Nelson Htoo

Common Abode co-founder Nelson Htoo’s passion in sharing his cultural heritage with Hong Kong materialised when he first arrived in this city from Burma to pursue postgraduate studies. Joined by his partner Elin Fu, who grew up in Norway, the duo created a new hospitality group whose journey began by showcasing two cuisines tied to their upbringings: Burmese and Scandinavian.

Today, the two vastly different culinary styles can be enjoyed at Aberdeen Street’s Club Rangoon and Hollywood Road’s Hjem, while a third establishment spotlighting Thai food – Camp Krapao – is currently finding a new home after a brief tenure at BaseHall.

“In showcasing Burmese cuisine in Hong Kong, I’m hoping to break stereotypes and preconceptions that people may have about Burmese food and Southeast Asian cooking in general,” says Htoo. “With Burmese food being an elusive cuisine, it’s easy for it to become exoticised. The goal is to subvert that and place Burmese cooking and Club Rangoon into the usual rotation of cuisine and restaurant choices, rather than it be a one-off exploration of an ‘unusual’ cuisine.” 

With Hong Kong now checked off his list, Htoo looks forward to expanding overseas and sharing his Burmese heritage – alongside his partner’s beloved Nordic cuisine – with a wider audience. His next destination is Singapore, a city he lived in from the age of 14, but while these plans might be his next big goal, the Common Abode co-founder insists his primary focus remains on creating a better industry and company.

“I want to take the time now to grow and cultivate a certain culture here at Common Abode that really reflects the core pillars of hospitality, both internally and externally,” he says. “Right now, the priority isn’t to open more new concepts; I want to really hone what we already have in the next five years and see it evolve – to keep things as true as can be to our group vision that centres around integrity, honesty and, of course, hospitality – from the heart, above all.”