Insights from some of the industry’s most influential figures
MICHAEL MA
Founder and group CEO, IndoChine Group, Singapore
Born in Vientiane, Laos to a Thai father and a Laotian mother, Michael Ma moved with his family to Sydney when he was a boy to escape the chaos of civil war. He grew up there, later moving to Singapore in the 1990s. Initially a commodities trader, he started the first IndoChine restaurant bar at Club Street in 1999, specialising in cuisine from Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia. Since then, he has grown the brand internationally, to countries such as Germany, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and India, and exponentially, moving into resorts and hotels. Today, he oversees seven establishments in Singapore and a resort in Phuket, with expansion plans in the works.
Of his Teochew heritage, Ma says, “My family, my mother, my grandmother: we just love food. We grew up in this environment. Teochew, Hokkien, Cantonese, you name it, we eat everything.”
Along with a food-loving, fun-seeking outlook, Ma adopts a green and sustainability-conscious ethos. From day one, he has been environmentally conscious, in ways such as never serving endangered species such as blue and yellow fin tuna, shark’s fin and caviar; and adopting energy-efficient technologies.
What are the nuances between Thai, Vietnamese, Laotian and Cambodian food?
This story is from the July/August 2018 edition of WINE&DINE.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the July/August 2018 edition of WINE&DINE.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
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.
