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.
For another brunch, with a South American theme, Laila is considering including demonstrations of capoeira, the dance-like martial art of Brazil.
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.
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.
Source: Themed dining experiences on trend in Singapore, Lifestyle, Food, Singapore News – AsiaOne