Bina Yu and Kim Melvin are well-known culinary talents in Shanghai. The former chef of CHI-Q and head pastry chef of Commune Social are behind a new French-Asian communal dining concept called Together. We sat down with them to talk about their new venture.
Bina, what have you been up to since CHIQ’s
closing a year ago, and how did you get
involved in Together?
BY: So, I had been working at Mercato up
until October, and the plan was to send me
to the new Guangzhou outlet. But since I was
trained in a French restaurant, and my passion
isn’t in Italian food, it didn’t happen.
I knew Kim was looking for a chef and
Lyndon [of Neri&Hu] called and asked me
to join. I said no at first, because I have this
bond with Jean-Georges. After a few months
of thinking about it, I thought it might be time
to move on.
I also had a long break in between. I went
to Mexico, New York and Cambodia, where I
researched ingredients and the food scenes
around the world.
What about Kim?
BY: Kim’s been working on this project for
over six months. She plays the role of operations
manager for the opening, then she’ll
keep on doing desserts at both Commune
Social and Together.
KM: Bina and her team will be running the
place mostly by themselves. I’m also going to
help, but Bina’s the main girl.
"A French-Asian concept makes the most sense"
How connected is the project to Commune
Social?
KM: Well, It’s part of the same company.
With the exception of Jason Atherton, the
rest of the owners are the same: The Unlisted
Collection from Singapore plus Neri&Hu, who
are also the designers. We’ve got a cool project
because we’ve got the best of everything.
Can you tell us about the menu at
Together?
BY: In the beginning, I really wanted to do
a healthy food concept, but nobody really
agreed to it. After all the tasting nights, it
became clear to all of us that a French-Asian
concept makes the most sense because of my
background: I’m from Korea, I live in China,
I’ve worked under a French chef for years,
and I love Japanese food.
KM: I like the octopus dish, which is really
simple. The main courses are good for sharing;
it’s like when you are at home at the
table.
BY: That fits with our concept and the name
‘Together.’ I’m also excited about the side
dishes. We contacted organic farms and other
chefs to source nice ingredients for at least
12 sides.
What challenges have you encountered?
KM: Delay, delay, delay.
BY: [We worked out of] Commune Social for
a while. That has been great, but the kitchen
is small and they’re always busy with service,
so I try work around their schedule for menu
design and testing whenever I can. But due to
the space, I couldn’t order all the ingredients
that I wanted, so I just used whatever they
have [to create the first menu]. I will develop
more once we have our own kitchen.
See listing for Together here.
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