ANDŌ CELEBRATES HONG KONG’S RICE HERITAGE WITH A NEW YI O RICE-LED TASTING MENU FROM JANUARY – MARCH 2026

Launching 19th January available every Monday only, a tribute to Yi O Rice and Hong Kong’s local rice culture

Please click here to download ANDO’s high resolution images

[7^th January, 2026 – Hong Kong] One-MICHELIN-starred Andō by Chef / Owner Agustin Balbi announces its latest culinary chapter: a dedicated tasting menu celebrating rice, with a spotlight on Hong Kong’s prized Yi O Rice. Available alongside the restaurant’s existing lunch and dinner offerings, this immersive experience will run from 19 January through March 2026. The “Rice” menu marks the launch of a new quarterly series at Andō, each focusing on a single, exceptional ingredient through a special tasting menu.

At the heart of the menu is Andō’s signature Arroz Caldoso, a soulful, brothy rich rice dish that has become synonymous with Chef Agustin Ferrando Balbi’s cuisine (watch more on their latest excursion to Lantau Island in July 2025 at HERE). In this new iteration, rice is no longer a supporting element, but the central narrative, examined through terroir, seasonality, technique, and culture.

Yi O Rice: A Living Expression of Hong Kong’s Land

Grown on Lantau Island in Yi O, one of Hong Kong’s largest remaining rice-producing areas, Yi O Rice is a locally cultivated, sun-dried, and milled rice, harvested only twice a year. The variety is a carefully selected cross-bred long-grain rice developed in Mainland China for its superior aroma, texture, and yield – qualities that have earned it a glowing reputation among chefs and consumers alike.

Yi O’s rice farming community is as diverse as it is dedicated. Many farmers come from non-agricultural backgrounds, including the food industry. Among them is Yu Kin Sun, former member of the renowned Fook Lam Moon and restaurants in Japan, who now serves as agricultural supervisor at Yi O Farm, bringing culinary sensitivity directly into the fields.

Hong Kong rice follows a precise and demanding 120-day cultivation cycle. The first crop is planted in February and harvested in June; the second is sown in July and harvested in December. The winter crop is particularly prized, as cooler temperatures allow the rice plants to absorb more nutrients, producing grains that are notably more aromatic.

The process is resolutely hands-on. From sun-exposed paddies and seedbed germination, to bird-netted fields and manual harvesting with sickles, Yi O rice is produced without chemical pesticides and dried naturally under the sun for three days – turned constantly to ensure even moisture before milling. With yields averaging just 300 kilograms per acre, demand has consistently outweighed supply in recent years.

Rice as Craft, Memory, and Technique Andō

Chef Agustin Balbi translates this agricultural story into a 8-course tasting menu that explores and focuses on rice in its many forms – steamed, puffed, fermented, creamed, and simmered. Priced at HK$1,888 + 10% per guest, the journey begins with playful snack interpretations such as crispy rice spheres with crab, rice paper rolls with prawn and cilantro, and tuna “onigiri”, before moving into more intricate expressions:

• Somen / roasted rice / clams dashi / yuzu
• Rice foam / smoked Isaki fish / caviar
• Kinmedai / sake / bok choy / ikura
• Pigeon / puffed rice / red cabbage

The menu culminates in Andō’s defining dish: Arroz Caldoso with lobster and XO sauce – a deeply aromatic, generously textured rice that embodies the restaurant’s identity, bridging Spanish rice traditions with Japanese precision and Hong Kong produce. Dessert continues the theme with sake kasu ice cream, coconut, and dulce de leche, followed by a selection of rice-inspired mignardises.

A Rice-Centric Pairing Journey by Carlito Chiu

To complement the menu, Carlito Chiu, MICHELIN Guide Sommelier of the Year, presents a fully rice-focused drinks pairing, drawing from Japan, Korea, China, and beyond. Each pairing deepens the dialogue between grain, fermentation, and flavor:

• Sparkling sake from Kumazawa Brewery with somen and roasted rice
• Korean Takju with rice foam and smoked Isaki
• French-brewed junmai sake by Wakaze with Kinmedai
• Inemankai red rice sake with pigeon and puffed rice
• 2007 Shaoxing wine (Dongqu) with Arroz Caldoso
• Kidoizumi AFS Stratae 2019 with sake kasu ice cream

A Celebration of Local Agriculture and Identity

This new menu represents Andō’s continued commitment to storytelling through ingredients—honouring Hong Kong’s land, its people, and its overlooked agricultural heritage. By placing Yi O Rice at the centre of the table, Andō invites diners to experience rice not as a staple, but as a living, expressive ingredient shaped by season, place, and human hands.

Since its opening, Andō has defied culinary conventions – not bound by geography or genre, but grounded in personal memory, craftsmanship, and curiosity. For reservations enquiries, contact the restaurant via WhatsApp +852 9161 8697, or book online HERE.

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ABOUT ANDŌ

One MICHELIN-starred Andō is Argentine Chef Agustin Ferrando Balbi’s first restaurant, launched in partnership with JIA group since July 2020. Defying labels and bending genres, Andō’s modern tasting menus are a translation of Agustin’s own unorthodox journey onto the plate, one that nods at his ancestral roots in Italy and Spain, while gazing at the lands that shaped his craft – the USA and Japan.

Address: 1/F, Somptueux Central, 52 Wellington St, Central, Hong Kong
Website – www.andohk.com

Instagram: @ando.hkg @agux1988 @carlito.gorgor

AWARDS AND ACCOLADES – ANDŌ

* One MICHELIN Star – MICHELIN Guide Hong Kong Macau 2021-2025

* #41 – Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2025

* #27 – OAD 2025 Top Asian Restaurants

* Top 20 Restaurants of Hong Kong – Tatler Dining Asia 2021-2025

* Restaurant of the Year – Tatler Dining 2024

* Best Sommelier – Tatler Dining 2024

* One Diamond Award – Black Pearl Restaurant Guide 2023 + 2024 + 2025

* Marca Pais Cultural Ambassador Award by Government of Argentina Ambassador of More Good Charity

* Bazaar Taste Elite – Harper’s Bazaar 2024 + 2025

* Tatler Asia Best of Asia – Top 100 Restaurants of Asia

* Two Knives Award – Best Chef Awards 2024

* Travel & Leisure Asia 2023 + 2024 + 2025 – Top 30 Restaurants of Hong Kong

* MICHELIN Guide Hong Kong Macau 2025 – Best Sommelier (Carlito Chiu)

* Trip.Gourmet 2026 The Global Selection of Restaurant – Platinum Award

* Tatler Best – Best Sommelier (Carlito Chiu)

* Three Knives Award – Best Chef Awards 2025

ABOUT JIA GROUP

JIA Group is a Hong Kong based hospitality firm that is internationally praised and recognized for executing spaces and experiences rooted in style and substance. Founded in 2004 by entrepreneur Yenn Wong, JIA Group has established a reputation internationally as an award- winning trendsetter in the hospitality industry. The current portfolio includes 9 venues in Hong Kong, full list of the restaurants and bars could be found on JIA’s website here.

www.jiagroup.co