Old Dairy Farm Depot, Hong Kong

The Old Dairy Farm Depot is one of Central’s most distinctive surviving colonial buildings, instantly recognizable by its red-and-white “blood and bandages” brickwork. Built in the 1890s as a low-rise cold-storage warehouse for Dairy Farm, it once handled ice, milk, meat, and even winter clothing at a time when refrigeration was still a luxury in Hong Kong. By the 1910s, the depot had expanded to include a dairy shop, meat-smoking rooms, offices, and a residence for the company’s general manager, eventually serving as Dairy Farm’s headquarters until the company relocated in the 1970s.

After a brief period of abandonment, the building found a new role in the 1980s. The Foreign Correspondents’ Club moved into the North Block, creating one of the city’s most storied private press clubs, while the Hong Kong Fringe Club transformed the South Block into a lively arts venue hosting exhibitions, concerts, theater, and cultural events.

Today, the Old Dairy Farm Depot stands as a rare low-rise survivor among Central’s towers. Its late Victorian eclectic architecture has earned it both Grade I historic status and a Hong Kong Heritage Award for conservation. While the FCC remains members-only, the Fringe Club offers regular public programs, making the depot a compelling stop for anyone interested in mixing heritage architecture with Hong Kong’s contemporary cultural scene.