Maxim's Caterers
Maxim's Caterers Limited is a Hong Kong–based food, beverage and restaurant chain jointly owned by Dairy Farm International Holdings Limited and Hong Kong Caterers Ltd, and founded by Wu Shun Tak and James Wu, overseas Chinese businessmen brothers in the United States with ancestral roots in Taishan, Guangdong.
It is 50% owned by Jardine Matheson through its subsidiary DFI Retail Group, but the decision-making power is still owned by the Ng family. It now operates in Hong Kong, Macau, Mainland China, Vietnam, Thailand and Singapore.
Founded in 1956, the company operates over 1,000 outlets in Hong Kong, mainland China, Cambodia and Vietnam. These include bakeries, fast food shops restaurants and Starbucks coffee shop licences. Maxim's restaurants have been targeted by conservation campaigners concerned with Maxim's previous sale of shark fins, and for controversial comments made by Annie Wu, daughter of one of Maxim's founders, during the 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests.
Maxim's Group operates a diverse portfolio of food and beverage businesses in Hong Kong, covering Chinese, Western, Japanese, Thai, and Vietnamese cuisines. In addition to full-service restaurants, the Group also runs fast food outlets（Maxim's MX） and bakeries under brands such as Maxim's Bakery and Arome Bakery. It holds franchise rights for international brands including Starbucks Coffee and Genki Sushi, further broadening its market presence. Maxim's also provides professional catering services to a wide range of clients, including industrial, commercial, educational institutions, and hospitals. The Group is known for its festive offerings as well, producing seasonal delicacies such as Chinese New Year puddings, Dragon Boat Festival Zongzi, traditional Chinese sausages and preserved meats, as well as Mid-Autumn Festival mooncakes.
Maxim's mission is to become a "Triple-Benefit Company," bringing benefits to employees, customers, and employers alike.
According to estimates by independent stock analyst David Webb, Maxim’s revenue reached HKD 16.2 billion in 2018, accounting for one-seventh, or approximately 13.5%, of Hong Kong’s total catering industry revenue of HKD 119.6 billion that year. He also pointed out that Maxim’s scale was larger than the combined size of Café de Coral and Fairwood.
The Maxim's de Paris restaurant, founded in Paris, France, Macau Maxim Bakery Co., Ltd., and Maxim Bakery & Restaurant in Vancouver, Canada, have no business affiliation with Hong Kong Maxim's Caterers Limited.
History
Maxim's was founded by brothers James Wu and S.T. Wu along with a small group of shareholders. The grand opening of the first Maxim's restaurant, located in the basement of Telephone House in Central, took place on 3 December 1956. Initially positioned as a "first-class restaurant and night-club", the arrival of competing international hoteliers in the 1960s prompted the company to focus more on morning tea, lunch, and snacks.A holding company, Maxim's Caterers Limited, was formed in October 1972 to acquire the Maxim's and Jade Garden restaurant brands. By early 1973, the group operated 15 restaurants.
Longtime company managing director S.T. Wu stepped down in early 2000, and was replaced by his 29-year-old grandson Michael Wu Wei-kuo, who had previously served as chief financial officer.
The Woo Brothers' Entrepreneurship
In 1956, Wu Shun Tak and James Wu, who were then managing the Queen's Theatre on behalf of the prominent Chinese business conglomerate Loong Hoi Tong, were inspired to start their own Western-style restaurant after an unpleasant dining experience at the New Paris Café located at 8 Queen's Road Central. Motivated by this encounter, the Woo brothers opened the first Maxim’s Western restaurant — "Maxim's Restaurant" — at Café Wiseman, a venue nicknamed “the smart people’s restaurant,” located in the basement of The Landmark on Des Voeux Road Central. Operated in the style of a nightclub and frequently hosting large-scale performances, the restaurant quickly became a hotspot for celebrities and high society, laying the foundation for the Maxim’s Group in the food and beverage industry. The Woo brothers put great effort into preparing for the launch of their restaurant. Inspired by Café de Paris, they included a dance floor and hired a live band to enhance the dining experience. They also emphasized food and service quality by recruiting experienced French chefs and ensuring the freshness of ingredients. Having once experienced poor service themselves, they placed particular importance on courteous, attentive hospitality, making it a core value of their restaurant. James Wu recalled that in the 1950s, Western restaurants in Hong Kong were much like their counterparts abroad — they did not serve hot tea. However, at Maxim’s Restaurant, as soon as a Chinese customer was seated, they would be offered a cup of hot tea, since Chinese diners typically had little interest in a glass of cold water. At that time, most Western restaurants only placed a single box of matches on the table, but Maxim’s took extra care by ensuring every waiter carried a lighter. Whenever a guest lit a cigarette, a waiter would promptly step forward to offer assistance. This thoughtful service left a positive impression and delighted many customers. In the early days of therestaurant’s operation, a number of foreign performers were hired as resident entertainers to attract customers.
In 1963, the Hilton Hotel and the Mandarin Hotel opened one after another in Central, Hong Kong, both featuring Western-style nightclub dining. At the time, Maxim’s Group also operated a high-end Western nightclub in Central, but found itself unable to compete in terms of décor, hired singers, and other aspects. As a result, the group decided to close the nightclub and shift its focus to opening coffee shops.
In 1966, the completion of Ocean Terminal marked the opening of the first Maxim’s Café, **Maxim's Boulevard**, which featured a French restaurant and a British-style Mermaid Bar. Later, pastries were also sold, forming the prototype of what would become "Maxim’s Cakes." After transforming into a coffee restaurant business, Maxim’s opened 20 café-style restaurants within two years.
By 1969, Hong Kong Food Products Ltd. had already opened Maxim’s restaurants in locations such as The Landmark,
Ocean Terminal, Prince’s Building, Wing On House, and International Building.
In 1970, Maxim’s appointed Annie Wu Suk-ching and Wong Shek Leung to participate in the Hong Kong Pavilion at Expo ’70 in Osaka under the brand name "." Annie Wu served as the restaurant secretary and promotional ambassador for the pavilion. The exquisite dim sum they provided received widespread acclaim.
On 2 March 1971, Maxim’s opened its first Cantonese restaurant — **** — on the 4th floor of Star House in Tsim Sha Tsui. Woo Cham Tak served as general manager, while Wong Shek Leung was the head chef. The restaurant introduced an innovative management model of “Chinese cuisine with Western-style service,” which included selling Western-style pastries in the restaurant and eliminating traditional table-sharing practices.
Jardine Matheson acquired a stake
In 1972, during the Dairy Farm acquisition battle, Woo Shun Tak earned the admiration of Henry Keswick, then Chairman of the Board at Jardine Matheson. Two months later, Jardine's subsidiary, Hongkong Land, became a shareholder of Maxim’s. However, decision-making power has remained with the Woo family to this day. Soon after, Maxim’s rapidly expanded by opening numerous restaurants in properties owned by Hongkong Land, such as Jardine House, Landmark, Exchange Square, and the Hong Kong World Trade Centre.In the same year, the first Maxim’s Fast Food was established, and it gradually developed into one of the largest chains in the city.
Following the successful operation of, Maxim’s further expanded in the late 1970s by opening multiple branches of Peking Garden, marking its entry into the business of regional Chinese cuisine restaurants, including those serving Beijing, Sichuan, Shanghai, and Hunan dishes. In the 1980s, Maxim’s opened two Japanese restaurants: BenkeiJapanese Cuisine in the basement of The Landmark, and Momoyama Japanese Cuisine in the basement of Jardine House. Benkei was later renovated at the same location and rebranded successively as Kajiku Japanese Cuisine and Kikusan, while Momoyama was transformed into Miso.
In 1980,. was established, becoming the first Sino-foreign joint venture after the repurchase of joint ventures such as the Sino-Soviet Civil Aviation Corporation, originally established in 1954.
Expansion of the mass market
Starting from the late 1970s to the early 1980s, Maxim's gradually expanded from focusing solely on the high-end dining market to entering the mass catering sector. They successively opened several Cantonese-style restaurants, such as and, offering traditional dim sum and banquet services. Later on, Maxim's also launched, venturing into the business of Teochew cuisineIn 1986, Maxim's ventured into the mooncake market. Although only 100,000 boxes of Maxim's mooncakes were produced, they sold out within just a few days of launch. The Ng brothers were greatly encouraged by this success, and from then on, Maxim's made a major push into the mooncake market. In the same year, Jardine Matheson underwent a corporate restructuring, and its stake in Maxim’s was transferred to its subsidiary, Dairy Farm International Holdings Limited.
In May 1991, Maxim's opened its first restaurant in Mainland China, "Beijing Jade Garden," at the Liangmahe Shopping Mall in Chaoyang District, Beijing. In 1993, Maxim's opened a fast-food restaurant and a bakery in Guangzhou's Huanshi Road and Shanghai's North Sichuan Road, respectively. In 1994, Maxim's further expanded by opening a total of four fast-food outlets and four bakeries in Guangzhou, Foshan, and Shanghai. Unfortunately, the business in the Chinese market suffered losses, and Maxim's eventually withdrew from the market.