Meet The New League Of Private Chefs

Meet the new league of private chefs: Passionate individuals who cook and serve in their own home, and yours.

- Koh Yuen Lin

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you would have noticed the rise and rise of private kitchens in Singapore. The chefs of these largely home-based outfits are exceptional cooks who are often self-taught. And the best of them serve a different kind of gourmet experience – one that is polished, yet not limited by the rigidity of formal training or industry conventions; one that is just as much about you, in terms of personalised menus, as it is about the chef, with every dish telling a life story.

Yet, we understand that stepping into a stranger’s home for a meal might not be for everybody (though that is half the fun, or all, for the voyeuristic). Here, we hand-pick four private kitchen chefs who can recreate their unique cuisine in your kitchen, for a festive gathering with a difference.

ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS

Those who follow celebrity news might know them as the duo who taught Crazy Rich Asians breakout star Constance Lau how to DIY her red carpet look for the movie’s Hollywood premiere – which subsequently won the attention of Vogue.com. Here’s what most do not know, yet: Sought-after makeup artist Tinoq Russell Goh and professional hairstylist Dylan Tan are also the charming duo behind nine-month-old private kitchen @1cattynapinch.

The home-style Peranakan dishes they serve wow with their deep, comforting flavours – even though Goh, the main man in the kitchen, is of Indian-Chinese descent. Apart from his mother, who ran a canteen and has the talent of being able to recreate anything she has eaten, Goh learnt the ways of the kitchen from the Peranakan bibiks and hawkers of the kampung he grew up in. “My home was behind Starlight Cinema and my neighbours were old hawkers selling sup kambing, satay, char kway teow and the like – from them, I learnt the secrets to creating a magical taste,” shares the 53-year-old.