*Top,* Nick Hooker and Michael Chow; *above,* China Chow.

*Top,* Jeffrey Deitch; *above,* the scene at the *AKA Mr. Chow* premiere.

*Top,* Bob Colacello, Jonathan Becker, and Beth Kseniak; *above,* Nick Hooker and Alex Timken.

*Top,* Michael Chow and Anna Carter; *above,* Arki Busson, Graydon Carter, and Shawn McCreesh.

*Top,* Adriana Berenson, Diane Moy Quon, and Arielle Friedman; *above,* Juli Weiner and Dana Brown.

*Top,* Hoo Jung Lee and Sunny Levine; *above,* Griffin Dunne, Jean Tsien, and Lisa Heller.

*Top,* Brian Murati; *above,* Juli Weiner, Michael Grynbaum, and Anna Carter.

*Top,* Graydon Carter, Louise Grunwald, and Victor Garber; *above,* Maximillian Chow.

*Top,* Karen Beckmann, Vanessa Chow, and Jean Kouri; *above,* Michael Chow.

A Night Celebrating Michael Chow

After Thursday night’s premiere of AKA Mr. Chow, a documentary directed by Nick Hooker and executive-produced by AIR MAIL Co-Editor Graydon Carter, guests including Victor Garber and Griffin Dunne gathered to celebrate the inimitable restaurateur at—where else?—Mr. Chow

By Nathan King

Photographs by Daniel Paik

When it comes to restaurateurs, there may not be anyone more thoroughly modern than Michael Chow. The Mr. Chow founder’s knack for re-invention, not to mention his catholic range of interests—food, art, architecture and design, film—betray a profound self-awareness and a burning desire to be progressive. He’s a man with a deep respect for his heritage but a contempt for complacency. Chow, in short, is always moving forward.

Which is why it should make total sense that the premiere of a new documentary about him, AKA Mr. Chow, directed by Nick Hooker, took place at New York’s Museum of Modern Art on Thursday evening, followed by an after-party at none other than Mr. Chow, on 57th Street.