Salute the sun
Some of the events at the Singapore Sun Festival (October 18-30) promise to broaden the horizons of epicureans. Rather than the ubiquitous wine dinners, the events integrate wine and cuisine with art, literature and wellness.
On October 22, top restaurant Au Jardin by Les Amis will host an intimate evening with author Frances Mayes, talking over cocktails about her inspirational novel Under the Tuscan Sun. A meal prepared by French celebrity chef Jean-Christophe Novelli (below)will follow. Novelli is also cooking for the Sensual Botanicals and the Food of Love brunch on October 21. The day will start with a guided tour of the Farquhar collection of natural history drawings at the National Museum of Singapore, followed by a talk on aroma therapy. Novelli's brunch will incorporate the region's flora, herbs and spices.
The Asian Herbal Remedies event, on October 28 at My Humble House, includes a talk on Asian herbs by Chinese traditional medicine expert Lee Jok-keng, followed by brunch prepared by award-winning Singaporean chef Sam Leong. The meal will incorporate Asian herbs and spices in dishes such as pan-seared scallop in fresh wai-san mousse with ginger vinegar (far right), and double-boiled free-range chicken broth with wild bamboo mushrooms and three types of ginseng.
Throughout the festival, cooking classes will be conducted by celebrity chefs such as Cat Cora, best known for her featured role in Iron Chef America on the Food Network in the US, and Darren Ho of the award-winning Terroir Restaurant at Hungerford Hill in Australia.
The Summer at the Vineyard night will consist of a gala dinner prepared by celebrity chefs Cora, Novelli and the Shangri-La's Sebastien Ehret, with a rare-wine charity auction led by Sotheby's senior auctioneer Stephen Mould. Attendees will have the opportunity to bid on wines offered with items such as VIP packages to international film festivals, dinner with movie stars and red-carpet treatment at international fashion festivals.
For more details, see singaporesunfestival.com.
