Ankôma: A Hidden Gem in Tsim Sha Tsui

Nestled within a Tsim Sha Tsui commercial building, Ankôma features a semi-open kitchen helmed by Frankie Wong. At just 30 years old, Frankie is this year's recipient of the Michelin Young Chef Award. The restaurant offers an omakase-style menu where French techniques form the foundation, seamlessly integrated with Japanese elements and, most distinctly, the authentic flavours of Hong Kong. One standout dish is the scaled snapper, where the base incorporates the concept of a classic local stir-fry, "siu chao wong," combining dried silverfish, clam meat, leeks, and cashews.

Frankie's inspiration also springs from Hong Kong's vibrant street food culture. He reimagines the city's famous curry fish balls by pairing a French-style curry sauce with a homemade fish paste roll.

He even treasures the dried seafood from the Western District's Des Voeux Road West as his personal larder. "I love using dried ingredients like scallops, mushrooms, and whelk to make soups and sauces," Frankie shares. "Their flavours are like concentrated essences, making the resulting broths or sauces exceptionally rich."

"I Wanted to Move Faster Than Others"

At 18, Frankie stood at a career crossroads: athlete, designer, or chef? He ultimately chose the culinary path, driven by his passion for cooking and the opportunity to channel his creativity.

During his two years at culinary school, eager to gain practical experience, he took a part-time job at the Marco Polo Hongkong Hotel's buffet kitchen. "Because I wanted to move faster than others and be better prepared," he recalls. "In school, we might dice ten onions a day, but in the hotel kitchen, I had to chop a hundred onions a night. It rapidly strengthened my foundational skills."

After graduation, a recommendation from his mentor landed him a role in The Peninsula's main kitchen, which supplied pre-prepped ingredients to all the hotel's restaurants, further solidifying his technical prowess.

"A Successful Chef Can't Just Keep Their Head Down and Work"

However, Frankie had a clear goal: to specialize in fine dining. He subsequently joined the former one-Michelin-starred Zest by Konishi and the former two-Michelin-starred Écriture, where he absorbed diverse culinary styles.

His time at Écriture exposed him to broader responsibilities. By 25, he was already mentoring newcomers and gaining management experience. "A successful chef can't just keep their head down and work; you must also know how to delegate," Frankie explains. "If you teach someone to do your job, you free up more time to accomplish more, thereby improving the team's overall efficiency."

"Overthinking Affected My Body's Second Brain"

Winning the Michelin accolade brought unexpected pressure. Determined to live up to the recognition and ensure every guest felt their experience was worth it, Frankie constantly pushed his standards higher. The immense workload eventually took its toll.

"I thought my mental resilience was strong, but that didn't mean the rest of my body could keep up," he admits. "My overthinking and worries affected my body's second brain—my gut health. I was diagnosed with IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome), where anything I ate could easily cause diarrhea, all stress-induced. It took me nearly half a year to recover by slowly adjusting my mindset and not pushing myself so hard."

A Dream to Represent Hong Kong

Reflecting on the past three years, Frankie holds his guests' support dear. "One customer has visited nearly 30 times! Another international guest dined here two years ago and told me I would win a Michelin award one day—it was a huge encouragement at the time. He recently returned to Hong Kong and brought his daughter back to celebrate my achievement."

Is a Michelin star his next goal? "In terms of food quality alone, I have a clear conscience that we are at that level. But it also depends on the overall restaurant package, the hardware aspects which I can't fully control. I'm in no rush." His immediate hope is to move to a larger space early next year to offer diners a better experience.

With 12 years in the industry behind him, he has an even greater ambition: "Currently, there aren't many chefs in their early 30s, or even younger, who can represent Hong Kong on the international stage. I hope I can be one of them—to become a true, homegrown, and representative Hong Kong chef."