-dan-dan-mian-noodle-dish-made-its-way-japan-and-became-so-popular?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 21 Jan 2026 23:15:10 +0000 Ashlyn Chak Ashlyn Chak Dubbed “the first Asian woman in hip hop”, Sophia Chang has led a life filled with colour, adventure and empowerment. Having managed members of rap groups such as the Wu-Tang Clan and A Tribe Called Quest in the 1990s and 2000s, the Korean-Canadian life coach and content creator shows no signs of slowing down at 60 years old, and is as physically active and fit as ever. Chang’s fitness is linked to her self-discipline. She found the gym boring throughout most of her twenties, but discovered... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3340158/how-first-asian-woman-hip-hop-went-misfit-managing-wu-tang-clan-members?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3340158/how-first-asian-woman-hip-hop-went-misfit-managing-wu-tang-clan-members?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 18 Jan 2026 11:15:11 +0000 Charmaine Yu Charmaine Yu Often described as the Macanese version of a hamburger, the pork chop bun is a delicious product of the city’s rich cultural blend and colonial history, tracing its origins to the Portuguese bifana, a classic pork sandwich. A good pork chop bun is defined by a fried or grilled pork chop placed horizontally inside a bread roll. The bun itself is crucial, prized for being extremely crisp on the outside yet supple inside, perfectly complementing the juicy, just-greasy-enough pork. The snack... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3340130/history-macaus-famous-pork-chop-bun-and-where-eat-authentic-classic?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3340130/history-macaus-famous-pork-chop-bun-and-where-eat-authentic-classic?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 18 Jan 2026 04:15:10 +0000 Vanessa Lee Vanessa Lee Ardy Ferguson seems relaxed, or as relaxed as he could be for somebody about to compete in the most prestigious young chefs’ competition in the world. The first time I meet him is in the spotless kitchen of one-Michelin-starred Belon – one of Hong Kong’s most recognisable French restaurants – where he can be found most days, more so in the immediate run-up to the grand finale of the S.Pellegrino Young Chefs Academy Competition (SPYCA). At the age of 30, the Indonesian-Canadian has already risen... https://www.scmp.com/postmag/food-drink/article/3340146/ardy-fergusons-road-spellegrino-young-chef-crown?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/postmag/food-drink/article/3340146/ardy-fergusons-road-spellegrino-young-chef-crown?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 17 Jan 2026 00:00:11 +0000 Bochen Han Bochen Han The White House’s top science adviser on Wednesday said that the Biden administration’s decision to get rid of the Justice Department’s China Initiative was “damaging”, though stopped short of recommending that it should be fully brought back. Asked by Florida Republican Daniel Webster whether the termination of the programme aimed at combating alleged economic espionage from Beijing was detrimental, Michael Kratsios, the director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, said:... https://www.scmp.com/news/us/diplomacy/article/3339936/white-house-says-biden-decision-scrap-china-initiative-flawed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/us/diplomacy/article/3339936/white-house-says-biden-decision-scrap-china-initiative-flawed?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 14 Jan 2026 22:56:19 +0000 Edmund Lee Edmund Lee 2.5/5 stars The Hong Kong diaspora in Canada is subjected to an exercise in classic miserabilism in Finch & Midland, a delicately acted but loosely scripted portrait of ageing and loneliness that revolves around the uniformly depressing lives of four immigrants who arrived in the 1990s. Although the title references a Toronto intersection synonymous with the city’s Hong Kong community, this character drama – the first feature of Canada-born writer-director Timothy Yeung – shows scant interest in... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3339815/finch-midland-movie-review-anthony-wong-and-patrick-tam-cant-save-grim-diaspora-drama?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3339815/finch-midland-movie-review-anthony-wong-and-patrick-tam-cant-save-grim-diaspora-drama?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 14 Jan 2026 07:30:14 +0000 Sumnima Kandangwa Sumnima Kandangwa Perhaps best known for their role as Kiki, an upbeat blackjack dealer on HBO Max’s comedy-drama Hacks, actor Poppy Liu is now appearing on Netflix’s latest limited series, His & Hers, which has generated an online buzz among thriller fans. The show, which premiered on January 8, follows a couple investigating a murder in which they both believe the other is the prime suspect. Liu – who just turned 35 – takes on the role of Helen Wang, a headmistress at an all-girls’ school. Here’s everything to... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/people/celebrities/article/3339576/meet-poppy-liu-who-plays-helen-netflixs-his-hers-and-was-also-kiki-hacks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/people/celebrities/article/3339576/meet-poppy-liu-who-plays-helen-netflixs-his-hers-and-was-also-kiki-hacks?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 12 Jan 2026 10:00:16 +0000 Joseph Koh Joseph Koh While many professional chefs and home cooks trace their start in gastronomy to their grandparents’ or parents’ kitchens, that was not the case for Lim Tse Wei. In the opening chapter of his debut book of essays and recipes, Little Perfections: Eating in Singapore, the US-based Singaporean writer and cook reveals: “I did not learn to cook at my mother’s side, or my grandmother’s, and though my grandfather had been a cook for some years, we did not speak of it in the family.” Instead, it was a... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3338160/former-restaurateur-lim-tse-wei-releases-his-debut-book-singaporean-food-culture?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3338160/former-restaurateur-lim-tse-wei-releases-his-debut-book-singaporean-food-culture?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 02 Jan 2026 11:15:09 +0000 Kavita Daswani Kavita Daswani After more than 13 years in the United States, Singaporean chef C-Y Chia is preparing to return to the Lion City. But not before leaving a parting gift for the diners who helped shape Chia’s journey: a new cookbook that distils the spirit of Lion Dance Cafe, the vegan restaurant in Oakland, California, that Chia co-founded and ran with partner and fellow chef Shane Stanbridge. Lion Dance Cafe Cookbook: Authentic, Not Traditional contains more than 100 recipes that reflect the pair’s plant-based,... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3338253/chef-ready-bring-plant-based-take-singaporean-food-back-home-lion-city?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3338253/chef-ready-bring-plant-based-take-singaporean-food-back-home-lion-city?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 02 Jan 2026 09:15:09 +0000 Charmaine Yu Charmaine Yu From auspicious horse-themed phrases and couplets to whether your luck is in, check out our Year of the Horse 2026 series to discover all you need to know about the coming Lunar New Year. In the American imagination, the cowboy is a lone, stoic sentinel, silhouetted against a burning horizon as he guides his horse through the dust of the Western frontier. He is the mythic hero of a thousand sun-drenched films defined by his wide-brimmed hat, silver-spurred boots and leather chaps, and who... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts/article/3338014/chinese-cowboys-challenging-american-old-west-narratives-through-art-and-self-discovery?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts/article/3338014/chinese-cowboys-challenging-american-old-west-narratives-through-art-and-self-discovery?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 30 Dec 2025 23:15:08 +0000 Gavin Yeung Gavin Yeung As a teenager, Miko Calo often found herself lugging lighting equipment beside her cousins during her summer holidays, trailing behind her aunt as they canvassed the far corners of the Philippine archipelago with a television crew in tow. Titled Travel Time, Susan “Tita” Calo-Medina’s travel show was a pioneer when it began airing in the late 1980s, showcasing the richness of Filipino culture and cuisine during an era when it was much more fashionable to look to the West for holiday... https://www.scmp.com/postmag/food-drink/article/3338096/michelin-guide-arrives-philippines-could-it-be-filipino-cuisines-time-shine?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/postmag/food-drink/article/3338096/michelin-guide-arrives-philippines-could-it-be-filipino-cuisines-time-shine?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 30 Dec 2025 07:15:07 +0000 Matt Glasby Matt Glasby This is the latest instalment in a feature series reflecting on instances of East meets West in world cinema, including China-US co-productions. When Wayne Wang’s The Joy Luck Club was released in 1993, it stood as only the second Hollywood film ever to tell a contemporary story with a majority Asian cast – the first, Flower Drum Song, had arrived 32 years prior. Based on the bestselling 1989 novel by Amy Tan, it tells of four Chinese mothers and their daughters in San Francisco. They play a... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3337472/how-joy-luck-club-paved-way-asian-representation-long-crazy-rich-asians?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3337472/how-joy-luck-club-paved-way-asian-representation-long-crazy-rich-asians?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 25 Dec 2025 23:15:08 +0000 Mark Magnier Mark Magnier A mistrial was declared on Monday in the closely watched case of a former senior New York official charged with acting as a Chinese agent after the jury was unable to reach a verdict. The jury remained deadlocked on all 19 counts after several days of deliberation in the case of Linda Sun, a former aide to New York governors Kathy Hochul and Andrew Cuomo, on charges of violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act (Fara). She and her husband and co-defendant Chris Hu were also charged with... https://www.scmp.com/news/us/diplomacy/article/3337399/mistrial-case-ex-top-aide-new-york-governor-charged-working-china-agent?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/us/diplomacy/article/3337399/mistrial-case-ex-top-aide-new-york-governor-charged-working-china-agent?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 22 Dec 2025 22:13:56 +0000 He Huifeng He Huifeng When US President Donald Trump first proposed his “gold card” programme earlier this year, offering permanent residency to the super-rich, Beijing-based emigration consultant Jack Jing received unsolicited inquiries from seven high-net-worth families. But that initial enthusiasm quickly waned after the application details were released last week. None of his clients plan to apply in the near term, said Jing, general manager of the migration service provider WellTrend, who has decades of... https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3336795/wealthy-chinese-appear-shun-trumps-gold-card-immigration-programme?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3336795/wealthy-chinese-appear-shun-trumps-gold-card-immigration-programme?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 17 Dec 2025 15:00:08 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Finland’s prime minister apologised on Wednesday to citizens of Japan, China and South Korea after MPs sparked outrage by posting pictures of themselves making derogatory squinting gestures. The parliamentarians from the populist Finns Party, which is part of the right-wing coalition government, posted images on social media where they pulled back the corners of their eyes – widely seen as a racist gesture targeting East Asian people. They claimed to have shared the pictures in support of the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3336814/miss-finland-scandal-finnish-pm-apologises-east-asia-mps-racist-gestures?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3336814/miss-finland-scandal-finnish-pm-apologises-east-asia-mps-racist-gestures?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 17 Dec 2025 13:20:31 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Three years ago, Arden Cho was ready to walk away from acting. She had landed her first lead role in the Netflix series Partner Track, only to see it cancelled after one season. She was heartbroken. Her agent would not let her quit. “She refused to say ‘You’re done.’ She just kept sending me things,” Cho recalls. “She just [kept] being like, ‘Look, I know you’re not auditioning. I know you’re done, but I think you’d like this.’” Now, Cho is juggling multiple projects after voicing the lead... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3336444/how-kpop-demon-hunters-gave-arden-cho-her-golden-moment-after-years-acting-heartbreak?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3336444/how-kpop-demon-hunters-gave-arden-cho-her-golden-moment-after-years-acting-heartbreak?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 16 Dec 2025 11:15:08 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press When high school students in the West Hartford Public Schools district study World War II in the coming year, they will learn about more than just the typical hallmarks like Japanese-American detention camps. They will also hear about Sadao Munemori, a soldier who died protecting comrades from a grenade. The 22-year-old posthumously became the first Japanese-American awarded the Medal of Honour. Lessons like this that delve beyond places have left teachers “humbled”, said Jessica Blitzer, the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3336301/us-schools-embrace-asian-american-history-new-curriculum?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3336301/us-schools-embrace-asian-american-history-new-curriculum?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 13 Dec 2025 00:33:54 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Christine Choy, a trailblazer for Asian-Americans in independent film and whose documentary on the fatal beating of Vincent Chin was nominated for an Academy Award, has died. She was 73. Choy died on Sunday, according to a statement from JT Takagi, executive director of Third World Newsreel, a filmmaking collective Choy helped establish in the 1970s. No cause of death was given. “She was a prolific filmmaker who made significant films that helped form our Asian-American and American film... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3336300/christine-choy-who-made-documentary-killing-vincent-chin-dies-73?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3336300/christine-choy-who-made-documentary-killing-vincent-chin-dies-73?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 12 Dec 2025 23:07:40 +0000