Warm & Welcoming

A mid-20th-century house with expansive views and space to party dishes up the ideal southside family home for pomegranate kitchen founder maria bizri and her family.

- Kate Farr

Chatting to Maria Bizri, founder of Southside private dining venue Pomegranate Kitchen, it becomes clear that her family has achieved a seemingly impossible feat in this most cutthroat of real estate markets. Not only did they identify the perfect 3,500-square-foot family home in beautiful Repulse Bay, but, unusually for Hong Kong, they have remained there for seven years – and counting.

Maria explains: “We moved to Hong Kong from Jakarta in 2010 with my husband’s work and we’ve been living in the same house on Headland Road ever since, in a building built in the late 40s to early 50s. It has a mid-century modern feel, and is laid out beautifully, with all the rooms overlooking an 800-square-foot covered terrace, which means that we can use it year-round.” Maria particularly loves that all the rooms are interconnected, and that they “flow perfectly”.

The family – Maria, husband Rehan, daughters Leia and Maya, and family dogs Caspar (a Bichon Frise) and Ginger (an Australian Cavoodle) – all appreciate the rare outdoor space. “It’s built with entertaining in mind, and it lends itself to parties. We host lots of brunches, barbecues, long lunches and dinners, a few of which turn into impromptu dance parties!”

With its built-in seating, the terrace offers breathtaking views of the sea and stunning sunsets. Maria says, “The 50s were a great time for design, and the architect obviously had the same image that I did when I first stepped out on the balcony: women in long, flowing dresses, holding martinis with incredibly coiffed hair and painted nails!”