Singapore Food Festival turns 25 with some beer yoga, Eurasian heritage food and more

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SINGAPORE: For its 25th anniversary, the annual Singapore Food Festival (SFF) be dishing out up to 20 events, including a showcase on regional Indian dishes, a spotlight on Eurasian food heritage, some beer yoga, and even a dinner-theatre piece.

This year’s edition, which runs from Jul 13 to 29, also includes the festival’s signature event STREAT, which features, among others, a pop-up restaurant helmed by collaborating chefs Emmanuel Stroobant from Saint Pierre and Haikal Johari from Alma by Juan Amador, both one Michelin-starred restaurants.

In their first ever partnership, the chefs will be whipping up dishes such as tomato confit, warm Canadian scallop with a laksa-inspired sauce, wild sea shrimps, and a spin on Peranakan favourite buah keluak.

A dedicated bar will also be set up for the first time at STREAT. It will be run by Manhattan, which was recently awarded Asia’s Best Bar for 2018. Beers launched exclusively in conjunction with SFF will also be retailed by Singaporean craft brewery Trouble Brewing.

Also serving some delightful dishes: Hawkers and chefs from Sinar Pagi Nasi Padang, Xiao Ya Tou, CreatureS, Gayatri Restaurant, Fishball Story and Morsels.

“Over the years, the SFF has cemented its place as the marquee event on our local food calendar. This event is a celebration of our multi-cultural heritage as it is the only event in Singapore dedicated to showcasing local fare,” said Ranita Sundramoorthy, director of retail and dining for Singapore Tourism Board, which organised the event.

FOOD FOR AS LITTLE AS 50 CENTS

Other noteworthy SFF events and activities include sandwich experts Park Bench Deli’s collaborations with popular hawker stall Roast Paradise (Jul 15) and Indonesian restaurant Minang (Jul 29). Expect some east-meets-west innovations such as roast char siew banh mi and beef rendang burger.

Festival favourite The 50 Cent Fest! will be held at Smith Street from Jul 28 to 29. Chinatown Food Street will be transformed into 1930s colonial Singapore, with street hawkers and nostalgic street entertainment acts such as taxi girl performances and traditional opera.

From as little as 50 cents, fest-goers can savour authentic old-school dishes such as kerabu bee hoon (tossed rice vermicelli), fish moilee (lightly spiced creamy fish curry) and kopi gu you (a butter caramelised black coffee believed to be a popular scratchy throat remedy with opium smokers).

For those with a sweet tooth, homegrown heritage desserts company Rainbow Lapis is collaborating with a Singapore kelong, a local candy factory and a farm. Participants can learn how to make kueh using edible leaves and flowers (Jul 21 with Citizen Farm), sugars (Jul 27 with Cheng Sugar Candy Factory) and seafood (Jul 28 with Ah Hua Kelong).

INDIAN, EURASIAN AND… BEER YOGA

An SFF first will be the Great Indian Food Affair (GIFA), which will showcase regional Indian dishes. Its anchor event, CHAAT festival, will run from Jul 28 to 29 at Sayali in Little India. The two day fiesta will feature Indian street food classics such pau bhaji, sev puri, bhel and pau wada.

Also look out for Makan Cosmopolitan, a dinner-theatre production by Ape Studios, which also includes a menu by Chef Roy from Escobar.

Eurasian heritage cuisine will be in the spotlight, with special activities at the Eurasian Association and Quentin’s Eurasian Restaurant. Chef Quentin Pereira will be demonstrating how to cook his signature corned beef cutlets dish. Special bento boxes featuring Eurasian dishes such as curry debal and prawn bostador will also be available.

For a quirkier foodie experience, there is Beer Yoga & Citylights, where one can enjoy an hour of yoga as well as a bottle of limited-edition SFF-branded beer from Singaporean craft brewery Trouble Brewing.

The Singapore Food Festival 2018 runs from Jul 13 to 29. For more information, visit the website here.