I still remember the first time I tasted wine when I was 14. It was the first time I took an airplane on a school trip to Perth. When the steward was serving food I pretended to be atas and asked for a glass of red wine. It was the worst thing I’d ever tasted and I poured it into the food tray when no one was looking and closed the foil.
When I was looking for jobs, I had one resume left as I was walking down Orchard Road. I walked into Les Amis and a few days later Ignatius Chan called me and told me they were opening The Lighthouse at The Fullerton Hotel.
I didn’t grow up in a family that was serious about food. I don’t think my mom is a good cook as she grew up in rural Malaysia, so the food I grew up with was quite forgettable. I remember the first time I ate an apple pie in McDonalds’. I was ashamed as I didn’t know what to order so I had whatever my friend was having.
Eating has become a social currency. To some people, their sense of self-worth and social standing is decided by whether or not they’ve been to the latest “it” restaurant and hobnobbed with the hottest chefs. Foodie is not a badge that you wear. Don’t let the superficial attraction rob you of the real joy of understanding food.
I’ve met a lot of journalists and bloggers who don’t know what they’re talking about. You’ve got to know the difference between a crème brulée and crème Catalan, for example.
Restaurants that Loh Lik Peng does are very trend-forward. He brings restaurants that he sees in New York and London to Singapore, like Library and Burnt Ends. When you’re in the industry, you’ve seen them before, but it’s very radical in Singapore.
There are a lot of places that serve really bad food. Singaporeans should be more discerning. Concepts are fun, but you must pay equal attention to the food that comes out of the kitchen and not see it as an afterthought.
Restaurants get distracted along the way. They try to be everything: having beans from the same roasters, selling cupcakes and putting Monocle on the bookshelf, the same industrial-chic furniture. Singaporean [restaurateurs] try to do the fanciful things without studying the basics.
I hate having to wait with nothing to read. I have CNN and BBC on my phone so I’ll read the news, but if I don’t have other things to read I get very angry because I feel like I’m wasting my time.
I’m quite boring, but it’s a wholesome lifestyle. I spend 45 minutes praying and reading the Bible in the morning. Then when I get to the office, I’ll go for a five-km run and be home by 6pm to have dinner with the family before clearing e-mails.
I stumbled upon the inaugural San Pellegrino list and there was not a single Asian restaurant on it. I wrote to the organizers and told them there’s something wrong with the list. The third year, one Asian restaurant made the list and it was Felix from Hong Kong’s Peninsula. I said, “Cannot. The best Asian restaurant can’t be this one.” That’s when it became more fragmented with each geographical region having its own chairman.
I started reading UK’s GQ when I was about 17 and started to hone the basics of dressing. I like classic styles like Panama hats and nice umbrellas. The first time I started wearing braces, people were laughing and saying “Wah you old man ah?” But there was one time I was very bohemian. I don’t know why I dared to wear it, as it was almost tribal.
For me, it’s about the relationship with God: when that’s in place, everything will come. But also what matters in life is not how you start, but how you finish. The most important thing is that we must look back and be proud of the work we have done and the relationships we have forged.
