When he’s not developing the Junzi Kitchen menu our chef Lucas Sin runs a ten-course pop-up restaurant with Kay Teo.

Improvisation rules the night of a seating: Lucas and Kay buy the best ingredients available that day and then figure out ten courses that will surprise and delight their guests. “We’re trying to start conversations and stories among our guests with our food,” says Lucas, “when you’re served ten courses, you’re going to talk about at least ten things.”

This was the case last Friday when the Junzi team got to experience Lucas and Kay’s culinary improvisations in full glory.

Drawing from his apprenticeships at Modernist Cuisine and Kikunoi (recipient of three Michelin stars), it was obvious that Lucas felt equally comfortable in a fine dining setting as the humbler surroundings of a chun-bing counter.

Cantonese duck breast, claypot rice with pork belly, a vegetable spread with pickled kale and roasted lotus root, smoked ham hock with green curry and yuzu compote, nectarine buckwheat cakes and more — each course was packed with technique, creativity, and love.

“It’s autobiographical cooking. For instance the clay pot rice [with braised pork belly, Chinese sausage, duck liver and flash-fried shrimp!] was my favorite dish as a kid. I’ve watched my father make variations of it many times.”

We’re honored to work with such a skilled chef as Lucas — and our bellies agree.

Between his duties as Junzi Kitchen chef, Lucas Sin runs a ten-course pop-up restaurant with Kay Teo

Between his duties as Junzi Kitchen chef, Lucas Sin runs a ten-course pop-up restaurant with Kay Teo

60-degree egg with unagi-style shiitake, bulgur, amaranth, kasha buckwheat, ginger and seaweed

60-degree egg with unagi-style shiitake, bulgur, amaranth, kasha buckwheat, ginger and seaweed

Hot-bean pickled kale, turmeric-roasted fennel, tarragon lotus root, thyme-roasted rainbow carrots, black sesame miso mushrooms, and asparagus in watercress-sesame sauce

Hot-bean pickled kale, turmeric-roasted fennel, tarragon lotus root, thyme-roasted rainbow carrots, black sesame miso mushrooms, and asparagus in watercress-sesame sauce

Cantonese duck breast with black garlic jus, kumquats and pearl onions

Cantonese duck breast with black garlic jus, kumquats and pearl onions

Claypot rice with red-braised pork belly, Chinese sausage, duck liver, flash-fried shrimp, ginger and scallion

Claypot rice with red-braised pork belly, Chinese sausage, duck liver, flash-fried shrimp, ginger and scallion

"Claypot rice was my favorite dish as a kid. I've watched my father make variations of it many times"

"Claypot rice was my favorite dish as a kid. I've watched my father make variations of it many times"