How Hong Kong’s culture connects with its relationship with chocolate

“In Belgium, chocolate is more than a treat – it’s a part of daily life,” says Tarquin Fontaine, founder of his eponymous artisanal, bean-to-bar chocolate brand. He name-checks fellow countrymen such as Jean Neuhaus II, who invented praline, or companies like Cote d’Or that earned Belgian confectioneries their global recognition. “Belgian chocolate is known all over the world for being rich, creamy and indulgent, and it represents comfort, pleasure and togetherness. Our climate isn’t always kind – it’s often cold and rainy – so chocolate brings a little warmth and happiness into our days.”

To Fontaine, it’s culture worth sharing, which is why he’s bringing his confections to this part of the world for the first time in the upcoming Belgian Chocolate Festival. Held at City University of Hong Kong, the two-day event forms part of the Belgium consulate’s Belgian Days celebration and runs from November 14 to 15. On top of exhibiting booths from brands including Pierre Marcolini and Frederic Blondeel, there will also be workshops covering everything from coffee and chocolate pairings to truffle-making, food photography and even designing chocolate wrapping paper.

Another highlight will be the large-scale chocolate sculptures created by Belgian-born culinary artist and chef Michel Lo, whose work has not only graced the halls of chocolate museums in Brussels and Bruges, but has also earned him a bronze medal at the Villeroy & Boch Culinary World Cup in Luxembourg. Invited by the Belgian consulate as a guest chef, he has teamed up with the International Culinary Institute (ICI) in Pok Fu Lam to create chocolate renditions of Belgium’s iconic Manneken Pis and The Smurfs.

For the former, a famous bronze fountain sculpture in central Brussels depicting a naked boy urinating, Lo elected to double the size of the original, resulting in a statue that stands 1.1 metres tall and weighs more than 40kg. The latter, meanwhile, clocks in at an even more impressive weight of over 70kg.

“I have been working on this project since September,” Lo explains. “All the chocolate had to be shipped over from Belgium, so it was a big project not just in terms of craftsmanship but also logistics. The Manneken Pis was chosen because it’s one of the most famous statues in Brussels and, obviously, everyone knows The Smurfs.”

Because of the scale of the sculptures, the key challenge was in maintaining their structural integrity, which required regulating the humidity and temperature, says Lo. The treatment and preparation of the chocolate also played huge roles, but “fortunately, the ICI is equipped with everything I need. I’m very proud to be representing my culture in this way”.