Painting the town bright red

He respects hard work, because working in the kitchen not only demands great stamina, but it also takes great strength and perseverance. That is the reason why there are so few women in the kitchen, Liu says. The female physique is not made for lifting up 20 kg stockpots on and off the stoves.

Also, Liu says he would choose inexperience over experience because it’s easier to write on a blank slate.

"Trained chefs who come to me halfway have a harder time. They often have to unlearn everything they already know," says Liu, living up to his reputation as the unfettered, if slightly eccentric, genius in the kitchen.

People would also say he is mad with ambition. Paris Rouge Café is just the initial blast, and Le Reve the patisserie is another serious diversion. Liu plans to carry out the whole red, white and blue viva la France. In the pipeline are two more projects — Paris Blanc Bistro and Paris Bleu Brasserie will complete his quixotic quest to plant the tricolor on the Shanghai dining scene.

Did I mention that Liu is just 33? And that he also founded the Shanghai branch of the Vatel Hotel School?