- Jazz and coffee from Ethiopia, a culinary odyssey along the Spice Route from India to Greece - cultural dining events have become popular in Singapore
- That chimes with a World Food Travel Association report that predicts growth in tours focused on food and drink and dining experiences in the homes of locals
Dining "experiences" are becoming increasingly popular in Singapore, offering a chance to experience of an evening of food, themed music and decorations, along with storytelling or an informative talk about the meal's historical or geographical connections. These extras can turn an ordinary lunch or dinner into an experience to be remembered.
This way of eating out probably began in Singapore sometime in 2017, says Nithiya Laila, a culinary anthropologist who founded Brunch Bandits, a culture-themed dining club.
Brunch Bandits offers Singaporean diners music, table decorations and food chosen, Laila says, to "reflect the culture we are exploring and for us to be a place of storytelling, with the medium being food".
One recent Brunch Bandits culture-themed supper explored Pan-Africanism, and included a traditional Ethiopian coffee drinking ceremony, where Laila showed guests how to use a jebena " the clay pot Ethiopians use to brew coffee.
Diners could sample cocktails inspired by Africa, created in collaboration with Tanglin Gin and the Spiffy Dapper bar, to complement servings of samaki wa kupaka " grilled tilapia in coconut sauce " a fish dish typically eaten in Zanzibar, Tanzania. The music accompanying the meal ranged from Nigerian funk to Ethiopian jazz.
For another brunch, with a South American theme, Laila is considering including demonstrations of capoeira, the dance-like martial art of Brazil.
"Dining experiences that focus on culture will be the ones that differentiate themselves," says Elton Seah, Singapore-based owner of Holy Crab, a crab restaurant in Bugis.
Another Singaporean dining club, Once Upon a Secret Supper, is described by founder Angie Ma as "a roaming secret supper that tells creative stories through food with a shared communal table". Club members explore the origins of food from far-flung locations.
An avid traveller, Ma's curiosity about food inspired her to set up the club.
"I live to travel, learn and eat my way around the world, from Sicilian olive farms to the religious diversity of Jerusalem's Old City to the serene mountain villages of Guilin, China and traditional homestays in southern Egypt," says the Australian.
From food stylists, home cooks and interior decorators to sommeliers and photographers, Ma is always on the lookout for new talent. With this network of expertise, she curates a pool of stories around the evolution and traditions of various dishes.
"For instance, for our Secretos de Mexico dinner, we explored Mexico's diverse flavours and dishes, from Yucatan through to Sinaloa to Puebla," she says. "Our chocolate dessert was an 'ode to the gods', as cacao was discovered by the Mayans and literally means 'food of the gods'. Our guests loved learning about the history and inspiration for each Mexican dish."
Ma used crowd sourcing to find a guest Mexican cook, who showed diners how to make mole poblano, a traditional Mexican chilli and chocolate sauce, from scratch.
Her other themed suppers have included one on the shellfish and curries of the Seychelles, in the Indian Ocean, and another focused on spices along the Spice Route from Greece to India. Yet another was based on the multicultural markets of the old city of Jerusalem in Israel.
Once Upon a Secret Supper is not an elitist supper club, Ma says; rather, it looks at "attracting the curious or open-minded foodie, not necessarily one that is well travelled".
Ma, who has a day job in a branding agency, designs the experience.
"My partners and I put lots of time into the details of the event, including the styling of the dishes, making everything from scratch and getting interesting collaborators or sponsors to share their stories," she says. "We don't have to abide by restaurant rules and efficiency, so it means we can collaborate with a local organic farmer to tell their story and passion, and taste test their rare herbs or edible flowers."
Once Upon a Secret Supper does no marketing and patrons have to subscribe through its website. Bookings open about a month before each event, Ma says, and tickets are sold out in minutes.
Meanwhile, the Latin American Food Festival, designed to promote Latin American cuisine in Singapore, is as much about the music as it is about the food, says Daniel Chavez, founder of Latinada and owner of OLA Kitchen Group.
"We did multiple formats for the different days of the event and increased the representation of chefs from countries such as Chile, Colombia and Cuba," he says. "We also incorporated live bands playing salsa, bachata and merengue rhythms, all of which represent the diversity of Latin American culture."
Festival guests could choose to dine on a traditional asado " assorted meats barbecued in the style of Chilean and Argentinian kitchens " or savour moros y cristianos (rice and beans) and lobster empanadas in a Cuban-themed supper. The more adventurous might have enjoyed tiradito, the Peruvian-Japanese equivalent to sashimi, and costilla cargada con esquites, otherwise known as Mexican corn salad and ribs.
Food tour guide Lionel Chee, who is also Singapore's ambassador at the World Food Travel Association, says authentic dining experiences need not be expensive. One of Chee's tours includes a traditional Peranakan meal in a mini-museum that serves as an event space in Katong, the cultural neighbourhood of the Straits Chinese.
Female guests dress in the kebaya, the traditional Peranakan costume that features batik print, and there is a demonstration of how to bead footwear. Chee also explains Singapore's long-established food culture to diners.
Chee predicts that food tours will increasingly gain in popularity. A World Food Travel Association report last year predicted that multi-day tours focusing on food and drink and dining experiences in the homes of locals would increase over the next couple of years.
Diners who prefer fine dining in an upscale setting are also catered for. Le Petit Chef, in La Cave wine cellar in the Grand Hyatt, merges multimedia elements, artificial intelligence, sensory experiences, and travel experiences with storytelling. Over two hours, diners sample six courses of delicacies from France, the Himalayas, the Middle East, India and China, following Marco Polo's journey along the famed Silk Road.
"While this experience is focused on immersive 3D projection mapping, we also want diners to rest assured that they are enjoying the experience without harming the environment," says Sebastian Kern, food and beverage operations director at the Grand Hyatt Singapore.
We don't have to abide by restaurant rules and efficiency, so it means we can collaborate with a local organic farmer to tell their story and passion, and taste test their rare herbs or edible flowersAngie Ma, founder of Once Upon A Secret Supper
Kern says ethical sourcing is vital to the experience at Le Petit Chef, with the menu incorporating sustainable seafood, organic herbs home-grown in the hotel's garden, and greens sourced from cooperative farmers in Malaysia's Cameron Highlands.
Meanwhile, at Restaurant Zen, in shophouse-lined Bukit Pasoh, a modern, minimalist Scandinavian interior is matched with furniture, cutlery and even temperatures that are designed to accentuate each course of the meal. To recreate the experience of the original Zen in Sweden, temperatures are kept low.
Cashmere is draped over chairs and throw blankets are available for diners to snuggle in while they finish dessert, as if they have just returned from hiking in the Nordic woods.
Restaurant Zen hopes to create the feeling of dining at a Nordic friend's house, says head chef Tristin Farmer. "We wanted to create a 'guest journey' that replicates the experience of visiting someone's house, in this case, Bjorn Frantzen's house," he says, referring to the Swedish chef who founded Frantzen, a restaurant that has three Michelin stars.
"This concept is an evolution of Frantzen in Stockholm, where guests also journey through the restaurant," Farmer adds.
"After a few appetisers, an aperitif and chatting with the team, guests take their time on the second-floor dining room for eight courses, where food is plated at the table. Guests relax at the end of the meal in the living room to have coffee, tea and petit fours, or fika as they call it in Sweden."
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