Towngas and CulinArt 1862
We picked a restaurant randomly for Restaurant Week and came across CulinArt 1862. We figured that it was part of the Towngas Avenue brand dining establishment because of its location and the 1862 reference. This has inspired me to look a bit deeper into Towngas and its history.
The History of Towngas
In the mid 19th century, the early colonial days were filled with darkness and I mean it literally. Towngas began its first chapter when a certain William Glen secured the concession from the Hong Kong Governor to supply gas to the city of Victoria in 1861. In 1862, the Hong Kong and China Gas Company was incorporated with mostly British shareholders (in Britain). In 1864, Hong Kong’s mains and gas lamps were lit for the first time.
This brings us back to the gas lamps on Duddell Street. When Towngas started, the first beneficiaries of its power supply were the street lamps of Central and other designated buildings. At the time, the street lamps numbered about 500. Now, only four gas lamps remain in all of Hong Kong. They are lit automatically, but still powered by gas, and they all stand at the Duddell Street steps now as historic monuments.
It was not until 28 years later when the lamps of Kowloon would be lit. The first gas plant was located in West Point (near now Whitty Street in Shek Tong Tsui). In 1892, the gas plant in Jordan began operations, thus providing the power that lit the homes and businesses of Kowloon.
For 90 years Towngas was actually operated out of its office in Britain and managed by British persons. In 1982, the company transferred its registration to Hong Kong instead and only then did it officially assume the new status as a local Hong Kong company.
Towngas has been powering Hong Kong since 1862 and this is not a marketing statement. When electricity became widely available in the late 19th century, the company has had to do a serious repositioning in the power market. It found exclusive applicability in gas-powered water heater and gas stoves. This smart move has ensured an enduring existence of the business, eventually leading the company to develop a broad spectrum of modern sources of business and power applicability, such as natural gas, smart gas meters, telecommunication networks, kitchenware and appliances, gas-powered appliances and airplane fuel. It has also managed to supply gas to public housing estates. All these efforts have proven to be long lasting sources of revenue.
The Restaurant and Culinary Businesses of Towngas
In my entry about the Dai Pai Dong’s in Hong Kong, I have discussed the idea of “wok hey,” meaning “the fiery fumes of the wok.” The idea is that the high heat in a fuming wok and the repeated churning motion of wok-frying forces out the flavors of the ingredients and retains the temperature of the food served. It is no exaggeration to say that Towngas is the single most important enabler of the wok hey that earns Hong Kong Cantonese food its fame. It takes an open fire to engender the wok hey in the food, and gas stoves are necessary. Electric stoves can never create wok hey.
Towngas Avenue is one of the few creative ways in which Towngas raises new initiatives in business and community. Its first restaurant began business in the year 2000 in Tsim Sha Tsui. Flame was then opened in Tsim Sha Tsui in 2009.
The idea of operating restaurants by Towngas came about from the company’s wish to modernize its customer service centers. In an earlier era, the Towngas customer service centers served the power-related needs of Hong Kong people by offering gas equipment repairment and sales, bill payment and kitchen utensil and bathroom appliance sales. Foot traffic was dwindling due to the automation of bill payment and customer hotlines. The need for innovation arose.
In 2000, Towngas rolled out Towngas Avenue after a few rounds of consultation. It had this name because of its retail bent. An avenue is where different kinds of shops open for business, and the name of this initiative was intended to indicate an increasingly diverse business.
The idea of a power company running a diversified business portfolio to include a restaurant might have been the first in the world. Originally, the idea was to run a coffee shop. Eventually, a restaurant turned out to be a bolder attempt that promotes open flame cooking, as such much more in line with Towngas’ core business.
The first restaurant featured an open kitchen. There was also an element of “interaction,” whereby a camera records the process of open flame cooking and shows it to patrons in real time. Patrons could actually cook their own meals as well. The marketing effect was intended all along, as the Towngas brand of retail products are front and center in the showroom kitchen.
Furthermore, the Towngas Cooking Centre also offers cooking classes for both adults and children. It even offers diploma courses.
CulinArt 1862
CulinArt 1862 is the latest addition in Towngas’ restaurant portfolio. Its location is significant as it stands at the Towngas flagship store in Causeway Bay. The dining space is excellent. As to the quality of the food, I will let readers be the judge.
Sources
The Towngas website.
Dan Waters, Hong Kong Hongs with Long Histories and British Connections, 20 J. of the Royal Asiatic Society Hong Kong Branch 219 (1990).
Metro Radio, The Golden Plaque, Episode 22.