Feast on this

SINGAPORE — While we seldom need a new reason to tuck into dishes we’ve grown up with, a new look at ways to celebrate these familiar cravings is always welcome. This year’s Singapore Food Festival, running from July 15 to 31 and themed Savour The Past, Taste The Future, aims to do just that. A record number of 18 curated gastronomic experiences offers food lovers a chance to indulge in a culinary journey that spans the different ages — from the nostalgia of dining on a shophouse-lined street to the contemporary experience of an outdoor barbeque in a gastro-park.

“The Singapore Food Festival has been carrying the torch for Singapore’s vibrant food legacy since 1994,” said Ranita Sundra, director of attractions, dining and retail, Singapore Tourism Board. “After 23 years, it is still the only food festival in Singapore to feature local flavours and showcase the inventive spirit of our ever-evolving food scene.”

Speaking of culinary innovations, the festival’s signature event Streat at Clifford Square (July 15 to 16) will feature a collaboration between international celebrity chef Susur Lee, Tunglok Heen’s senior executive chef Ken Ling and Restaurant Labyrinth’s chef-owner Han Liguang. The three will helm a pop-up restaurant serving a five-course dinner menu that promises to elevate Singapore’s iconic street food. The weekend event will also showcase an eclectic mix of restaurants from Char to Casuarina Curry Restaurant, as well as Candlenut and The Disgruntled Chef.

The 50 Cents Fest (July 30 and 31 at Chinatown Food Street on Smith Street) will recreate the nostalgia of dining at shophouse-lined streets, complete with street buskers and lively music from Singapore’s ’50s. And yes, 18 dishes will be sold at 50 cents each, to evoke the spirit of the ’50s and ’60s. The 18 dishes include tasting portions of char kway teow and deep-fried oyster cake.

You might also want to keep a lookout for the roving Chatterbox food truck, which will be hawking new versions of its chicken rice — in rice makis and hand-rolls. The food truck will be going around Timbre+, One Raffles Place and the heritage precinct on Car-Free Sunday.

The Singapore Favourite Food Village (July 22 to 31 at the Rochor event space opposite Bugis Junction) will comprise three zones, namely Old Favourites (for traditional local fare), Modern Takes (for mod-Sin creations) and On-The-Go. The zones will let you go gaga over 20 dishes including the currently trending Salted Egg Prata Bomb and Beef Rendang Taco Bowl. On top of all these, hawker history steps into the limelight with Hawker Spotlight: East Coast Lagoon Food Village (July 17, 3pm) as diners here get to learn about the rich history of the dishes from the owners of stalls including Eastern Red Seafood and Lagoon Carrot Cake.

Serious epicureans can check out Learning Journeys, a series of events including a nyonya kueh workshop for kids and a tour of one of Singapore’s oldest bakeries, Sembawang Confectionery. You can also try a selection of kueh from Singapore’s various ethnic groups, from Teochew to Hakka to Eurasian, on Kueh Appreciation Day (July 24), held at ToTT Store. Artisan chocolatier Chef Then Chui Foong will also demonstrate Hakka kueh preparation with her mother, while Chef Daniel Tay (of Cat & the Fiddle) will demonstrate his signature yam cake under the brand he revived in his father’s honour, Old Seng Choon. Chef Pang Kok Keong of Antoinette will prepare traditional Hakka dishes such as yam abacus seeds.

Are you feeling hungry yet?