They said Michael Chow was too Chinese to be an artist, so he opened a restaurant. Look at him now

Famous for his celebrity-packed chain of Chinese restaurants, 85-year-old Michael Chow talks about facing prejudice and finally becoming an artist

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Michael Chow in 2022 his Los Angeles studio with his One Breath paintings behind him. Famous for his celebrity-packed chain of Chinese restaurants, Chow talks about facing prejudice and why he wants to be known as the world’s greatest living artist. Photo: Michael Chow

Published: 4:15pm, 18 May 2024

As a struggling young Chinese artist and actor in 1960s Britain, Michael Chow saw there were only two paths to making his fortune: open a restaurant or a laundry. He chose restaurant.

It would be no ordinary noodle shop, however; dining at his restaurant would be far more than just eating a meal.

Metaphorically donning the embroidered platform boots and stage robes of his father, venerated Peking opera grandmaster Zhou Xinfang, each night Chow would walk an invisible stage, and transform his restaurant into a theatre.

Every detail would be thought out, and run with the exactitude of an operatic performance. The aim, the goal of all art – transcendence.

Restaurateur Michael Chow in London circa 1969.

With backing from a business partner, Chow found a site in London’s upmarket Knightsbridge, and crowded the walls with works by the hottest artists, from David Hockney to Allen Jones and Peter Blake.

He brought in top chefs from Hong Kong and waiters from Italy, who dressed in designer suits and were schooled in placing plates on starched white tablecloths in a precise, three-fingered grip. There were no chopsticks in sight.