MEET ME AT THE BAR: Savouring Wisdom

Named Asia's Best Female Chef 2023 by the Asia's 50 Best Restaurants Academy, Johanne Siy reflects on her kitchen journey, from leaving her corporate job to helming the Mediterranean-inspired restaurant Lolla

- Dawn Wong

Lolla's head chef Johanne Siy has received plenty of acclaim for her savoir-faire in the kitchen over the years. Nightly, the Filipina chef doles out her speciality dishes, such as the lightly grilled giant Spanish Carabinero prawn served with prawn jus, to an adoring audience, hungry for her prodigious creations.

According to the chef, the said dish is one that best encapsulates her culinary philosophy. "We take a top-notch ingredient that we carefully sourced, cook it simply and don't fuss around with it too much-but serve it with elements that look simple but are in fact painstakingly made with a lot of effort and love. It is mindful, respectful of nature, and understated in presentation but big on flavour," she expounds.

The year reached a thundering crescendo for her when she was named Asia's Best Female Chef 2023, a prestigious award by the Asia's 50 Best Restaurants Academy that recognises women who are pushing boundaries in gastronomy. The award, alongside others, will be presented at the Asia's 50 Best Restaurants 2023 awards ceremony held in Resorts World Sentosa this month.

Certainly, the chef and her team have done something quite revolutionary with Lolla, the Mediterranean-inspired restaurant on Ann Siang Road, and they hope to leave a legacy for future generations. She tells us more.

What prompted you to make the career switch from brand builder for Procter & Gamble to chef?

In my generation, it was never aspirational to be a chef. In fact, we discouraged were from pursuing a career in this field. It was when I moved to Singapore and became financially independent that I was exposed to a different mindset. I wanted to do something that I was passionate about and that gave me the courage to go against the grain.

During your four years at Restaurant André, what were the most important things you learned?