Brian McKenna was comfortable in his life as a chef and club owner in Amsterdam until he was offered the chance to work in Beijing. Less than six weeks later he was on a plane to China. “I sold my home, my car, ended an eight-year relationship,” recalls McKenna, 36. “I literally got my bags, turned around, and that was it.”
布赖恩?马克南(Brian McKenna)原在阿姆斯特丹(Amsterdam)当厨师以及夜总会老板，有人请他到北京工作后，他舒适安逸的生活被打破了。不到六周时间，他就登上了去中国的飞机。“我卖掉自己的房子与车子，结束了在阿姆斯特丹八年的生活，”36岁的马克南回忆道。“我打点行装，毅然离开了荷兰，就这么简单。”
It was 2006 and the capital was gearing up for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. McKenna had little desire to return to his home town London, where, he felt, everyone was “in a rush but going nowhere”. In China, by contrast, “everybody is doing everything. It was just exciting. People wanted to be here.”
当时是2006年，北京正快马加鞭准备2008年奥运会。马克南已无心返回自己的故乡伦敦，他觉得在伦敦，每个人“都毫无目的地忙忙碌碌”。而在中国，“每个人都有所作为，一切振奋人心，大家都想到中国来奋斗”，这与伦敦形成了鲜明对比。
McKenna, who had become head chef of the (now closed) Michelin-starred Le Poussin at Parkhill restaurant in Hampshire, southern England, when he was just 21, was asked to launch the Blu Lobster restaurant at the Shangri-La hotel. He arrived, however, to find a nascent food scene that lacked variety and sophistication.
马克南担任英格兰南部汉普郡(Hampshire)帕克希尔饭店(Parkhill restaurant)米其林星级餐厅Le Poussin（如今已关张）主厨时只有21岁，有次受邀参加在北京香格里拉酒店(Shangri-La hotel)蓝韵餐厅(Blu Lobster)举办的午宴。但抵达那儿后，他发现端上来菜品花样与精细程度乏善可陈，显得太过小儿科。
Rather than despair McKenna saw it as an opportunity. “At that time there was no Maison Boulud, no Capital M,” he says, referring to two fine dining stalwarts that are now established favourites in the capital. “The Chinese didn’t know what a Michelin [star] was. So I felt I could really come here and do something.”
马克南并不感到十分失望，相反他看作是自己的机遇。“当时，北京既没有布鲁宫法餐厅(Maison Boulud)，也没有Capital M餐厅，”他说，他指的是目前北京两家知名度最大的西餐厅。“中国人不知道何为米其林星级餐厅，因此我觉得自己可以来蓝韵餐厅有所作为。”
That something was to put Blu Lobster on the map with its critically acclaimed modern Mediterranean cuisine. And for McKenna – a former boxer – it was a chance to mould himself into something of a local celebrity chef.
他的举措就是用广受赞誉的现代地中海餐饮风格改造蓝韵餐厅，从而让它声名鹊起。对于马克南（昔日曾是拳击手）来说，这是把自己塑造成本地名厨的绝佳机会。
This year McKenna capitalised on his name by opening a chic restaurant in an imperial Qing dynasty former courtyard with views over the ancient Forbidden City moat. Brian McKenna @ The Courtyard, a partnership with Chinese-American developer Handel Lee, dishes up fusion European cuisine with a dash of molecular gastronomy at eye-watering prices for China’s newly rich.
今年，马克南充分利用美籍华人李景汉(Handel Lee)的名声，在可俯瞰故宫、昔日清朝的一座四合院内与他合开了一家时尚餐厅——马克南四合轩(Brian McKenna @ The Courtyard)。餐厅融合中西餐饮精华，以分子美食系统方式呈现给中国的各路新贵，菜价高得令人咋舌。
When McKenna arrived in China, international high-end dining was still a concept largely reserved for the big hotel chains. Seven years later, countless restaurateurs, both local and expat, are jostling to cater to an increasingly cosmopolitan Chinese clientele, many of whom have lived abroad. McKenna savours the challenge. “I will take huge risks. If I lose, I lose. I don’t mind,” he says.
马克南抵达中国时，国际高端餐饮仍属大型连锁酒店的“势力范围”。七年后，无数餐饮从业者（无论是本地还是外国侨民）争相满足中国的客户群，这些中国人越来越具有全球视野，很多人在国外生活。马克南很享受这种挑战。“我愿意承担巨大风险，万一不成功，我也认了，并不介意，”他说。
To give him an edge over his competitors, McKenna has incorporated playful nods towards China in the menu – a sure-fire hit with local diners. Patrons can crack into a chocolate terracotta warrior or a cheesecake that pays homage to the Chinese flag (both signature desserts).
为了战胜各路同行，马克南在菜单中融入了欢快的中国元素——本地客人趋之若鹜。食客可以把巧克力做的兵马俑和酪饼（专向中国国旗表示敬意）敲碎后吃，这两道都是餐厅的招牌甜点。
China has “a million good things and 10 bad things,” says McKenna. His complaints are common: choking pollution, standstill traffic, and a restaurant scene which is still young (although improving rapidly, Beijing is easily eclipsed by New York and London). But these issues “don’t bother me because they’re all something I can’t do anything about,” says McKenna. Much more pressing is his lack of time and opportunity to practise boxing, a family hobby he has enjoyed since he was a small child.
中国的“好东西数不胜数，但也有少许不尽如人意之处，”马克南说。他的抱怨颇具普遍性：空气污染严重、异常拥堵的交通以及仍显稚嫩的餐饮文化（尽管北京餐饮文化发展势头迅猛，但与纽约与伦敦相比，立马显得黯然失色）。但这些事“并不让我心烦意乱，因为我对它们根本无能为力，”马克南说。如今更紧迫的是自己缺少练拳击的时间与机会，他打小就喜欢拳击，拳击也是他们家族共同的爱好。
Compensations, however, are numerous. McKenna loves to sing karaoke, a national pastime. He regularly goes out for pizza or enjoys local kebabs known as chuanr in small neighbourhood restaurants. Although he speaks no Chinese, he has a driver, personal assistant and translator to help him navigate the city.
但还有很多活动可以补偿这个缺憾。马克南喜爱唱卡拉ＯＫ，这是全中国人喜欢的消遣方式。他定期去吃比萨，喜欢到社区小饭店里享用本地的烤肉串儿(chuanr)。尽管他说不了汉语，但他有兼司机、私人助手以及译者于一身的专门人员帮他逛遍北京城。
For the past three years McKenna, a bachelor, has also enjoyed some of the city’s best views from his miniature penthouse in the Park Hyatt Residences. (Yao Ming, the former basketball star and national hero, is a neighbour). Situated in the middle of the central business district (CBD) among skyscrapers, upscale shops and clubs, the area is a coveted hub for the moneyed classes. With its vast car-clogged roads and titanic buildings, Beijing’s CBD has none of the quaint, low-key charm of the city’s older neighbourhoods. But McKenna – whose catering and restaurant concept company Brian McKenna Hospitality Group has 250 staff – loves the “pure convenience” of living close to his office. He is also keen to avoid living where many foreigners flock: the expat haunt Sanlitun, an area in the Chaoyang district, renowned for its vibrant, but gritty, bar street. “I fly first class, I stay in the best,” he says. “I have direction for where I am going.”
过去三年，单身汉马克南一直居住于凯悦酒店公寓(Park Hyatt Residences)的屋顶小户套房，从那儿还可俯瞰北京城的胜景。（前篮球巨星及全民英雄姚明(Yao Ming)是他邻居）。凯悦酒店公寓位于北京中央商务区(central business district, CBD)中心位置，周围高楼林立，高档商铺与夜总会云集，是各路富豪觊觎的黄金地段。北京CBD的马路上车水马龙，周围摩天大楼密布，完全没有老城区那种奇特精巧、低调含蓄的美感。但马克南却很喜欢居住于此，因为这儿距离自己公司近在咫尺，“上班异常便利”。他的全新餐饮理念公司——马克南酒店管理有限公司(Brian McKenna Hospitality Group)有250名员工。他还竭力避开外国人扎堆居住的区域：外国侨民爱逛位于朝阳区的三里屯(Sanlitun)，这儿以喧嚣热闹、但鱼目混珠的酒吧街出名。“我出行要坐头等舱，住的是最高档酒店，”他说。“我知道如何把握自己的人生航向。”
This has not always been the case. Born in London to poor Irish parents (McKenna’s father was one of 15 children; his mother one of 18), McKenna ended up in a young offender institution at just 14 years old. “I was just uncontrollable, I was wild,” he says. “I could still barely read or write at 13.”
但这并非一直如此。马克南出生在伦敦一户贫穷的爱尔兰裔家庭（他爸爸有15个兄弟姐妹，妈妈的兄弟姐妹多达18个），14岁就被关进了青少年犯劳教所。“我当时无法控制自己，放荡不羁，”他说。“13岁时自己还无法正常读写。”
The chef’s luck changed when he was placed under a mentorship scheme with an assistant rugby coach. He introduced McKenna to a new world. “He took me for my first McDonald's, my first cinema trip, introduced me to my first chef,” remembers McKenna, who admits to harbouring certain prejudices while growing up. As a difficult and troubled teenager, he was certain that only women could, or should, cook. “I [had] never seen a man cook before.”
大厨的转运是缘于关怀计划(mentorship scheme)，他被置于某助理橄榄球教练监管之下。对方把马克南引向了崭新世界。“他带我吃了第一顿麦当劳，看了第一场电影，介绍我认识了第一位大厨师傅，”马克南回忆道，他坦承自己成长过程中一直怀揣偏见。作为一个难以相处、麻烦不断的青少年，他当时坚信只有女人应该做饭。“我之前从未看过男人做过饭。”
Despite this, McKenna started to work part-time in the kitchen at Chez Nico restaurant in the five-star Grosvenor House hotel in London. The job provided him with a much-needed routine. “I enjoyed discipline; I enjoyed being part of a team. I enjoyed being part of something. I loved working,” he says.
尽管如此，马克南开始在伦敦五星级酒店格罗纳夫大酒店(Grosvenor House Hotel)的Chez Nico餐厅厨房干兼职。这份临时工作训练了他日常工作如何程序化，这是他所急需的东西。“我喜欢受纪律约束，喜欢成为团队的一分子，喜欢参与其中，热爱工作，”他说。
McKenna says he misses his mother – “everything I am today is because of her” – and the raucous fun to be had in Ireland, the country of his parents’ birth. Still, for now Beijing is where he wants to be.
马克南说自己想念母亲（“自己今天的所有成就都是缘于她”）以及父母出生地爱尔兰那种喧闹的逗乐方式。尽管如此，北京还是自己这阵子想呆的地方。
“Imagine what it is going to be like in 25 years,” he says. “They are going to have the best sky rail system. It will be absolutely phenomenal.” Should the city ever get too much, however, or should an opportunity arise elsewhere, McKenna is not adverse to picking up his bags and moving on again. “If you need to make changes, change,” he declares. “Don’t be scared.”
“想象一下北京25年后的样子，”他说。“它将有最好的天轨系统，绝对是不同凡响。”但是，如果北京城继续不断拓展，或者说如果其它地方有更好的创业机会，他会不会反对再次整理行装，到别处发展呢？“若真需要做出改变，我会当机立断地作出抉择，”他信誓旦旦地说。“不必恐惧害怕。”
Buying guide
购房指南
Pros
有利因素
Beijing offers many opportunities for entrepreneurs
北京创业机会众多
It is the cultural, as well as the political, capital of China
它是中国的政治及文化首都。
Cons
不利因素
Cold winters and stifling summers
气候冬冷夏闷
Shanghai, rather than Beijing, is considered to be the top destination in China for bars and restaurants
大家公认上海，而非北京云集了中国最高档的酒吧和餐馆。
Transport links are still in development and make getting around the city hard
交通系统仍处发展阶段，逛遍城市仍非常不便
What you can buy for ...
购买力
￡500,000 A 100 sq metre one-bedroom apartment in the CBD
50万英镑可以在北京CBD买一套面积100平米的一卧住房
￡1m A 200 sq metre two-bedroom apartment in the CBD
100万英镑可在北京CBD买一套面积200平米的二卧住房