“I was very captivated by the restaurant in Spain and kept going back every year. In the last two years, I really felt that I needed to do something along those lines. I just thought it was time to do what I really wanted to,” said Wong, who is the founder and managing director of Vintry Cellars Sdn Bhd, which owns Stoked, the charcoal oven restaurant and bar in Medan Damansara, Kuala Lumpur which Wong opened last year.

Housed in the space formerly occupied by another KL stalwart Ribs by Vintry (also owned by Wong), Stoked is a beautifully appointed eatery with pristine white tablecloths, gorgeous Laguiole (a renowned French brand) steak knives and fresh flowers on every table.

It’s the sort of place you’ll want to dress up for, because otherwise it will probably outshine you.

And standing proud in the heart of the open kitchen lies big Bertha, a massive 300kg English barbecue grill and oven that Wong commissioned from its family-owned maker and which Stoked now uses as its primary licence to grill, fuelled by charcoal and firewood.

“I started researching ovens around the world and came across this, the Bertha. I made a trip to the United Kingdom, met the owner who designed my Bertha and we’re very very happy with it,” said Wong, adding that the eatery is the first in South-East Asia to use the oven.

The Bertha’s main advantage is its ability to cook meat at high heat whilst also keeping it moist, a feat that many open-burning ovens are unable to replicate. This means that premium cuts of meat get treated to a lot of tender loving care and are also cooked 40percent faster than on an open grill.

It is clear that Stoked takes its meat seriously. You only need to look at the menu to see what you’re dealing with – choice options like iberico pork ribs, USDA choice striploin, Blackmore wagyu tri-tip and even a particularly beguiling-sounding French wild partridge.

Having said all that, the restaurant is also part of the burgeoning locavore movement, sourcing vegetables locally and seafood from local fishing villages in Pulau Ketam and Hutan Melintang.

The menu changes every two weeks or so, so you’re unlikely to see too many repeats.

But if you do get the chance, try the Wood-Smoked Queensland Giant Octopus (RM58). Served with roasted Brussel sprouts and a saffron and vanilla aioli, the octopus is cooked well – it cuts perfectly but isn’t rubbery or spongy. The charred bits are particularly yummy, and give this very premium cephalopod a rugged edge that does wonders to endear it to diners.

If you’re after something to soothe and sate, the Jerusalem Artichoke Soup with Winter Truffles and Artichoke Chips (RM42) will do that and so much more. The artichoke chips are a little like garlic chips and give the soup a nice, albeit slightly bitter, textural crunch.

The soup itself is divine – a creamy, pea green smooth operator that glides down your palate like silk. It’s flavourful and rich but also strangely calming, almost like having a warm bath after a long day.

Despite its modest location – and absence of any signboard – sushi lovers from all over the globe beat a path to Saito-san’s door in Akasaka, in Roppongi.

Even the Michelin Guide inspectors came a-calling and in 2009, gave Sushi Saito its highest endorsement – three Michelin stars – making Saito, at 36 then, the youngest three Michelin-starred sushi chef.

Sushi Saito is one of three sushi bars with three stars in the 2016 Michelin Guide Tokyo; the other two are Sushi Yoshitake and Sukiyabashi Jiro (of the 2011 movie Jiro Dreams Of Sushi fame).

But some say Sushi Saito is the world’s best sushi bar – especially if you go by the ranking of Tabelog.com, the well-respected, user-generated Japanese restaurant guide that locals go by. Sushi Saito was given the highest ranking of 4.54 recently.

Surprisingly, the great Jiro Ono’s Sukiyabashi Jiro is not listed in the top 20 of Tabelog. (He gets a rating of 4.05 at no. 26, with Sushi Yoshitake at no. 14.) And on Asia’s 50 Best, Sushi Saito is at no. 40. So the best sushi in the world – if you haven’t tried them all – depends on who you want to believe.

If you are a chef, perhaps you value peer review more. One can count no greater peer than the great French chef Joel Robuchon who has said of Sushi Saito, “The best sushi restaurant in the world”.

One of the faithful legions who believes Saito is unique is Malaysian Carmen Chua who returns repeatedly to Sushi Saito, who has since February 2014 moved to bigger premises in Ark Hills South Tower – on the first floor, not the car park – not too far from its old home.

“I visit Tokyo a few times a year and always make sure I have a booking there during each visit,” says the CEO of One IFC Sdn Bhd whose favourite food is sushi.

“What makes Saito-san so different are his skills and dedication to quality and freshness. What’s amazing is his skills at pressing the rice. Very few in the world can do it the way he does it.

“Saito gets the pressure just right when he presses the sushi rice; the result is as if there is air in the rice. When you put it in your mouth, the rice completely melts away …”

So enamoured is she of Saito’s sushi, she is bringing it to Malaysia. Her company One IFC is the developer of the new six-star St Regis Kuala Lumpur in Sentral and when it opens on April 1 this year, Taka by Sushi Saito will open on level 3A.

Taka will be Malaysia’s first restaurant by a three Michelin-starred chef and the first three-starred sushi restaurant to open outside of Tokyo.

It’s considered a huge culinary coup to have succeeded in getting Saito to agree to open in Kuala Lumpur as he has been approached by investors from Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore.

Saito looks for more than an attractive business proposition: doing business is also about trust, building relationships and sharing a sense of connectedness based on common ground or like-mindedness.

“Carmen and I share the same passion and dedication to sushi and good quality food. She understands the art of sushi-making and that is very important for me,” says Saito when he popped into Kuala Lumpur on a day trip to meet the media recently.

Chua’s patronage of Sushi Saito over the last few years has clearly paid off today. The waiting list for a seat at Sushi Saito is now six months, and news of the KL opening has spread.

“On some days, we receive four to five calls asking when the KL outlet is going to open,” Saito’s interpreter tells us.

Saito has a global following and many of them are hoping that it would be easier to secure a seat in KL, a city where a waiting list at restaurants is unheard of. At many restaurants, including the most prestigious, on most days, you can simply turn up without a reservation and chances of getting a table is quite good. But then again, most restaurants have more seats than Sushi Saito.

The simple math is that limited seats will keep demand high but that is not the reason why the best sushi bars are small and intimate. There is a good reason for the number: “The principle of one sushi chef to eight guests allows for the perfect serving, rhythm and speed for the entire experience,” says Chua.

For that reason Saito would not be opening more restaurants in Japan. When asked the question he laughs out loud – the kind of laugh that suggests it would require him to grow another pair of hands. “Oh, no, no!” Saito says in mock horror.

“He prefers to serve his loyal guests who have followed him over the years personally,” explains Chua. “His commitment is to maintain his standards and he is highly respected for that.”

There is also a lesson to be learnt from Tokyo restaurants such as Kanesaka who lost a star after expanding. And for that reason, too, there is no intention to have more than one restaurant in Malaysia.

For Taka by Sushi Saito, the chef will be providing three Japanese chefs he has personally trained and he will visit four times a year.

Everyone can learn how to make a proper sushi but making exceptional sushi is an art.

“Saito first satisfied himself that the chefs he hand-picked had what it took before starting to train them in the finer points of sushi-making. Masashi Kubota, for instance, has been with Saito for two years and has now achieved a level of sushi-making that Saito is satisfied with,” says Chua. It’s about getting the feel in the hands that comes with years of training.

In one sense, there is no recipe for making exceptional sushi; it’s an organic process, an instinct you learn and develop.

Perhaps it is something wired in the palms: “If you look at Saito’s hands, you will see that they are bright red – that’s how warm his hands are. A man’s palm is 5°C to 10°C warmer than a woman’s and that is why they make better sushi chefs. You hardly ever see a woman making sushi at the professional level,” Chua says.

“Cold fish has no taste,” Saito’s interpreter adds, explaining that the warmth of the palm brings the fish to the ideal temperature and taste for serving.

Saito is religious about sourcing. It is a task that he sees to personally, every working day. His day starts early when he makes his way to the Tsukiji fish market – a few kilometres away from his restaurant – to make his selection of the freshest fish and seafood, which would determine what he would serve that day. Whatever he is serving in Tokyo will be served in Kuala Lumpur.

The ingredients will be flown in three times a week.

“We will be arranging our own logistics for this,” informs Chua. “This is an interesting key point that we do to guarantee that the quality and freshness are the same as in Saito-san’s restaurant in Tokyo.

“For Saito, KL must be as good as Tokyo. He is very particular about that,” she says.

Taka by Sushi Saito

Like the new Sushi Saito in Tokyo, Taka by Sushi Saito will have two sushi counters with seats for eight diners each, making a total of 16.

As part of a larger restaurant, there will be two additional private rooms – Taka shares space with a 12-seater tempura counter by Ginza Tenkuni, but that is a story for another day.

Taka will replicate the look and feel of Sushi Saito. Hinoki wood, a Japanese cypress, will be used for the counters. The use of wood, especially hinoki, is inseparable from Japanese culture and the best restaurants will use hinoki which is said to have antimicrobial properties and gives off a relaxing scent, adding to the comfort factor.

Taka’s counters will be fashioned from rare 300-year-old hinoki wood that is estimated to have cost the company half a million ringgit (US$122,206)

The tableware is also specially sourced from Japan to chef Saito’s aesthetic sensibilities.

Taka will offer omakase menus only, which means there is no à la carte and you are served whatever the chef wishes to make – which usually means the best he can make that day. Masashi Kubota and Makoto Maruyama are the omakase chefs.

Sushi Saito is one of the few sushi bars in Tokyo that also offers wines apart from traditional Japanese sake and shochu, so that can be expected at Taka.

Expect, also, to pay around 1,000 ringgit per head for a lunch or dinner experience although Sushi Saito is known for serving one of the best three-Michelin-star lunch deals in Tokyo.

Sushi by Sushi Saito

“Sushi is just four things: rice, fish, wasabi and soy sauce,” says Saito. “Making good sushi is about the four items being perfectly balanced together.”

He makes Edo-style sushi and his signature style is a preference for a smaller cut of fish, a touch more sea salt and the use of milder red vinegar in his rice.

Saito is especially proud of his tuna sushi and is also well-known for abalone, octopus, eel and purple sea urchin.

And according to a press release, the ingredient is completely wrapped around the rice so that the fish fills the mouth. Even the time at which the fish is cut is planned carefully so that the sushi is served at the perfect temperature to provide the ideal combination of texture and taste.

Secrets abound in the sushi kitchen: the rice is a special mix, so too what goes into balancing the taste of the vinegar, and the final sweet soy sauce (nikiri) that is brushed over the sushi.

Saito’s sushi is enjoyed as is – whatever flavour needed to enjoy the sushi at its optimum, like fresh-grated wasabi and soy sauce, has been applied before he hands it to you.

His famous tamago (sweet layered egg) is always served at the end of the meal. As in other cuisines, a chef’s skill with preparing egg dishes is adjudged to be the true test of a chef and it is said that the tamago here is beyond any reproach.

So tamago, anago (sea eel), akami (tuna, of various cuts), awabi (abalone) and tako (octopus) are all his signature dishes.

Is there constant stress to maintain those three Michelin stars? The affable and cheerful Saito-san laughs and says: “Oh, no, no. No stress.”

Chua explains: “He is there at that level. Consistency has always been his strong suit. Anyway, sushi itself is a constant; you don’t change the sushi all the time; sushi is very traditional. The whole point is authenticity. In Japan, they are very specialised – you are either a sushi restaurant or a beef restaurant.”

And you keep at doing that one thing very well until it is second nature. And second to none.

It has white-washed walls, white floorboards and white furniture accented with signature Santorini blue cushions.

Order a selection of dips ($32) and pita bread ($4 each) and a Greek salad with a block of feta ($22) to start.

The tzatziki – a yogurt with cucumber and a hint of garlic – is bright and lively, while the flavourful fava bean puree with raw onions is a joy to eat. I also like the melitzanosalata – moreish smoky eggplant dip. Individual portions of each dip are priced at $15 to $16.

Main courses include the moist salt-baked fish (from $9.80 a 100g depending on the type of fish and an additional $10 for salt-baking), grilled octopus ($36) – tender throughout with a light herbaceous flavour and a deep crispy char on the exterior; and grilled squid ($34) – fresh and sweet, served with pesto and squid ink mayonnaise.

Say “Ah-Sigh-ee”

The acai berry, the much-talked- about superfood that is said to have high antioxidant levels and weight loss properties, is finally gaining popularity here.

The berries – they look like blueberries on steroids – come from the acai palm. They are blended into a pulp and usually mixed with coconut water until a smooth, sorbet-like consistency is achieved. On the palate, acai puree is slightly tart, with a subtle undertone of dark chocolate.

At Absolute Acai at China Square Central, the acai bowls (from $4.90, photo) come with toppings such as bananas, blueberries, granola, coconut flakes and chia seeds. Have it for breakfast or after lunch to prevent the post-lunch slump.

These bowls are also healthier alternatives to beat the heat compared with other cold treats such as ice cream and milk tea with pearls.

Learn to make cocktails

Singapore Cocktail Week starts tomorrow with more than 200 events and 60 participating bars and restaurants. If you’re keen to learn how to make your favourite cocktail, there are a number of workshops (from $35 a person) you can attend.

Tess Bar & Kitchen’s resident bartender Steve Leong will teach you how to make three cocktails, while gin lovers can opt for the gin and tonic workshop at The Spiffy Dapper in Amoy Street to find out what makes the perfect G&T.

Those who want some insight into how progressive cocktails are created should join Luke Whearty and Aki Nishikura’s session at Operation Dagger in Ann Siang Hill.

Coffeetag is one of the many non-chain coffee shops opening around the city. There was trend for such shops popping in the mid 90s to the early 2000s but many of those enterprises didn’t quite work out.

Of late, there seems to be a resurgence and plucky new cafes are seen again around the city. Coffeetag has a modern minimalist feel to it, with a simple “#tag” in a bold white font as its signage. The interior has a very fashionable, Instagram-friendly, concrete and steel decor.

The breakfast menu is available from 10am to 12.30pm and they offer some nice items on the menu.

I picked the Big Breakfast (RM22), a set that comes with a free flow of hot black coffee or tea.

If you have been to Ipoh, you would know how warm the mornings can get, and I asked for an iced coffee.

My server was a tad reluctant to give me ice cubes and had to ask his boss for the OK.

“The coffee, I can make it into ice,” he tells me after talking to his boss. “But this is for you only today, other people cannot.”

I must have been wearing my best tee.

My meal came and the presentation was really impressive. It is true what they say, we first eat with our eyes, and the plateful of yellows, reds and greens was visually inviting.

Scrambled eggs, baked beans, franks, slices of ham, a portion of cubed roast potatoes, two large slices of bread and a nice garden salad drizzled with a light vinaigrette on the side, it all looked delicious.

The eggs were nice and fluffy and the rest was good too. Nothing too fancy, but adequate and satisfying for a lazy morning.

Good enough, I thought, to come back the next day and try another item on the menu.

The next morning’s breakfast was even better.

To not put the poor waiter in the same predicament, I ordered an iced latte to go with my Mushroom Toast (RM15).

features mid-range restaurants where one can eat well within this budget. It’s usually a meal for one – but when we’re lucky, we find places where two or three can eat for that price.

The plate looked delicious when it came. Sandwiched between two thick slices of savoury toast was a hearty filling. Nearly bursting out of the bread was a nice stuffing of roasted mushrooms, scrambled eggs and greens. Served on the side was a garden salad, this time with cut olives and candied cherries.

The different shrooms paired well with each other – aromatic with a hint of garlic and butter. The eggs finished the sandwich nicely and very soon I couldn’t take another bite.

In the end, I just picked at my salad, sipped my latte and wondered if I should return the next day for breakfast.

People with deep roots in Javanese culture treasure jenang as a ritual in support of family welfare. It is woven into the stages of life of Javanese people, even from the moment of conception, to little milestones in children’s lives and to the time they get married.

“For the Javanese community, jenang is a symbol of prayer and hope and a bringer of spiritual fervor,” said Slamet Raharjo, a patron of the Indonesian Jenang Foundation.

Despite having an important role in various life celebrations for Javanese people, the value of jenang is declining in the midst of modern life. It is getting hard to find jenang sellers and the dish is increasingly associated merely with kids’ snacks or comfort food for sick people.

“Its cultural, spiritual and traditional value should thus be reintroduced,” Slamet, the owner of Omah Sinten Hotel Heritage in Surakarta, said.

For this reason, Surakarta organized the Jenang Festival in mid-February, the fifth since 2012. Held to mark the anniversary of the city, the festival highlighted jenang’s philosophical value of slametan, or thanksgiving.

During the festival, around 20,000 packs of jenangwere distributed to festival visitors in Ngarsopuro. Unlike in previous years, this year’s festival proudly displayed 36 varieties of jenang from 15 cities.

“We also have different kinds of jenang, including that from Papua, South Sumatra, West Kalimantan, East Kalimantan, Sundanese jenang [West Java] and even from Timor Leste,” festival organizer Heru Prasetyo said.

Some types of jenang are still used in traditional ceremonies in Java.

Ronggojati Sugiyatno, an observer of Javanese culture from Surakarta, said one such type was jenang abang putih (red and white jenang), which symbolizes the conception of man. The female seed is represented by red and the male seed by white.

“The red-white variant is always present in traditional rituals, often called jenang keselamatan, bringing security,” he said.

The one-time spiritual advisor to the late king of Surakarta Paku Buwono XII mentioned another type not to be ignored: four-color jenang of red, white, yellow and green. This jenang symbolizes man’s states of desire, in which red means greed, white is a calm mind, yellow an unstable soul and green a materialistic urge.

“There’s also jenang sumsum, white porridge served as part of a thanksgiving ceremony. It’s believed to be capable of restoring physical vigor after getting tired,” he said.

Sri Lestari, 65, who has been engaged in the jenang business for decades, attributes modern people’s unfamiliarity with jenang’s philosophy to the fact that it is not a snack for daily consumption like noodles and cakes.

“In traditional markets not many people sell jenang, but it can still be easily found,” said Lestari.

In her business, Lestari focuses on catering for traditional events like wedding parties, mitoni (seven-months of pregnancy) thanksgiving rituals, birth ceremonies and other Javanese celebrations.

Surakarta historian Heri Priyatmoko said jenang still exists today because the community still believes in its philosophical values.

Its presence in Javanese rituals, according to Heri, contributes to its survival. Jenang is even found inSerat Centhini and Serat Bauwarno of the 19th century, classical texts of Javanese culture. The types used for rituals are documented in Javanese literature expert Padmosusastro’s book of protocol from the early 20th century.

Although jenang remains a part of traditional ceremonies, Heri agrees that it is losing its function as a daily snack. “It’s obviously been bumped by pizza, cakes or ice cream as a consequence of modernity,” he said.

The festival is expected to boost jenang’s popularity and become a way of documenting and preserving the dish.

“I wish such local and unique cooking as jenang could enter star-rated hotels and become a typical menu favorite served in its original form with banana leaves. Hotel owners will hopefully respond to this traditional culinary delight,” Surakarta Mayor FX Hadi Rudyatmo said.

Jenang comes in various flavors with its predominantly sweet and piquant tastes. Its diverse flavors are formed by the complementary ingredients used in its preparation like coconut milk, liquid palm sugar, bananas, sweet potatoes and corn.

“Formerly, jenang was served in pincuk [folded banana leaves] and eaten using suru [banana-leaf spoons]. This way of eating is now very rarely practiced,” said Amborowati, 45, a visitor to the festival.

The private-bank employee said that as a child she had eaten jenang for breakfast, which despite eating small portions, she claimed filled her up due to its high carbohydrate, sugar and protein content.

“Now I can no longer have it because jenang isn’t sold in many places. My children prefer bread and milk, which may be more practical,” added the mother of two.

I would like to nominate the humble minced pork noodles.

It can be found everywhere in hawker centres, coffee shops and food courts, but a good one is hard to find. That is because it takes skill to get the texture of the noodles just right, to properly balance the condiments that make up the sauce and to cook the pork perfectly.

MacPherson Minced Meat Noodles, in a coffee shop at the corner of Serangoon Road and Opal Crescent, gets it all right.

I am late to the game. My friends have been going for years but after checking it out some months ago, it has been difficult not to plot a visit there when I’m in the neighbourhood.

Singaporeans are equal opportunity eaters who are as comfortable in a humble coffee shop as they are in a high-end restaurant. This is on full display at the coffee shop, where some customers roll up in luxury cars with drivers in tow.

At 7.30am, the place is more than half filled and regulars know to order a yellowtail fish cake ($2) to nibble on while waiting for the noodles. The torpedo-shaped fish cake is softer than most and tastes more of fish than flour but I would rather save space for the main dish – minced pork noodles ($4).

My noodle of choice is never mee pok because the noodles are so thick and wide that they are all I taste, rather than the sauce and the other ingredients in the bowl.

Mee kia, skinny noodles, is what I usually order, but the version this stall uses is thicker than usual.

So my default choice here is mee sua, wheat noodles that are usually cooked for birthday celebrations. Usually, the noodles are too salty and clumpy but at this stall, they are just about perfect.

Each noodle strand is slicked with the perfect balance of soya sauce, chilli and black vinegar. I never have to ask for extra vinegar because the sauce has plenty of zing. There is no clumping, no mush- iness. It makes me fall in love with what I think of as a stodgy noodle.

Thick slices of pork, just cooked, have a natural sweetness. Other goodies include two slices of pig liver, sliced fish cake, a chewy fish dumpling and stewed mushrooms.

When I am ravenous, I also order a bowl of fishballs and fish dumplings ($3.50). Despite their chewy texture, there is something very compelling about the translucent fish dumplings. I do wish they are more plump though.

The fish balls are smaller than at other places but like the fish cake, taste more of fish than flour.

Morning is the best time to go. It is cooler, especially when there is a breeze blowing. The place is packed at lunch time and although the closing time is 2pm, the smart eater will get there at about 1pm or risk not having any noodles at all.

The newly opened One Fine Day, located within Kelapa Gading’s now barren Gading Batavia entertainment area, is a coffee house in disguise — a hang pad where coffee enthusiasts of any background can wind down while sipping on a cup or two of freshly brewed beans.

Considering its location, that the café attracts as many visitors as it does is testament to the strength of positive word-of-mouth.

One Fine Day co-owner Bonar Marlens’ passion for coffee is a matter of happenstance.

As a younger man, the 33-year-old was all about the sweets, constantly snacking on saccharine treats and syrupy drinks. In his 20s, he was diagnosed with diabetes. This, he says, forced him to seek a substitute vice.

Bonar’s uncle had a hobby of brewing amazing quality coffee at home and soon enough, Bonar, who had previously been unable to stand the taste of coffee, was drawn in.

He began to learn about the different tastes of coffee — from the variety of beans to the various details of brewing.

In a way, Bonar explained, he challenged himself to develop an obsession with something that had no sweetness element.

From there on, Bonar became a coffee-devotee. He never sweetens his coffee.

It wasn’t until he found a fitting business partner in Vega, an old high-school friend, that One Fine Day was born. The name came from a term that Bonar used on a sticker that decorated his cars.

“The difference between us and most other, what you’d call ‘coffee houses’, is that we also offer a slew of other fancy drinks. We don’t solely rely on coffee,” explains Bonar, who is open to encouraging visitors to try out the many other coffee houses around the Kelapa Gading area — many of which are run by acquaintances.

He did acknowledge what makes One Fine Day stand out.

“Our coffee won’t make your stomach growl. We don’t roast our own coffee here, so we rely on our own personal taste to blend. For instance, we utilize a medium roasting method for our house blend of Gayo and Java.”

Amid its comfortable, industrial-styled décor — classic decoration mixed nicely with brick walls and a good amount of self-made lights décor and tables — One Fine Day also boasts a selection of meals and serves an assortment of flavored and classic teas, as well as flavored latte.

“We’ve got pork grilled cheese; our ‘Breakfast for Champion’ consis ts of pork meatballs, stuffed with mozzarella cheese and Bolognese sauce, sunny side up and croutons — Those are some of our customers’ favorite dishes,” Bonar says proudly.

Every visitor to One Fine Day should try two of the cafe’s best drinks: “Our strong Piccolo, served warm with milk and our Iced Taro Latte, which a lot of people love.”

Narisawa in Tokyo, Japan retained its second spot, while Restaurant Andre in Bukit Pasoh Road climbed to third spot, up from fifth last year. It is the highest-ranked Singapore restaurant on the list.

Making their debut on the list were two Singapore restaurants. Corner House in the Singapore Botanic Gardens came in at No. 17 , while Wild Rocket in Upper Wilkie Road was at No. 38 position.

Seven other Singapore restaurants were also on this year’s list. They are Waku Ghin at No. 6, up from nine last year; Les Amis at 12, up from 13 last year; Burnt Ends at 14, up from 30 last year; Shinji by Kanesaka at 21, up from 32 last year; Jaan at 29, down from 11 last year; Tippling Club at 31, up from 36 last year; and Iggy’s at 36, down from 18 last year.

Home-grown pastry chef Cheryl Koh of the Les Amis Group was also named Asia’s Best Pastry Chef.

The results were announced at a gala award ceremony at Bangkok’s W Hotel earlier tonight. The awards, which celebrates the best restaurants in the region, is in its fourth edition. They were given out in Singapore in the first three years.

Australian chef David Thompson, who heads Thai restaurants Nahm in Bangkok and Long Chim in Marina Bay Sands, received The Diners Club Lifetime Achievement Award at the ceremony.

Other accolades that have been handed out last month include Asia’s Best Female Chef which went to Chef Margarita Forés, who runs Cibo, a chain of Italian restaurants in The Philippines, and French-Japanese restaurant Florilège in Tokyo, which received The One To Watch Award, which recognises up-and-coming restaurants.

The list is determined by The Diners Club Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants Academy, which comprises more than 300 professionals in the restaurant industry across Asia, such as food writers and critics, chefs and restauranteurs.

The Asian list is an offshoot of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants, which is also published by William Reed Media Group. The World’s list is expected to be announced in New York City in June.

kengohsz@sph.com.sg

HERE’S THE FULL LIST OF THIS YEAR’S WINNERS:

No. 1 – GAGGAN Bangkok, Thailand

No. 2 – NARISAWA Tokyo, Japan

No. 3 – RESTAURANT ANDRÉ Singapore

No. 4 – AMBER Hong Kong, China

No. 5 – NIHONRYORI RYUGIN Tokyo, Japan

No. 6 – WAKU GHIN Singapore

No. 7 – ULTRAVIOLET BY PAUL PAIRET Shanghai, China

No. 8 – NAHM Bangkok, Thailand

No. 9 – INDIAN ACCENT New Delhi, India

No. 10 – LUNG KING HEEN Hong Kong, China

No. 11 – HAJIME Osaka, Japan

No. 12 – LES AMIS Singapore

No. 13 – 8 1/2 OTTO E MEZZO BOMBANA Hong Kong, China

No. 14 – BURNT ENDS Singapore

No. 15 – MINGLES Seoul, South Korea

No. 16 – L’EFFERVESCENCE Tokyo, Japan

No. 17 – CORNER HOUSE Singapore

No. 18 – FU HE HUI Shanghai, China

No. 19 – ISSAYA SIAMESE CLUB Bangkok, Thailand

No. 20 – QUINTESSENCE Tokyo, Japan

No. 21 – SHINJI BY KANESAKA Singapore

No. 22 – JUNGSIK Seoul, South Korea

No. 23 – EAT ME Bangkok, Thailand

No. 24 – TAKAZAWA Tokyo, Japan

No. 25 – MINISTRY OF CRAB Colombo, Sri Lanka

No. 26 – SUSHI SAITO Tokyo, Japan

No. 27 – THE CHAIRMAN Hong Kong, China

No. 28 – MR AND MRS BUND Shanghai, China

No. 29 – JAAN Singapore

No. 30 – LE MOÛT Taichung, Taiwan

No. 31 – LA MAISON DE LA NATURE GOH Fukuoka, Japan

No. 32 – TIPPLING CLUB Singapore

No. 33 – TENKU RYUGIN Hong Kong, China

No. 34 – FOOK LAM MOON Hong Kong, China

No. 35 – ROBUCHON AU DÔME Macau, China

No. 36 – IGGY’S Singapore

No. 37 – DEN Tokyo, Japan

No. 38 – WILD ROCKET Singapore

No. 39 – GALLERY VASK Manila, Philippines

No. 40 – L’ATELIER DE JOËL ROBUCHON Hong Kong, China

No. 41 – BO INNOVATION Hong Kong, China

No. 42 – KIKUNOI Kyoto, Japan

No. 43 – CUISINE WAT DAMNAK Siem Reap, Cambodia

No. 44 – WASABI BY MORIMOTO Mumbai, India

No. 45 – BUKHARA New Delhi, India

No. 46 – RAW Taipei, Taiwan

No. 47 – NIHONBASHI Colombo, Sri Lanka

No. 48 – TA VIE Hong Kong, China

No. 49 – LOCAVORE Bali, Indonesia

No. 50 – LA YEON Seoul, South Korea

The croissants, which originated in Hong Kong, started making inroads here late last month, when brunch cafe Flavour Flings in Hougang started selling them.

Since then, five bakeries and cafes have jumped on the bandwagon to offer the sweet-savoury pastry.

The latest to fuel the craze is Italian deli chain Da Paolo Gastronomia, which will sell its salted egg yolk croissants from today.

It joins French patisserie chain Antoinette, Kokomama Marketplace in the School of the Arts, Bridge restaurant-bar in Seah Street and Black & Ink in Changi Road, all of which started selling the item earlier this month.

Do.Main Bakery in Tanjong Katong Road will launch its version on Saturday.

It was European bakery chain Urban Bakery in Hong Kong that started offering molten egg yolk croissants in September 2014.

Da Paolo Gastronomia’s Ms Francesca Scarpa, Antoinette’s Pang Kok Keong and Kokomama Marketplace director Francis Huang (above) with their salted egg yolk custard croissants. -PHOTO: TAMARA CRAIU

The move followed the success of its Ball Law Cowssant, a croissant topped with the crumbly cookie dough found in bo lo bao (pineapple buns). The chain sells more than 1,000 molten egg yolk croissants across its 10 outlets daily. Each croissant costs HK$22 (S$4).

Mr Rico Cheng, 30, food concept manager of Maxim’s Group, which owns Urban Bakery, says he was inspired by the popular dim sum item liu sha bao – steamed buns filled with flowing salted egg yolk custard. “We are thrilled and proud that the croissant,which was created to celebrate Hong Kong’s food culture, has become a hit in other countries too,” he says.

He adds that more tourists, mostly from Singapore and Malaysia, have been buying the pastry. The craze has also spread to Kuala Lumpur and Johor Baru in Malaysia, and Jakarta, Indonesia.

Some home-grown eateries have been quick to spot a potential hit.

Antoinette, Da Paolo Gastronomia and Kokomama Marketplace make their croissants from scratch, while the other cafes get theirs from bakeries or pastry suppliers. Most of them pipe the filling into the pastry from a hole at the top or base of the croissant.

Da Paolo Gastronomia director Francesca Scarpa, 33, says a love for liu sha bao and requests from customers prompted her to expand the chain’s croissant selection.

She says: “We use the dim sum favourite as a reference to create the taste and consistency of the custard filling, which has a touch of coconut milk.”

The chain has been nimble in adapting to food trends. It introduced its version of cronuts, a hybrid of croissants and doughnuts, in 2013, when the confection was trending in New York City.

Ms Scarpa says: “We can react fast to such trends as we can tap on our croissant-making expertise and experiment with new recipes.”

At Antoinette, sales of its liu sha croissants have doubled over the past three weeks, with 600 sold within four hours daily across its three outlets. Its chef-owner, Mr Pang Kok Keong, says the craze has sparked interest in his pastries.

“The pick-up rate of these pastries has not been as good as our cakes, but more people are interested to understand what makes a good croissant,” he says.

The chain also enjoys a spillover effect on its dine-in business, as diners order the croissants to go with their meals there.

For cafes such as Kokomama Marketplace and Black & Ink, getting in on the custard croissant trend is a way to extend their existing selection of salted egg yolk dishes, such as pizza, pasta and muffins.

Kokomama director Chris Chew, 54, says: “We have been developing croissants stuffed with red beans and matcha since November, and when the trend hit Singapore, we didn’t want to be left behind.”

While there has been an increase in walk-in sales, he says business has not risen significantly.

Mr Lawrence Ngan, 35, managing director of Bridge, which sells up to 250 croissants a day filled with salted egg yolk or truffle honey custard, says: “People from the offices nearby have been ordering up to 20 pieces at a go, but we do not sell them during dinner time as diners will be full after eating one and it makes business sense to focus on dinner service.”

As salted egg yolk custard croissants gain popularity, health experts caution against indulging in them too often.

Ms Claudia Correia, a dietitian at Raffles Diabetes & Endocrine Centre, says a plain croissant is rich in saturated fat and salt, and when salted egg yolks and custard are added, the pastry can contain about 600 calories and up to 80 per cent of a person’s daily recommended intake for saturated fats.

She says: “I recommend sharing the croissant and eating it mindfully by paying attention to your senses and body cues to reduce overeating.”

Ms Vanessa McNamara of The Travelling Dietitian says: “Those with coronary heart disease or are trying to lose weight should minimise their intake of salted egg yolk croissants.”

However, diners are still drawn to the pastry.

Digital strategist Rebecca Saw, 35, who is Malaysian and based in Kuala Lumpur, came here to try the croissants from Antoinette, after her Singapore friends told her about them.

She says: “They are my second favourite after Urban Bakery’s as they have a crisp and good pastry. However, the filling could be sweeter and it lacks the full-bodied flavour of a liu sha bao filling.”

Project manager Michelle Nah, 38, who has tried the croissants from Antoinette, Bridge and Kokomama Marketplace, was curious about the social media craze over them.

She says: “I like Antoinette’s croissants best as the custard has the most intense salted egg yolk flavour and oozes like nobody’s business.

“But I think that croissants and salted egg yolks make a weird pairing. I still prefer croissants with sweet fillings such as chocolate.”

A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Sunday Times on February 21, 2016, with the headline ’Salty-sweet, flaky-gooey and yummy’.

Compared with regular beer, craft beer offers a wider range of flavours.

Craft Singapore, an inaugural craft beer festival held as part of the i Light Marina Bay festival, hopes to shake off that snobbish image by introducing the beverage in a fun and laidback way.

Come March 4 to 6, beer enthusiasts can mingle with beer professionals from about 20 breweries, which will set up booths to showcase more than 200 craft beer and cider labels from 14 countries.

A third of these breweries will make their Singapore debut. These include Stone Head Beer from Cambodia, which will bring in beers such as Morning Monsoon, an Imperial stout brewed with coffee and coconut; and Melbourne’s Holgate Brewhouse, which carries porter beers infused with Dutch cocoa and vanilla beans. They join big names in the craft beer scene such as Brewdog from Scotland and Japan’s Hitachino Nest Beer.

Craft Singapore’s festival director Charles Guerrier, 44, notes that most drinkers see craft beers as “niche products”.

“Besides being more expensive, craft beers have more intricate and complicated flavours as they are made with more hops and malts.”

Mr Guerrier, who hopes to attract 8,000 to 10,000 visitors, adds that bringing the breweries under one roof is a convenient way to get people acquainted with craft beers.

“We’re bringing the beers to the people, instead of the other way round. They can sample the beers and chat with brewmasters to discover their preferred flavour profiles of beers.”

Each serving of beer will cost $5 to $10.

Another way of introducing craft beers is to pair them with food. There will be five booths by eateries such as Full of Luck Club, which serves Cantonese-style steamed buns with fillings such as smoked duck and salted egg yolk and prawns; and Vatos Urban Tacos, which serves Korean-Mexican food such as kimchi carnitas fries and tacos. Prices are $6 to $16 a portion.

Mr Guerrier says: “Beer pairs with food better than wine, as it has more subtle flavours and aromas that complement or contrast with food.”

For example, he notes, dark ales go well with beef and pale ales with pork, as the sweetness of the malts in the beers matches that of the meats. And the refreshing citrus- like taste of a wheat beer enhances the flavours of seafood.

Craft Singapore is an extension of Craft Beer Week, a series of craft beer events, promotions and masterclasses that has been organised by Mr Guerrier, a director at marketing company Evolve Beverages, since 2012. Progressing to a full-fledged festival is in line with the growing interest in craft beers, especially golden ale, among drinkers here.

He says: “Younger Singaporeans are travelling more or have studied in countries such as Australia, where there’s an active craft beer movement, and they have an emotional attachment to the labels they have tried there.”

Explaining the burgeoning popularity of golden ale here, he describes it as an entry-level craft beer as it is mildly sweet and not too bitter, and has more flavours than lagers.

Another palate-friendly tipple that is popular among Singapore drinkers is cider. At the festival, visitors can expect quirky flavours such as blueberry and one that has been aged in a bourbon cask for six months from American cider house Woodchuck.

There will also be 10 workshops on topics such as cooking with beer and understanding what goes into ciders and ales. The workshops are free for ticket holders. Other activities include music performances, face- painting and balloon sculpting in the festival village.

A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Sunday Times on February 21, 2016, with the headline ’Crafting a good time for drinkers’.