A fat slice of Grade 8 wagyu beef sashimi feels just like... never mind.
Chris is in Bangkok so I'm single for the weekend. My head was buried in work. I was quite enjoying another of my marathon 12-hour workdays when my good friend, Simon, called.
There's "fabulous," and then there's Simon J McKinless. To describe him as a "gentleman from Cheltenham" should be evocative enough. And rightfully, he runs Hong Kong's most fabulous restaurant, Aqua.
I first heard about Aqua within a week of having moved to Hong Kong. From the way everyone reverently whispered about it - as opposed to raved or ranted - I immediately dismissed it as one of those inaccessible restaurants that'd make me feel as though I had to like it or risk looking like a charlatan. Listen, I'm from bumfuck Cagayan, in Northern Philippines. Where I'm from, we eat abalin. Fried beetles. That's a far cry from snobbish ingredients I can't read, let alone pronounce or order.
When I started running Pink Fridays® at FINDS three years ago, a brash gentlemen (indeed, we like our oxymorons) marched in - wearing pink, of course - demanding whiskey coke served in a pint. Simon J McKinless, his name was, people whispered: The manager of Aqua.
I knew I found a kindred soul.
***
I had just finished composing FINDS' "mobile wallpaper" when my phone rang. It was Simon.
"Hello, luv!" he greeted enthusiastically. "Would you and the hubby fancy joining Ms. Hicks for Sunday brunch at mine?"
"Simon J McKinless!" I reciprocated. "I was just thinking about you when you called. You must have ESPN. Never mind Sunday; I'm hungry now."
"Well, come to mine, darling."
"It's half past ten. I don't want to get there and be told it's past last order."
"There'll be food for you, luv," Simon promised.
Beat.
"I want sashimi."
***
True to Simon J McKinless fashion, a chilled bottle of Louis Roederer was waiting for me when I got to Aqua. I remember, this was the same kind of champers - together with a perfect box of Leonidas chocolate - that he had couriered to the Grand Hyatt on my birthday.
I ravaged the raw seafood before me like the malnourished third world gay boy that I am. The huge Pacific scallops were so sweet and creamy, they tasted like... never mind.
There's fabulous, and then there's Simon J McKinless.
It's a wonderful thing to have had my stomach fed, but it's even more satisfying to have had my heart nourished.
With Affection,
James
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