Sick Burger’s founder Lai Chun-wai on his passion for burgers

If you were wondering, the restaurant’s name has two meanings: ‘sick’ as slang for awesome, and a playful pun – ‘sick’ is a homophone for the Cantonese word for ‘eat’. Before opening Sick! Burger, chef Lai Chun-wai worked in the fine dining industry for nearly two decades but decided to strike out on his own. “It’s hard to find a restaurant where someone values you enough to let you manage it”, he admits. “I realised the only way was to rely on myself to earn money, and make this dream happen”. 

Though Hong Kong has countless cuisines, many dismiss burgers as fast food. Unfazed, Lai elevates his burgers with careful ingredient selection and attention to detail. “We use fresh ingredients and avoid pre-made ingredients; many of our components are made from scratch”, he pointed out. “While others often use pre-made frozen patties, we grind our own meat for a fresher process, and the quality is on another level”. That care shows on the restaurant’s menu. Sick! Burger goes beyond classic beef to include chicken, fish, and vegetarian burgers; snacks like chicken wings or salted egg French fries; and milkshakes. Lai also experiments with local tastes; recent limited runs have included an X.O. sauce dried‑squid and cuttlefish burger inspired by the dai pai dong staple stir‑fry king.

Sick! Burger’s community-first approach also extends to its service. “Many have suggested that we switch to online ordering, but we’re sticking with this because we believe in the value of personal interaction”, Lai says. “A couple of conversations can turn a first-time customer into a regular”.

In 2025, chef Lai won HSBC’s inaugural culinary competition reality TV show, Red Hot Chef, which gave him a new creative push. “It makes me think about how to push further, like incorporating more Hong Kong elements or local inspiration into our burgers”, he explained. Since then, he’s been in high demand. Sick! Burger was one of seven restaurants invited to whip up festive delicacies at HSBC’s first-ever Red Hot Chef food stall at the Victoria Park Lunar New Year fair. 

Want to taste what chef Lai’s been cooking up? From April 13 to 26, download the HSBC Reward+ app, log in, and show your Standalone RewardCash Programme Profile at any Sick! Burger branch to redeem a free portion of One Bite Chicken with any purchase. The offer is limited to 100 portions each day across the three branches on a first-come, first-served basis.

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