Robot baristas, techno-bartenders, vending machines spewing hot ramen and fresh salmon, and 3D printed gastronomy. With the shortage of labour affecting the service industries around the world, and constant rallying calls here to boost our onward march to greater productivity, it is logical that the food industry in Singapore embraces all that technology offers. And it’s becoming increasingly evident in back-end operations of central kitchens to front-of-house.
MAKING THE LOAD LIGHTER
While vending machines no longer raise eyebrows, other technology is making itself felt. In recent years, for instance, some restaurants have adopted, at its most basic, self-guided robots which bring dishes from the kitchen to diners’ tables, or transport dirty plates and platters back—much to the delight of children. Their presence brings to life images from sci-fi comic books of robots in the house. Then just last year, Singapore’s first robot restaurant Hawkee opened its doors, serving traditional hawker dishes whipped up by machines— taking a traditional old world genre into sci-fi reality. In the same year, Marina Bay Sands’ signature café SweetSpot opened its flagship outlet at the ArtScience Museum, featuring Singapore’s first commercial robotic barista developed by local entrepreneur Keith Tan. The fully automated six-axis robot makes different combinations of coffee four times as fast as a human barista. Once ready, guests collect their drink at the counter fitted with digital screens with their names on it.
Denne historien er fra March/April 2020-utgaven av WINE&DINE.
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Denne historien er fra March/April 2020-utgaven av WINE&DINE.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
New Blood
The next-generation is breathing new life into the forgotten art of spice-mixing, peppering the traditional trade with renewed ideas and fresh perspectives.
Sharing Is Caring
Compared to its flagship at Serene Centre, Fat Belly Social at Boon Tat Street is a classier and bolder affair, in more than one sense.
Nutmeg's Role In Singapore's History
From tales of it being used to ward off the plague in mid-1300s Europe to one of the ingredients in dessert, we have all known, tasted, or at least heard of nutmeg. But not many know of the spice’s role in Singapore’s history.
New And Improved
The ever-profound chef-owner Kenjiro ‘Hatch’ Hashida finds more room, three to be exact, to express a Ha Ri philosophy at Hashida Singapore’s new location at Amoy Street.
Pairing Spice-Driven Cuisines With Wine
Pairing spice-driven cuisines with wine has long been a challenge but with a little imagination, it doesn’t have to be.
Let Land Grow Wild
Niew Tai-Ran has worn many hats: aeronautical engineering major, investment banker, avid surfer, and, for the last 14 years, winemaker. Discover how this Malaysia-born, Singapore-native is championing the “do-nothing farming” philosophy at his vineyard in Oregon.
The South Asian Misnomer
Incredibly diverse and varied than most know, Indian food is far more intriguing than butter chicken or thosai. Here is a crash course on the extensive cuisine from region to region, recognisable for the seemingly infinite ways of using spices.
Keepers Of The Spice Trade
From its glory days along trade routes to pantry staples all over the world, spices have become so commonplace that we’ve taken them for granted. For these three trailblazers, however, spice is their livelihood and motivation: Langit Collective working with indigenous rural farming communities in Malaysia; IDH’s Sustainable Spice Initiative; and chef Nak’s one-woman mission to share forgotten Khmer cuisine.
Sugar, Spice And Everything Nice
Like food, spices bring vibrancy and variety to alcoholic beverages. Surfacing in unexpected ways on the palate, find everything from cumin to tamarind, cloves to cardamom enriching these drinks.
Building Blocks From The Archipelago
For the smorgasbord of dishes found in Indonesian cuisine, it is a little known secret that the modest bumbu, in all its variants, is the bedrock of such flavourful fare.
