What: Home-based private dining at Katong with a menu focusing on Japanese, Spanish and Italian flavours. Its inaugural run in Sept featured gyoza, ramen, and beer pairings. 

Who’s behind it: (From left) Head chef Meiwen Tan, a home cook who trained at the Tokyo Sushi Academy; Nicholas Anand Pereira, who’s sous chef and in charge of operations; and Isabelle de Braux manages the front of house and marketing. Pereira and de Braux are also part of travel company Amala Destinations. 

Why bother: All three founders are Katongers from birth, and position the dining experience as embodying the laid-back spirit of the area. This means unhurried meals, casual conversations and a sense of community. Even if you’re not a Katong native, the globally-inspired, ever-changing menu is sure to entice. 

How to book: Message them on Instagram at @katongdiner. A six-course meal costs $150 per person. They are booked through January 2021, but are working towards a new concept in February.

Chef’s recommendation: Cote de beouf – a decadent hunk of meat, mellowed by an Asian marinade for a longer finish.

Chef’s recommendation: Gyoza. Juicy, well-filled dumplings that are charred and steamed. Designed to be eaten with questionable amounts of highballs.

Chef’s recommendation: Okonomiyaki KD is a blend of funky taleggio and savoury guanciale blanketed by the familiar flavours of a traditional okonomiyaki.

Chef’s recommendation: Ramen KD features house-made noodles, eight-hour stewed chashu and a rich bone broth simmered over two days.

What: A pop-up restaurant using the space of a defunct steamboat eatery. The main specialty is grilled and barbecued grub, accompanied by a variety of wines and craft beers. 

Who’s behind it: (From left) Chefs Shane Gan and Marcus Tan, who met at Cheek by Jowl (now Michelin-starred Cheek Bistro) in 2016. Tan also worked at the Michelin-starred Candlenut, while Gan has been with restaurants like Le Bon Funk, Ester Restaurant in Sydney and Lagoon Dining in Melbourne. 

Why bother: This is for lovers of hearty, no-nonsense fare cooked over fire and smoke. You normally assume Western cuisine when such cooking methods come to mind, but Firebrand’s offerings are slanted towards Southeast Asian and East Asian flavours. Think sambal crab fried rice, Japanese sea bream, and chicken betutu. 

How to book: Hit them up on Instagram at @firebrand.sg or text at 8356-4580. Food is served ala-carte style with small plates costing $10 to $20 and larger plates priced at $30 to $50. The pop-up runs through Nov 29 this year.

Chef’s recommendation: Brown rice pudding with chrysanthemum tea and goji berries.

Chef’s recommendation: Cold smoked prawns.

Chef’s recommendation: Grilled iberico pork chop with sambal chimichurri and pickled chayote.

Chef’s recommendation: Smoked beef tongue with green sauce and homemade lotus leaf bun.

What: Home private dining with dishes inspired by its founder Eugene Sito’s love for cooking over a fire. The alfresco dinners are held on the roof terrace of his parents’ home.

Who’s behind it: Eugene Sito, a recent SIM UOL graduate and self-taught chef who has been cooking since the age of 14. He currently works full time at his dad’s automation business and does private dinners every weekend.

Why bother: The dining experience is cosy and communal, which means rubbing elbows with strangers and clinking wine glasses with friends by the end of the night − as Sito describes it.  Smoke and fire are incorporated into dishes like wagyu rump and smoked short ribs. Oh, and did we mention he’s booked out till March 2021?

How to book: Via Google form on The Humble Pit’s Instagram profile at @thehumblepit. Meals are priced at $80 per person and Sito is working to open up more dining slots come Phase 3.

Chef’s recommendation: Wagyu rump; the meat is first smoked then finished over hot coals and served with yuzu kosho sauce.

Chef’s recommendation: Smoked sio bak features pork belly that has been cured like bacon, then roasted with lychee at a low temperature for hours.

Chef’s recommendation: Smoked chicken paitan – the meat is smoked then boiled aggressively for eight hours and then served with homemade wholewheat noodles.

Chef’s recommendation: Smoked buttermilk biscuits. The flour and butter are barely held together by smoked buttermilk.

What: Private dining concept with a focus on Southeast Asian cuisine. The seven-course meals include free-flow cocktails by home-based mixologist Melissa Koh (@buttercupmixes). The Matriach’s Kitchen also conducts cooking classes featuring Thai and local food.

Who’s behind it: Chef Jazmyn Widjaya, who took a three-year hiatus from the private dining and food catering scene to start a digital business. After losing many clients during the pandemic, Widjaya decided to channel her creative energies toward cooking classes and private dining again.

Why bother: Widjaya’s keen eye for design makes this more than a typical home dining session. From intricate table settings to perfectly framed prints and well-paired candle scents, the experience is visual and aesthetic as much as it is gastronomic. Her  Cook & Dine sessions also teach attendees how to host the perfect meal (yes, this includes decor and food presentation).

How to book: Sessions may be booked through the website. Prices depend on the number of guests, and a meal costs $600 for five persons.

Chef’s recommendation: Kueh pie tee. The traditional dish is served with home-made red chilli paste and other condiments.

Chef’s recommendation: Modern fruit rojak. This dish features citrus rojak paste served with all the chef’s favourite fruits.

Chef’s recommendation: Mussels – done with spicy tom yum and green lipped mussels.

Chef’s recommendation: Pineapple fried rice served with squid floss and cashew nut toppings.

What: A social initiative featuring pop-up dining and home-based food delivery. Diners are invited to taste the heritage of the Orang Laut, sea-faring tribes who lived around Singapore and the Riau archipelago.

Who’s behind it:  Firdaus Sani, a 32-year old and fourth-generation Orang Laut. Firdaus started the business two months ago as a passion project to preserve the heritage of his grandparents who inhabited Pulau Semakau (now Semakau Landfill).

Why bother: While the food offered may be found in many Malay households, Firdaus hopes to tell the story of the Orang Laut people so it never gets forgotten in time. Dishes retain the preparation methods used by Firdaus’ grandparents, like grinding ingredients with a stone mortar. The initiative also held its first pop-up session in Oct to spread awareness of the Orang Laut cuisine and heritage.

How to order: Food delivery is available on weekends on their website, with sets costing $98 and $148 respectively.

Chef’s recommendation: Asam pedas – mackerel in a thick spicy and tangy tamarind broth.

Chef’s recommendation: Gulai nenas is a dish of sweet pineapples in peppery prawn broth.

Chef’s recommendation: Ketam lemak – flower crab cooked in rich and savoury coconut gravy.

Chef’s recommendation: Sotong hitam. This dish features fresh squid in savoury chili and squid ink paste.

What: Private dining at – you guessed it − Prinsep Street. Expect a five-course dinner with each meal following a specific theme like Indian or Italian. On Sundays, there’s also a collaborative three-course brunch and drinks menu with the chef’s friends in the culinary scene. 

Who’s behind it: Chef Boon Kuang (BK for short), who graduated from Le Cordon Bleu in London and worked at well-known restaurants like Salt Grill & Sky Bar, Esquina, and Meatsmith.

Why bother: With a monthly-changing menu, dinners at Prinsep are dynamic, interactive and experimental. For instance, certain dishes have key ingredients removed (last month’s theme was Italian without tomatoes) to pique diners’ curiosity. Chef BK will also share the inspiration behind his dishes, coupled with a mini feedback session afterward.

How to book: Make your reservation via Instagram at @prinsep.sg. Dinners cost between $90 and $150 per person depending on the theme and ingredients used.

Chef’s recommendation: Burrata – the whipped burrata comes with torched fruits, reduced balsamic and pistachios.

Chef’s recommendation: Butter chicken featuring chicken thigh, cabbage slaw, coconut and cashew.

Chef’s recommendation: Ceviche of yellowtail kingfish with cucumbers, snow pear and leche de tigre.

Chef’s recommendation: Ferrero Rocher. Dig into milk chocolate mousse with dark chocolate, cremeux, feuilletine snow, and feuilletine crunch.