Ancestral Welcomes Chef Patrick Dang

We are pleased to welcome Patrick Dang to the Ancestral team as consultant chef, and with his breadth of experience you will pleased to welcome him too.

Patrick Dang, consultant chef

Hong Kong born, but raised in Sydney, Patrick has continued to cross borders and culinary traditions throughout his career as a chef.

Australia, Belgium, Italy and, later, Shanghai have all been staging points in his journey as a chef.

He has worked in the intensely demanding atmosphere of three Michelin-starred restaurants such Hof Van Cleve (Belgium) and La Calandre (Italy), thereby building on his time as chef de cuisine under the two Michelin-starred chef Richard Ekkebus in Sydney, as well as his work at Concrete Blonde in the same town.

Concrete Blonde, Potts Point.

In more recent years he has been executive chef of the Royal George (Kyneton, Victoria, Australia.), and also of T8 restaurant (Shanghai). This last was judged one of the top 50 hottest restaurants in the world by Conde Nast Magazine and was where he won the praise of international food critics.

T8 Restaurant & Bar, Shanghai

Now, at the head of his own consultancy business, he is working on a new dining concept of his own for Shanghai, set to open in December, 2012.

And as Patrick builds up to this next stage in his evolution as a chef he has come to Ancestral to share his breadth of knowledge and culinary skill, providing the creative force behind a whole new menu.

Patrick describes his ever evolving cooking style as, “simple and clean, yet bold and flavourful.” Having extensively travelled the globe to encounter new inspiration he has continuously refined and honed his personal approach to food:

“Creativity is born from originality, as well as the celebration of tradition and the respecting of ingredients.”

“Techniques are based on concept and observation.”

“To understand the ‘meaning’ of cooking we first should want to share.”

“Every dish is a reflection of the cook’s personality, born of silence and concentration....”

Whether he is conducting an evening of busy, demanding kitchen service, or composing a plate around a single ingredient, chef Dang always finds “something reminiscent of harmony” where the exacting labour brings happiness, both to himself and to his diners.

As Kenneth Lo agrees in his 1972 book 'Chinese Food'

"A feeling of well-being and satisfaction is an essential part of a good Chinese meal"