Actor Joe Ma (馬德鐘) and his wife Karen Cheung (張筱蘭) has their new year all planned out. Promoting a new Lunar New Year dish for the Japanese restaurant they have invested in, Joe and Karen said they hope the new dish would bring messages of good luck to their customers. Joe said, “This dish combines 20 different fresh foods, including a variety of vegetable salads and sashimi. You mix the ingredients together, and it’s meant to send out a message of wealth. Get rich and be successful!” Karen added, “Many people tend to eat rather fatty foods for New Year’s, but this dish is healthy and fresh. Staying healthy is the most important thing of all!” For the New Year holidays, Joe and Karen said they would take their son overseas for a short vacation. Joe said, “The flight tickets have been hard to book. I wanted to go to more crowded places, but seeing the snow doesn’t sound bad either! To be honest, I’ve been filming a lot, so I’m also inching use this opportunity to rest. Sometimes I just want to stay somewhere quiet, and use the time to plan out what I’m going to do next year.” Reflecting on the past Year of the Monkey, Joe said his biggest accomplishment in his 20-year entertainment career was to finally have the opportunity to open up his own restaurant. As for his plans for the Year of the Rooster, Joe said, “I am interested in filming a drama in Hong Kong.” The former TVB actor spent the past year traveling around the mainland, filming Chinese dramas. He said, “I want to spent time with my Hong Kong viewers again.” As for his Japanese restaurant, Joe said he plans to open up more branches around the city. “We’re going to open up another branch in Hong Kong in March. I do have a few more projects at hand, but now is not the right time to announce them.” Does he want to establish his own restaurant empire? “I’m just a newbie in this industry!” said Joe. “It’s still a huge challenge for me. I’m learning as I go, but I have confidence in the Hong Kong market. I don’t think I’m going to open one up in the mainland yet.” Creds: Oriental Daily
