Asia's top chefs name best fresh market in their countries

  HONG KONG - When dining a five-star restaurant, wouldn't you wonder where did the chef or chefs get their produce or ingredients to make such an exquisite meal? Chris Dwyer, a Hong Kong-based food writer who posts his restaurant reviews, chef interviews and more at finefooddude.com, talked to some of Asia's noted chefs to ask them where do they go to get the freshest produce. *Chef Shane Osborn of the Arcane in Hong Kong. He goes to Graham Street Market. Osborn said: "In a city full of skyscrapers and flashy boutiques, it's so nice to see this slightly beaten, bustling market still providing people with their daily produce. My favorite ingredients are the mangoes -- either from Thailand or the Philippines. You can always buy beautifully ripe mangoes, as they have never seen the inside of a fridge." *Chef Haji Qahar of Bar.B.Q.Tonight in Karachi. Empress Market, which offers everything from meat to spices and even textiles, is where Chef Qahar goes to purchase seafood, especially grilled jumbo prawns and pomfret fish. *Chef Chisaki Iba of the Mizuki Sushi at the Ritz Carlton Kyoto visits Kyoto Central Wholesale Market to buy fish for her renowned sushi and sashimi dishes. *Chef Jarrett Wrisley of Soul Food Mahanakorn in Bangkok names Or Tok Kor Market as his source of freshly-pressed coconut cream, seafood and ingredients for curry paste. *Chef Liu Ching Hai of the Summer Palace at the Regent Singapore goes to Chinatown Wet Market . "It's situated right where all the Chinese heritage and culture is as well, so it's always a nice sight to see the locals around. I purchase ingredients like wolf herring, turtles, frogs, clams and other live seafood from this market," said Liu. *Chef Ricky Thein of Lai Po Heen at the Mandarin Oriental Kuala Lumpur said his favorite place is Keen Hing Enterprise, a half a century-old Chinese herbal medical shop. According to Chef Thein, the shop "prides itself in having rare and fresh Chinese herbs, ingredients that promote healing and are great health remedies" and that is where he also buys "sea cucumber, dried scallop, oysters and more." *Chef Tsai Shihrong of Silks Palace at the National Palace Museum in Taipei. Chef Tsai visits Dihua Street Market for its high-quality produce. The market is also where he buys ingredients for his signature dessert – the Eight Treasure Cake. *Chef Aissa Nable-Montecillo of Apartment 1B at the Henry Hotel in Manila. She goes to Farmers Market in the Cubao district of Quezon City to buy the freshest seafood and produce. *Chef Mingoo Kang of Mingles in Seoul buys his ingredients at Gyeongdong Market. *Chef Simon Sunwoo of Liquid Laundry in Shanghai picks Chang Chun Shi Pin Shang Dian as his fave market where he buys his sauces and seafood. *Chef Justin Kam of Xiang Palace Restaurant at the Intercontinental in Phnom Penh goes to Central Market (Phsar Thmei) for its "wide variety of local and imported fresh vegetables, fruits, seafood and meat." *Chef Gordon Tambimuttu of The Langham Melbourne named Queen Victoria Market as his favorite place for the ""barramundi from Western Australia, Tasmanian salmon and locally produced Yarra Valley Dairy goats' cheese." *Chef Kevin Cherkas of Cuca in Bali has one place in mind to buy meat, produce and spices - Rantepao Market. The market is not in Bali but in Toraja, Sulawesi. *Chef Daniel Woodbridge of Amanoi in Ninh Thuan visits Xom Moi Market in Nha Trang to buy locally-caught fish and organic veggies. *Chef Gil Dumoulin of Le Planteur in Yangon purchases his produce, prawns and other ingredients at Hledan Market. GAC/Expat 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