Mercedes-Benz: Classics and Concepts

In 1886, Carl Benz filed a patent for a “vehicle with gas engine drive.” To celebrate the anniversary, Daimler AG and Mercedes-Benz flew four cars — two classic and two concept — to Hong Kong for a show at Ocean Terminal this weekend. The show ends Sunday, so here’s a peek, if you can’t make it.

Much Ado About an Early Radiohead Release

It’s official: Alternative music junkies’ favorite rogue band, Radiohead, was nowhere to be seen in Tokyo’s famous Shibuya intersection — in person, via satellite, beamed in hologram or otherwise on Friday night.

Instead, what started out as a cryptic Tweet chirped from the band’s official Twitter account implying there was something happening in Tokyo’s Shibuya crossing Friday night deflated into a “special event” on the band’s Japan website — except that the website crashed.

From Japan Real Time.

Asia’s Airports Top the List

Airports haven’t been the happiest places this year, with more than their fair share of weather delays. But on Wednesday, the Airport Council International announced its 2010 Airport Service Quality Awards.

Top of the list? Incheon International Airport in Seoul, South Korea.

What’s to Become of Restaurant Santi?

Chef Santi Santamaria’s daughter, Regina, issued a statement this morning with regards to her father’s sudden passing away on Wednesday, just before she boarded a plane to Spain to prepare for his funeral arrangements.

Making Roast Chicken with Garden Tools

Chef Margaret Xu, of Hong Kong’s Yin Yang restaurant, is a self-professed “D.I.Y. freak.” And everything about her signature roast chicken is made from scratch, including the secret to its success: a custom terra-cotta oven that Ms. Xu made from two pots in her garden. She says her oven creation provides better heat distribution and reaches higher temperatures than a regular oven.

Don’t be fooled by the simplicity of her roast chicken. Ms. Xu considers every step and subtle detail. The final product—a well-edited and satisfying dish—has been proclaimed by many Hong Kong foodies as the best roast chicken in the city.

Remaking a John Woo Classic

How do you go about remaking the most iconic film to emerge from Asia in the past 25 years?

That’s the challenge facing Korean-American director John H. Lee, who is preparing to shoot a 3-D English-language version of John Woo’s ultra-violent 1989 Hong Kong movie, “The Killer” which starred Chow Yun-fat as a hitman with a conscience. The update will star South Korean actor Jung Woo-sung and is scheduled for release next year.

Does Australia Have the Best Coffee?

Another in our series of travel tips from executives who are often on the road.

This week, Mark Phibbs, a Sydney-based senior director of the technology company Adobe Systems, talks about why he splurges on stays at Hong Kong’s Upper House Hotel, why Australia has the best coffee, and how he beats jet lag.

Why Can’t Women Be Sushi Masters?

Tiny ten-seat canteens shoved into subway stations tend to be the dingy stuff of late-night fast-food runs after six too many beers.

But there are always exceptions and, in the case of Jiro Ono’s lilliputian sushi restaurant in Tokyo’s Ginza station, the exception just happens to be a three-star Michelin establishment with menus starting at US$300.

From Speakeasy.

Is Anything Too Spicy for David Thompson?

As one of the world’s top authorities on Thai cuisine, David Thompson scoffs at the idea of “too spicy.”

His restaurants in London and Bangkok dish out fiery Thai flavors without watering down recipes for more sensitive palates, and his books extol the virtues of a little culinary gusto. “I’ve always considered myself inured to chili’s heat,” says Mr. Thompson, who has lived in Thailand for three decades.

Still, even he admits these five spicy foods had him feeling the burn.

Designing a Home with Eastern Tones

An English couple relocating to Hong Kong wanted their Stanley home to reflect their new surroundings. They chose bold colors, silks and textured wallpapers to create an Asian-inspired house. The price tag for the redesign: 600,000 Hong Kong dollars (US$77,036).