Time moves differently in a city like Hong Kong. It’s a place where weeks can feel like seconds, and years can mean a lifetime. It’s a place where attention may often seem like the only currency that matters and to successfully hold attention is a marvel indeed.
For Italian-born Korean Francesco Lee, a marvel is precisely what he has achieved. His restaurant MOYO is described as “a modern Korean dining experience with an Italian touch.” Born in Rome and raised in Milan, Lee brings his two cultures together through MOYO and has created a culinary destination that redefines comfort food.
First opening its doors in 2014, MOYO has been in the same spot on Aberdeen Street in the bustling district of Central for almost 12 years. For a city like Hong Kong where rent is monstrously high and flavors of the week within the restaurant industry are constantly in rotation, its enduring adoration by regular and new patrons alike is a testament to the legacy that Francesco has built.
Defined by a sprawling wine list curated by Lee himself, rotating works of art on the walls, an ever-changing seasonal menu highlighting premium ingredients flown in from Europe balanced with traditional Korean comfort food such as rice cakes, bibimbap, and hangover ramyun noodles, MOYO has cemented itself in the Hong Kong dining scene as a restaurant with a powerful sense of identity. We recently sat down with Francesco to talk about his success over the last decade, finding ourselves engrossed in a dialogue that explores the nuances of originality and cross-cultural selfhood.
Francesco delves deeper into how Rome influenced his reverence for history, how Milan influenced his love of design, and how Seoul influenced his appreciation of popular culture. As we learned more about how the restaurateur has shaped MOYO not only to his evolving taste but also through a keen perception of understanding what people desire from an experience, we were able to take a unique look into the mind of someone who is keenly aware of the importance of identity, the need for a sense of balance, and the impactful role that a little bit of stubbornness can have on success. Read on to explore our conversation with Francesco Lee of MOYO.
Zarah (LANG):
MOYO means “to get together.” What is the core philosophy behind the restaurant?
Francesco (MOYO):
So, MOYO, in Korean means “to get together.” So, I think, for us, it was not just about a restaurant, but trying to make a place where people and friends and community can gather and stay together. The logo is based on a Chinese character that means together and it also looks like a house. It’s not just about dinner, but it’s for community, for connection, networking, fun, party, just chilling, drinking. So that was the concept behind MOYO.
When you make this kind of concept, you need to think about, “Where would I want to chill and connect with people?” Possibly in a place that is cool. Possibly in a place that is not too pretentious. Possibly in a space that is serving good food, good wine, good cocktails, with good service. So MOYO in a broader sense, is thinking about, “Where would I want to hang out with friends?” Starting from that, you can see where the direction of the restaurant could go.
Zarah:
Can you tell us a bit more about how MOYO started?
Francesco:
MOYO started close to 12 years ago, in 2014. I was in Milano. Before opening MOYO, I was a student in Milan. I graduated slightly late because as an Italian-born Korean, I didn't have to do military service. So I took almost 2 years of gap year and I was in Paris and London and New York, trying to find a calling for my career. I also had a finance internship in investment banking in London. I thought I would pursue a career in banking, but I didn't really like it. There's no creativity. Eventually, I told myself, in order to try to find the best career path, maybe I should move out from Milan and try to discover Asia.
So, I came to Hong Kong, and I was surprised at how international the city is compared to Korea, which is very local. In Hong Kong, everybody's so open. And then I thought that Hong Kong, in terms of food and beverage, the industry of restaurants, the city needed something different from [Korean] fried chicken and Korean barbecue. Back when we started, we were introducing fusion and Westernizing Korean food, and it was something that many people could not understand.
Zarah:
So why did you end up settling in Hong Kong?
Francesco:
Because Hong Kong, compared to Milano and compared to Korea, embraces new trends, and people are less picky in terms of food. They're more open. It doesn't mean they're less picky in terms of quality, though. Actually here, a lot of people really care about quality. But they are less picky in the identity of food. Because Hong Kong was a British colony, you have a big influence from Western food. And then it's also very close to Korea, very close to Japan. So for Hong Kong people, they are in a spot that is very easy to reach new cultures and to experience new cuisines.
In order to introduce a Westernized [interpretation of] Korean cuisine or Korean bistro, you need to have the traditional food be stable already in the city, to be well grounded. The Korean food scene in Hong Kong was, at the time, not saturated, but very well established. The Hong Kong crowd already embraced the classics, so I understood that there was room to do something different and something new.
Zarah:
For a city like Hong Kong, sticking around for 12 years is a very long time and truly signifies success as a restaurant. What do you think makes MOYO successful?
Francesco:
Hmmm, what makes MOYO successful? I think you have to have an identity. Also, to have belief in what you're trying to do. If you open a restaurant and you want to do a traditional Korean restaurant, you want to make the best dish in town of that traditional Korean food item. But for us, we just want to be a novelty—something new, something trendy, something that you cannot experience in Hong Kong, or Korea or Italy or anywhere else. That was the belief: that we were trying to do something new.
It was sort of a quest, you know. A search for something that we ourselves didn’t really know. We were making the path, the journey. We don't really know what the destination of this journey is, but we just go along, trying to implement what we like. Either through glassware, artworks on the walls, the food, the wine, the speakers, whatever. Whatever we like, we want to put it in the restaurant. And then, hopefully, this research of taste that we have, will be reflected in the popularity of the restaurant, the feedback from people.
To be honest, MOYO in the past 11 years has changed a lot. The menu has changed maybe 50 to 60%, but the identity also has changed. But of course, the identity changes in a way that is still understandable.
I think the success of MOYO is based on a constant research of offering new things. In a sense, what can be improved? We are so small compared to all these restaurant groups, and the only way for us to survive is to just try to find what and where we can improve. Because I'm happy, but I'm never really satisfied.
Zarah:
But it feels more like growth, right?
Francesco:
Yeah, I mean my taste regarding everything has changed a little bit, so it does get reflected in the restaurant. But of course, I need to be smart and critical and also judgmental about my taste as well, because my taste doesn't necessarily mean it's a taste that the market and the public wants. But if you start chasing the taste of other people, then you lose your identity.
Zarah:
Do you think that has contributed to the success? The authenticity? I know the term “identity” keeps coming up, which I think is very important.
Francesco:
I think if you know your sense of identity, then it's real. I think people can sense whether this is a true reflection of it. Some people may not understand it. People, they judge you. They say, “Oh, this is not how it's supposed to be.” But if you know what your identity is, you need to be a little bit stubborn and believe in what you're doing because then, people eventually will understand and accept.
It's a challenge because you need to have a balance of when it's good to be stubborn and when it's good to be self-reflective. You need to judge yourself, if what you're doing is actually correct. Eventually, the sales and the feedback will tell you if you're doing well. But then you also need to be patient because it’s not reflected in the space right away. So that is also tricky. It's a lot of balance.
Zarah:
You’re Italian-born Korean. How has growing up with two distinct cultures shaped you as a person? As a restaurant owner?
Francesco:
I'm very thankful to my family for being Korean and Italian at the same time, because both cultures are so rich. Italian culture especially is so rich in terms of history. I was born in Rome, where the whole city is like a museum. There is something [about it] that makes me very proud of my background.
Going back to the stubbornness, Italian people are very stubborn in terms of food. “Pineapple and pizza is impossible.” “You cannot break the spaghetti when you boil it.” All these kinds of things actually helped me a lot in having my own non-negotiable things—in life and in business. That is something that I learned.
And then growing up in Milano, the taste of aesthetics. Fashion. Design. Interior design. Product design. I was surrounded by friends who were children of gallerists, friends majoring in fine art. That helped me a lot in cultivating and growing an eye for aesthetics.
With the Korean side, it's so good because at the moment, Korea is so trendy. With K-pop and the K-culture and everything. So having the old traditions of Italy and the new of Korea, that puts me in a very advantageous position in reading people's tastes.
In terms of personality, Korea and Italy are both peninsulas—both countries were conquered by so many people. The Koreans were conquered by the Chinese, the Japanese, the Mongolians, and the Italians were conquered by the Vikings, the Arabs, Napoleon. So I think that's why you have this identity of these two cultures that overlap and they're very strong in terms of passion and also stubbornness sometimes. So the key is to try to get the good of both cultures.
Zarah:
You are responsible for the wine selection at MOYO. How does wine complement the food served at the restaurant?
Francesco:
Yes, I did make the wine list at MOYO. Well actually, also the menu. Most of the ideas are because I grew up under a hotelier and restaurateur family. So everything that is on the menu, it needs to be approved in the end by me, but I do work with the chef.
Both Italian and Korean cuisine, normally, if you go to restaurants, the portions are generous. So that is something that we want to make sure—that when somebody comes to our restaurant, they leave full.
We fly zucchini flowers from Europe. We use anchovies from Europe. We use truffles sometimes from Italy. So it's getting more challenging—how can we make a menu that is not too fancy? Is it balanced? Can you bring a vegetarian friend to the restaurant? Can you bring somebody who doesn't drink alcohol? These are all things that need to be checked. And it also has to be cool at the same time. All about balance. So much to balance.
So the wine actually complements a lot because certain dishes call for alcohol. They inspire the person to drink alcohol. And if you select good wines, or good cocktails in your wine program, then it enhances the experience. It's all about taste and having balance. You need to cater the wine program to something that is not easy to find. Because if you put in your wine list something that you can find in a normal wine shop, there's nothing special here. So you need to find something that somebody cannot easily find, but you need to also include something that people can recognize easily when they want to celebrate.
Zarah:
There's that idea of specialization. Almost like personalizing the experience for someone.
Francesco:
I think that makes it very special. Like, if you go to a place and maybe you don't know what you're getting or maybe you want to try something new and you're able to describe [what you want], then they will create something special for you. That is an experience. It’s key but it can be challenging.
Because if you're in a fine dining setting, you have a lot of time to spend with a guest. But when you're in a small, crowded space during the weekend—we have 100 people in from 6pm to 11pm—it's really difficult to specialize and cater to each guest. But that's why you need to have a wine list that is extensive enough, so you can have something [that appeals] to each guest. For their own particular taste. So researching and studying wines that are good and affordable and not too commercial is also key for the restaurant.
Zarah:
Food plays such a big role in both Korean and Italian cultures. Aside from the flavors themselves, what are some of the key differences and similarities between Korean and Italian food?
Francesco:
Italian food, it's all about using fresh ingredients. In a sense, “less is more” for Italian food. You have fresh tomato, mozzarella, or you put a little bit of oil, salt and pepper—you're done.
Korean food has a different culture because we like to ferment. In one cuisine, it is about using what nature has given to you and presenting it right away. And most of the time in the other cuisine, which is Korean food, it uses what nature gives you, and then sees what nature can create, just with the process of fermentation. Because once you ferment something—you put salt and the sauces on the kimchi—it's like wine. At some point, you have no more control. So you are giving back to nature, and nature transforms the food, and then gives it back to you.
So you have these two differences, and then you try to combine them. You use fresh ingredients from Italian food, and then you use the fermented sauces that are coming from Korean cuisine, and then you mix it up together. But, of course, the sauces that we use in our dishes, we don't fully use them with [traditional] Korean technique, because they can overwhelm the fresh produce inspired from Italian food.
We don't go fully fusion. Sometimes we are very Korean, sometimes we are more Italian. At some point, we had to decide, “Are we more Korean, or are we more Italian?” I think we are more Korean. But sometimes somebody can pick a few items from their meal that could be more Italian. It's a challenge, and it's homework for us to do in the future.
Zarah:
What is a typical day like for you?
Francesco:
When I started MOYO, I was working the whole day at the restaurant. Really no personal life. It was a lot of trial and error. Now my day is not actually about me being in the action, but rather being slightly on the outside and trying to see the restaurant with a different perspective. Because if you are always in the kitchen, or if you're always on the floor, you cannot see the whole picture sometimes. And I think that was a process that I had to go through when I opened the restaurant.
Now that I'm less involved on the floor and in the kitchen operations, I can open an exhibition within the restaurant. I can organize a pop-up. We're going to have a pop-up in June with an Italian shop. And that is because I’m going outside and meeting people. Once you have your restaurant set, the next step is, “How can we level up?”
This exhibition that we did during Art Basel [stems from] my passion for art. Normally, I put paintings [at MOYO] from my personal collection. This year, we decided to do an exhibition with three Italian artists. I am now planning to do something with some Korean artists.
All of this is very beneficial for the restaurant—for the identity of the restaurant, to the guests. I think it's key for us—for me to go around and connect with people in the creative industry, in the wine industry, in the food industry. To try to find a new direction and to offer to our guests something that is new.
Zarah:
What makes someone LANG? (Lang means beautiful in Cantonese)
Francesco:
Somebody with taste. Somebody with an identity. Someone who is genuine. Someone who has their own style. It's like music, right? Some people, they like techno, some people like hip hop, some people like classical. You don't have to like them all, but at least you need to have a style. I think the real beauty is when you have your own style. Your research of having your own style identity. That journey is something beautiful.
Photography: Koon Chi Chung / @koonxz
SHOP FRANCESCO'S LOOK
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