In a city where restaurants close before anyone even knows they opened, T8 is an institution. One of the first three dining establishments in Xintiandi, this restaurant has been serving up bold flavours since 2001. Boasting a resume that belies his 28 years, Adam Liston arrived in March from Australia to helm T8 and remind diners why the restaurant is known for putting innovative fusion cuisine on Shanghai’s table.

Despite stints with some of the finest chefs and restaurants Down Under, cooking started as a means to an end for this “surfing chef”. A resident beach bum, Liston discovered that the schedule of a kitchen fit perfectly with the pull of the tides, so he started serving up fare at beachside restaurants before he realised he felt more at home in a toque than on a surfboard.

“Surfing is not a reality because the kitchen demands my time. I could be frying up food on the beach if I still wanted to surf every day,” says Liston. “But I’m able to express myself through food and I don’t have a creative outlet like that anywhere else in my life.”

Liston may not hang ten like he used to, but the surfer attitude is evident in his culinary style. He strives to make fine dining healthier by bringing out the natural flavours of ingredients and not masking them in fats. “After a meal of heavy food, I feel paralysed,” he explains. “It is not acceptable for customers to walk away from our restaurant feeling like that.”

Despite receiving impressive accolades from critics, Liston is nothing if not humble. Even after being named one of Australia's top five new talents by Gourmet Traveller, he modestly shies away from praise. “My success is due to great general managers and owners who always push the boundaries and set completely unrealistic goals for me,” he says. “Without them, I would have a hard time finding the energy to be creative.”

When he does feel inspired, Liston often channels his creative energy into T8’s market lunch offering. His gastronomic muse lies in the eclectic nature of Shanghai’s food scene, from the wet markets he passes on his walk to work, to a unique approach to sourcing ingredients. “We employ a guy full-time whose entire job is just to ride his bike around town and find the best fresh produce. Today he's on the hunt for some really big, ripe tomatoes,” says Liston, incredulously. “The market lunch gives me the opportunity to experiment with this new produce before putting a dish on the dinner menu.”

And experiment he does. In his first two months as head chef at T8, elements of the menu changed four times. “My menu is never stable. It’s a living, breathing thing that is constantly asking for my attention,” Liston says. “I can always tweak something.”

New dishes and menu tweaking aren’t the only tricks up this chef’s sleeve; he plans on delving deep into China’s culinary traditions. Already a street food connoisseur, Liston grabs dinner from a rickshaw-toting noodle cook more often than not. His sous chef has even promised a lesson with a local la mian master to teach him how to pull noodles with the best of them.

While diners shouldn’t be expecting a bowl of soup noodles to land on their tables at T8 anytime soon, they can count on a dining experience they won’t soon forget. “The open kitchen here adds dramatically to the atmosphere. It is part of what makes T8 unique," says Liston. "We’re new age, funky and chaotic. Don’t be surprised if tempers flare!”

T8, Xintiandi North Block, Lane 181 Taicang Lu, near Madang Lu. Tel: 6355 8999. Web: www.t8shanghai.com