In our first-ever volume of “Quality in Life”, we have been honoured by being able to interview Anson Leung, the current head of HK B.B.Q. Master located in Richmond B.C. Opened over 20 years ago, this restaurant focuses on Chinese-style BBQ meats on rice with an assortment of side dishes to order, and has never strayed away from producing quality food. Whether it is their signature sweet, sticky and juicy BBQ pork, their ultra crispy roasted pork, or their incredibly fresh and tender roasted duck, HK B.B.Q. Master never disappoints. This can easily be seen by the long line that is formed outside of the restaurant throughout every day. After having won many awards, gaining many features on various news outlets as well as being featured on Netflix’s “Breakfast Lunch & Dinner” HK B.B.Q. Master continues to wow people as they try their BBQ meats for the first, or thousandth time. When asking Anson about his journey and HK B.B.Q. Master as a whole, we were able to find out more about how their business is able to express quality and community through their store as well as how this has led to their overwhelming success in recent years.
Firstly, we took the time to listen to Anson about his journey with the restaurant that his father originally opened. As a nine-year-old, Anson had begun to go to his family’s restaurant every summer and began to familiarize himself with the community around him. To pass the time, Anson would often talk to other shop owners and play around the complex. However, it was not until later in his life that he was able to gain a new perspective on the restaurant. As the years passed by, Anson had grown to be more appreciative of the foundation that his family had set in place for him. After having tried a career in structural engineering for a few years Anson realized that he was not enjoying his role to the fullest. Shortly afterwards he decided to take over the restaurant in place of his father. Since then, for over five years now, Anson has spent every day trying to learn and hone his craft of providing his community with top-tier Chinese-style BBQ meats. From cleaning in the back kitchen, taking out the garbage, and making repairs to learning each and every detail about how to cook their meat to perfection, Anson has dedicated himself to his craft.
When we asked Anson about how HK B.B.Q. Master expresses both quality and community, he had a number of things to say. Firstly, he made it clear that his number one priority is paying attention to detail. This is how HK B.B.Q. Master is able to stand out amongst the other restaurants that serve the same type of food. Anson noted that all the ingredients used in creating their food are sourced directly from China. They are of the highest quality, are freshly picked, and shipped directly to Canada. Moreover, the meat they use is never frozen. Attention to detail and adapting to different situations also helps Anson provide customers with the same high level of quality. For example, different variables that impact the quality of the ingredients they use are also accounted for. This can include changes in weather patterns that ultimately affect dry ingredients or the age of livestock which impacts the tenderness of the meat. From sourcing the ingredients to the stringent process of preparing and cooking the meats, every detail is thought out and paid attention to. It is easy to see this by eating any of the items offered on the menu as every single bite is just as great as the first.
This also ties greatly into how HK B.B.Q. Master fosters community. Not only does HK B.B.Q. Master honour their own heritage and global community by sourcing from China, they also do so locally through providing this level of care and love into making food that people trust, love and look forward to eating. Anson can often be seen interacting with customers and learning more about what they love so he can always make improvements and honour his community. For instance, Anson has stated that nowadays there are a lot of people who want to eat healthier. Since this is the case, HK B.B.Q. Master offers their cuts of meat in different ways. You can order lean meat, half fatty meat, and fatty cuts of meat depending on your preference. Taking that extra step to understand your community and better serve them is yet another reason why HK B.B.Q. Master has been thriving for the past two decades. This is particularly why we have been so excited by this opportunity to understand Anson and his family business on a deeper level. Through their craft and how they operate, HK B.B.Q. Master has been able to express quality and community for over 20 years. We hope that through this short article on HK B.B.Q. Master, you have learned something new and are interested in visiting one of our local favourites.