The character arc of Vicky Lau
A life drawn by Character Arc from the public record
Born in Hong Kong, in a year the record does not publish. Between then and now sit a move to the United States at fifteen to a Connecticut boarding school, a degree in graphic communication at New York University, six years in advertising and a job as a design agency graphic designer, a return to Hong Kong in 2010, a nine month course at Le Cordon Bleu in Bangkok, a year under a one star chef, her own restaurant on Elgin Street in 2012, a Michelin star in 2013, a larger room in 2016, two stars in 2021, and a second restaurant built around soy. The line below draws the story so far, in order.
Drag along the line to move, pinch or use the buttons to look closer. Tap the line to pluck it, or any mark for its card. Drawn from the public record of her life; the sources are at the foot of the page.
Who is Vicky Lau?
Six years in advertising. Then nine months in Bangkok.
She left Hong Kong at fifteen for a boarding school in Connecticut, then studied graphic communication at New York University. Afterwards she worked in advertising for six years and became a graphic designer at a design agency. That is a whole career, made and running, and it is the one she gave up.
She went back to Hong Kong in 2010 and enrolled in a nine month course at Le Cordon Bleu in Bangkok, earning a Grand Diplome. Nine months is not very long to convert a designer into a cook, so she then went into fine dining to get the experience, working at Cepage, a one Michelin star restaurant, under the chef Sebastien Lepinoy.
After a year of that she opened her own restaurant. Tate Dining Room and Bar opened on Elgin Street in Central, Hong Kong, in 2012, and received a Michelin star in 2013. At the start the cooking was a fusion of French and Japanese.
In 2016 she moved the restaurant to a larger place on Hollywood Road, and that is where the food changed. She began putting more of her own Chinese heritage into the menu, and Tate became a restaurant marrying Chinese culinary traditions with Western technique rather than a French room with a Hong Kong address. It joined Relais and Chateaux in 2018.
In 2021 Tate was awarded two Michelin stars, and she became the first female chef in Asia to reach that level. The same year she founded a second restaurant, Mora, on Upper Lascar Row, a historic street, built entirely around the versatility of soy, and since 2022 Mora has held a Michelin green star for sustainability. She had already been named Asia Best Female Chef in 2015 by The World 50 Best Restaurants, and has since taken a food art award, a board seat at Feeding Hong Kong, and a chef of the year title in 2023.
The moments
Vicky Lau's timeline.
The 1990s
Connecticut at fifteen
Everyday, and it changed her direction. Fifteen, and sent across the world to school.
Graphic communication at NYU
Milestone, and it changed her direction. She trained as a designer, not a cook.
The 2000s
Six years in advertising
Milestone, and it changed everything. A whole career, made and running.
Keep designing, or learn to cook
Crossroads, decided.
The paths laid out: retrain, at about thirty, taken, or stay in the agency. Her own restaurant within two years, a Michelin star within three, and two stars by 2021.
The 2010s
She goes home and starts again
Milestone, and it changed everything. Nine months to turn a designer into a cook.
A year under one star
Milestone, and it changed everything. She went and got the experience she did not have.
Tate opens on Elgin Street
Milestone, and it changed everything. Two years out of a design agency, and she had her own restaurant.
A Michelin star
Milestone, and it changed everything. One year open, and starred.
Asia best female chef
Milestone, and it changed her direction. Three years in, and named across the continent.
Hollywood Road, and her own food
Milestone, and it changed everything. The bigger room is where she started cooking her own culture.
Relais and Chateaux
Milestone. Admitted to the association, six years in.
The 2020s
The first woman in Asia
Milestone, and it changed everything. Nobody else on the continent had done it.
Mora, built on soy
Milestone, and it changed everything. A whole restaurant built on one ingredient.
Chef of the year
Milestone, and it changed her direction. Four recognitions, and a board seat at a food bank.
Tate has two stars and Mora has a green one, and both are hers. What she set moving was the ordinary and terrifying thing: she had a real career, in design, and she put it down to go and learn a harder trade from the beginning, with no guarantee at all.
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Vicky Lau: frequently asked questions
What people ask about her line.
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What is Tate Dining Room by Vicky Lau?
Was Vicky Lau the first woman in Asia with two stars?
What is Mora by Vicky Lau?
Where does this timeline of Vicky Lau's life come from?
More character arcs
Lives that rhyme with her.
Sources
- Vicky Lau, English Wikipedia biography, filed under living people.
- The Michelin Guide ratings for Tate Dining Room and for Mora.
- Asia 50 Best Restaurants, Best Female Chef in Asia, 2015.
- Her accolades and board roles, as that biography lists them.