WhenSimonwasofferedajobin
NewYork,Su-yenjumpedatthe
opportunitytomovethere.The
couplespentthenextfour-and-a-half
yearsinNewYork,wheretheygot
marriedandhadtheirdaughter,Esmé.
TheythenmovedbacktoLondon,
wheretheirson,Milo,wasborn.
Simonformedhisowncompanyand
startedtravellingregularlytoSA.In
theinterestofkeepingthefamilyunit
together,Su-yendecidedtobravea
movetoJohannesburg.“Iwasabit
nervous,Ihavetosay.Peoplewere
forevertellingmehowdangerousit
was.IthoughtIwastakingonefor
theteam,andthatitwasgoingtobe
twoyearsofhell,butnow,inmyninth
year,I’vehadthebesttimeofmylife.”
ChézFongistheculminationofa
lifelongdreamforSu-yen.Pop-ups
werealltherageinLondonwhenshe
left,andwithnewhorizonscamethe
perfectopportunity.Shehadwatched
TequilaSunrisein1988,thefilmin
whichMichellePfeifferplaysastylish
restaurantownerwhomincesaround
inslinkydressesandknowsevery
customer’sname.“Therewas
somethingsofamiliarandcool
aboutit.Iwantedtobeher,”she
laughs.Su-yenstartedhosting
Asiancookingdemoswithherthen
businesspartner,RachelThomas,
and,atfirst,borrowedotherpeople’s
restaurantsandkitchens.Dariode
AngelilentherhisthenParktown
North-basedrestaurant,Cube,on
MondaysandGrantRavenscroft
rentedhisvenue,Croft&Co,in
ParkviewtoheronWednesdays.It
waswhenSu-yendecidedthatshe
neededamorepermanentspace
thatherparents-in-law,DrPaulDavis
andDrAllisonRussell,steppedin.
Nowhousedintheirmagnificent
heritagehome,ChézFongisafeast
forboththeeyesandtheappetite.
Constructedin1904,thehouse
isoneoftheoldestontheUpper
HoughtonRidgeandwasbuilt,
inpart,bythelegendaryEnglish
architectSirHerbertBaker.Su-yen’s
openplan,free-standingkitchenis
locatedinthearchedstoneareato
theleftoftheterrace,andboasts
panoramicviewsofJohannesburg.
Awoodencounterwrapsaroundthe
serviceareaandbeautifulbamboo
bird-cagelanternshangaboveit.
Su-yenfeelsthatthosewhositat
thecountergetthemostoutofthe
dinners,astheyinteractwithher,and
areoftentheluckyrecipientsofextra
tidbits.Thetablesaresetwithvibrant
shweshwelinen–anodtoAfrica- andthespaceisdecoratedwith
greenery poached from the garden.
It’s a cosy and informal atmosphere,
and guests are encouraged not
to come dressed to the nines
but rather in comfortable – and
preferably stretchy – jeans.
Much like her bold and eccentric
personality, Su-yen’s philosophy on
food and life is that she is willing to try
anything put before her, be it a daring
dish or daunting sporting challenge.
Chéz Fong was inspired, in part, byWHAT’S IN A NAME?
Thornhill, when pronounced
phonetically in Chinese, sounds
like Fong-hon-yiu – this was
the tongue-in-cheek name that
Fanny, Su-yen’s mother, came up
with for her father, Michael. Thus,
Fong was adopted as the family’s
made-up Chinese surname and
was used mostly for restaurant
bookings in Hong Kong.92 SEPTEMBER 2019