Nadine Kam's video: THURSDAY TABLES Ep 18: Food for thought - Inside a chef s creative process to reimagine dim sum

Today's outing is a trip to Kaimuki's Restaurant XO for a peek into one chef’s creative process as they prepare to launch a new menu Aug. 10, 2020. There’s a lot that goes into planning and development of a new menu, and in this segment, we take a peek into chef de cuisine Harrison Ines' notebook and into his thought process for just one element of the new menu, an appetizer dim sum basket comprising five different items for one. I met him for the idea phase on July 3, and made a return trip as he neared finalizing the dish on July 29, though even then, he was not 100 percent satisfied with his creation and plans to tweak it until the menu's debut day. In the era of Black Lives Matter, he also shared his thoughts about food culture's sometimes violent past, and how the culinary world is not exempt from issues of imperialism and cultural appropriation, and how creatives must be mindful when navigating these potential land mines. Although Hawaii is home to a melting pot of cultures that has long history of culinary evolution as fueled by the open sharing of food as a result of many ethnic groups coming together on an island, Ines reminds us that this phenomenon that give us the fusion we love today, came at a cost of displacing Native Hawaiian foods and that we must be vigilant to ensure there will always be a place for it. Video by Nadine Kam © 2020. Thank you so much for watching! If you’ve kept up with these culinary segments, thanks for coming back. If you’re new to my channel hit that subscribe button for more dining and cooking stories from Honolulu. I really appreciate your support!