Liven He

Four Seasons Tenure

• Since 2024
• First Four Seasons Assignment: Current

Employment History

• Vege Wonder, Beijing, China; Grand Lisboa Palace, Macau; Waldorf Astoria, Beijing, Shangri-la Hotel, Guangzhou, China

Birthplace

• Fujian, China

Languages Spoken

• Mandarin, Cantonese, Hakka and English

To any chef worth their salt, cooking is art. In the case of Liven He, the engaging Chef de Cuisine of Catch at Four Seasons Hotel Guangzhou, cooking is not only art but inspired the artist within him.

Each new dish he creates begins as a series of intricate sketches drawn in treasured recipe-come-sketchbooks. Ingredients, techniques, processes, presentations and more – every aspect of every dish is first layered on the page in pencil before being layered on the plate in a three-dimensional sensory artwork of flavours, textures, colours and aromas. And it all began with a steamed egg.

"Growing up, I had to take care of my younger brother while my parents worked," he explains. "I was preparing food with the few ingredients at home from the age of 8." From steamed eggs, he sought variation – frying, boiling and scrambling. After that, each subsequent ingredient that found its way into his fearless young hands became an experiment in self-taught experimentation.

Studies at Technical School led to a post-graduate course focused on the management side of hospitality, but Chef Liven's intuitive culinary ability soon drew him back to the kitchen. Working in an all-day-dining hotel restaurant as a young commis in Guangzhou opened his eyes to the world beyond Chinese cuisine. The forms and flavours of English, Italian, French and Spanish cuisine further fuelled his imagination. Culinary competitions followed. Then roles in lauded venues across China before arriving at Vege Wonder, Beijing: a Michelin-starred vegetarian restaurant, where he honed his capacity to work creatively with minimal ingredients across 18 incredible months in what he describes as “an amazing and exhilarating challenge.”

When it comes to identifying his standout inspiration, one cuisine rises above them all: French. "It's elegant, process-driven and demands great precision and step-by-step execution," he explains. And while technical ability and creative flair had long been tools in his armoury, it was the demands of French cuisine that first caused him to document every detail, layer by layer, sketch by sketch.

Chef Liven's passion for the process and precision of French cuisine finds a natural home in Catch – the spectacular 100th floor seafood restaurant that crowns the avant-garde Four Seasons Hotel Guangzhou. In this heightened haven of culinary heritage, with its sky-high Canton Tower and Pearl River panoramas, anything feels possible – and with Chef Liven in charge, anything is.

Classic French style and exacting techniques remain the cornerstones of the menu, but the nuanced narrative that whispers its way through every page is straight out of Chef Liven's imagination – and sketchbook. French onion soup surprises with a cold onion ice-cream, onion compote and Parmesan cheese. Home-smoked salmon (his signature) sings with zingy top notes, orchestrated by a marinade of orange, lemon, star anise, cinnamon and dill, and the sweet fruity smoke of cherry wood. Needless to say, his standards are every bit as exacting as his recipes.

“I have very high expectations of myself and my team,” he says. “I’m always striving for us to be better – more creative, more refined, more precise. I’m dedicated to delivering the very best for our guests, and I love that Four Seasons upholds the most exceptional standards.”

Outside the kitchen, Chef Liven's curiosity inspires regular travels to seek inspiration in and from some of the world's finest restaurants. When he's not visiting new destinations, he's avidly reading about them – as well as absorbing endless books on human geography, history, culture, trailblazing chefs and, of course, the traditions of culinary heritage. To him, everything is about discovery: “Learning new things fuels my creativity and allows me to constantly explore fresh perspectives and innovative ideas." And, as always with Chef Liven, every idea sparks a sketch, and the start of another inspiring creation from the page and plate of this pioneering culinary artist.