Loïc Portalier

About the Chef

Loïc first joined Louise as Sous Chef in 2019, working under Chef-Founder Julien Royer and Chef Franckelie Laloum. In 2021, at the age of 28, he moved to Singapore to lead Claudine as Head Chef, remaining there through 2024 before returning to Hong Kong as Executive Chef of Louise and La Terrace by Louise.

His earlier formation includes kitchens associated with some of France’s most established culinary names: Epicure at Le Bristol Paris under Éric Fréchon, Restaurant Paul Bocuse and Restaurant Le Clos des Cîmes by Régis Marcon. His biography also records time at Belon in Hong Kong under Daniel Calvert.

That background explains the assurance of the cooking, but Loïc’s defining language is hospitality. His official biography describes a chef intent on making every guest feel welcome and valued, with French dishes presented in a stripped-down, flavourful form rather than as ceremony for its own sake.

About the Restaurant

Louise is a collaboration between Yenn Wong, founder of JIA Group, and Julien Royer, chef-founder of Odette in Singapore. Architect André Fu transformed the PMQ heritage building into an intimate colonial-style home, making arrival feel closer to entering a residence than a formal dining room.

The upstairs restaurant holds one MICHELIN Star and is described by Louise as a place of nostalgia and familial love. Its cuisine reimagines traditional, heartwarming French cooking through quality seasonal ingredients, artisanal products and disciplined technique.

La Terrace by Louise occupies the ground floor with a more casual bistro character. It is a social space for seasonal produce, timeless French flavours and gatherings that can move easily from an after-work drink to a shared meal.

Summer Inspiration

At Louise, French cooking begins with memory: the comfort of a familiar table, the generosity of a shared dish and the feeling that hospitality has already started before the first plate arrives. For Summer Tables Collection 2026, Loïc gives that memory a lighter, more immediate rhythm.

At the upstairs table, richness is sharpened by freshness and savoury detail. The summer language moves through our chicken, served in two moments: chicken breast with Albufera and liver toast, followed by charcoal-grilled legs with truffle ravioli and frisée salad. A brighter focus carries into our lightly seared Gambero Rosso with strawberry kosho, a house-made curry-tomato condiment, Japanese Amela tomatoes and fresh Taiwanese strawberries, accompanied by gazpacho sorbet, tomato water jelly and rich prawn oil.

Downstairs, the vocabulary becomes more openly bistro-led: our Signature Roasted Chicken, prepared the same classic way since day one, alongside Parisian gnocchi, ribeye, tarte Tatin, Paris-Brest and an Amalfi lemon givré. Across both rooms, French technique provides the structure while Hong Kong gives the table energy, brightness and ease.