Dr. Jehanne Ali is a medical doctor and cookbook author who is passionate about cooking healthy and wholesome meals for her family and friends. She documents the chronicles of healthy recipes and food photography in international food magazines Honest Cooking, BBC Good Food Asia, and even her own website, The Cooking Doctor (http://www.thecookingdoctor.co.uk). Her heart-healthy cookbooks are out in May 2013.
Julie spent much of her childhood helping her Nonya grandmother make Nonya pastries for sale and also cooking for her big family on weekends. Her cooking and baking styles are greatly influenced by her grandmother, who relies mainly on fresh ingredients and heritage recipes. Passionate in experimenting with more efficient ways to cook traditional dishes, Julie also enjoys fusing different baking techniques to churn out new recipes.
After completing her Diploma in Cake-Baking, Julie did not rest on her laurels and continuously strive to improve her skills by taking up courses such as Advanced Bread Making, Petits Fours and Cake Decoration. Her most recent course was at the Macaron Pastry Training Center in Bangkok under the mentorship of Chef Eric Perez, whom she credits as a huge inspiration. Besides widening her baking horizons in Modern French Baking and Chocolate Confectioneries, Chef Eric’s lifelong devotion and creativity in baking have left a deep impression on her.
For over a decade, Julie has been giving lessons in baking and cooking on a freelance basis at Julie’s Baking Lab. As a creative soul, Julie has been holding bakery classes themed around pastries and produces in different regions and styles. She contributes recipes periodically to Lianhe Zaobao under Da Jia Chu Fang column for the Chinese readers.
Geeta Lachmandas is a well-known personality in the Cooking & Wellness arena in Kuala Lumpur. Owner of Culinary Capers which started as an ordinary cooking school offering classes in many innovative cuisines she ventured into the culinary health & wellness scene only in 2012 after she brought her own weight down by following a regime of clean eating comprising mainly of whole food & whole grains. Through her “Healthy Cooking & Living “ Classes, which became very popular in 2013 & 2014 & which were a true reflection of her firm beliefs that to be healthy we must eat natural, whole & unprocessed foods avoiding the use of any artificial colourings, flavourings, additives or preservatives,.Her penchant for clean & holistic living also started her foray into yoga & daily meditation & started her journey towards uncovering her true self , letting go of the many limiting beliefs she had about herself & her fears of starting a new business. It was this empowerment that spurred her in 2015 to open up a commercial kitchen in Bukit Bintang supplying great healthy fare & clean versions of firm favourites like nasi lemak & chicken biryani to corporates, other cafes and eventual customers . She had a super successful one year of running this business but in June 2015 after a routine mammogram, Geeta was diagnosed with Stage 2 breast cancer which required immediate surgery.With no hesitation or fear, Geeta decided to close her kitchen indefinitely to concentrate on healing herself both physically & emotionally. Geeta’s positive attitude , her spirituality and her continuing enthusiasm for life as well as her already clean eating regime helped her to fight the cancer very quickly & today one year on, she is back & ready to start her new life with renewed vigour & enthusiasm. With no fear of reinventing herself once again & in line with her continuous evolution she is pursuing a 1 year intensive course at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition ( IIN ) in New York to accredit herself as a certified health coach .
So today Geeta is passionate about wanting to teach people her philosophy of holistic & natural living & her total wellness approach to health . Her mission is to make nutrition and wellness as fun & as experiential as possible through cooking classes & mind-body workshops.
Francois Mermilliod has been in the cooking industry for more than 25 years.
Born and raised in South of France, He started his culinary path at 14 years of age where he started work during his free time in the small town’s only restaurant.
He carried on by going to a 4 years long school diploma focused on cooking and restaurant management.
He then decided to travel the world. Caribbean, England, and Australia for a start, Francois decided to settle down in Singapore 20 years ago and has first worked as sous-chef in “Salut restaurant”, later to become Head Chef and opened “Au Petit Salut” (1998).
Francois has helmed the kitchen of “Flutes at the Fort” for 4 years and decided to open his first restaurant with partners in 2008 “Absinthe”
He is now the chef/owner of “Bar-A-Thym” a southern France style restaurant in Gemmill Lane.
In August 2015, Chef Felix co-founded Divine Palate and has been helming the private dining kitchen since then. There are unlimited local talented chefs in Singapore and even Asia. Being an Asian, Chef Felix wants to make a difference and promote the recognition of our homegrown chefs. Divine Palate is established as a platform for these capable and skilled chefs to present their creations for our valued guests.
For a company to succeed over the long haul, customers have to see a strong, differentiated value proposition to buy your products or services instead of a market full of alternatives. Divine Palate strives to provide an extraordinary experience for our guests at each individual event.
With over 13 years specializing in Italian cuisine, Chef Felix started his career by graduating from SHATEC and working his way up at some of the first-rated Italian restaurants, including Otto e Mezzo (3 Michelin-stars) in Hong Kong.
In March 2014, Chef Felix was awarded the prestigious Top 5 Rising Chef of the Year award at the World Gourmet Summit in. He specializes in Italian Cuisine, from regional Italian classics to modern interpretations, including Italian-Japanese fusion. His signature creations include the delectable home-made squid ink-infused pasta with Hokkaido Uni (Sea Urchin), as well as his very palatable Italian-Asian fused salted egg chocolate lava cake.
Chef Felix is the quintessential Italian chef trapped in a Chinese body. His parents are Cantonese, but his mother’s love for tomatoes and cooking give rise to his fervor about Italian cuisine. Chef Felix’s zeal for Italian food is ever strong and he draws inspiration from the very elemental and traditional aspects of Italian cuisine. He loves to share his passion and knowledge for authentic Italian delicacies with people around him.
In his 13 years as a professional chef, Chef Felix has worked with the some of the finest Italian restaurants; such as Otto e Mezzo (3 Michelin-starred Chef Bombana) in Hong Kong, ‘Zu a Ma’ with famous Chef Giacomo Gallina and with Chef Sebastian Kaiser at Four Point Sheraton Hotel in Italy, as well as local favorites Senso, Otto Italian, Sous Chef at Forlino at One Fullerton and more recently Chef de Cuisine at inITALY, Truffle Gourmet and 63 Celsius Tapas Bar & Charcoal Grill. Chef Felix is also a private chef for his gourmet clientele, offering inventive Omakase menus at its best.
David Heng – Executive Chef of Food for Thought Restaurants
David is the Executive Chef of Food for Thought, where he develops and oversees the culinary direction and kitchen operations of its restaurants. Having trained in Le Cordon Bleu Sydney, he had the opportunity to work in the varied culinary scene in both Australia and Singapore. David enjoys innovating dishes that marry familiar local flavours with Modern European techniques. He loves and hungers for fresh produce and great ingredients, and is committed to feeding good, tasty and honest food.
With over a decade of industry experience, Chef Darryl Lim is a big player in the F&B scene in Singapore.
Many may remember Chef Darryl as the head baker for the premium online kueh lapis bakery, “Kue”.
His skills extend beyond the kitchen and he works as a consultant for the F&B industry. He has previously acted as a consultant for the hip art cafe “The Orange Thimble” and as the General Manager for established restaurants and bars “SocialHaus” and “FoodBar DaDa”.
After leaving FoodBar DaDa, Darryl moved to Thailand with his wife & family to recover from a slip disc surgery and to immerse himself in Thai culture and master the skills of Thai cooking.
Today he works as a consultant for the popular Soi 55, a trendy F&B establishment selling Thai tea, coffee and street snacks in Singapore.
Chef Darryl will share with you the skills he has learnt in Thailand and a few treasured recipes he has created specially for Soi 55. He will teach you to make Thai Milk Tea, Toast Cubes with a Kaya Fondue Dip and Grilled Bananas with a Coconut Cream Dip. Chef Darryl prides himself in creating authentic recipes using only natural ingredients. The Kaya Fondue and Coconut Cream Dips are hand-made with all natural ingredients.
These drinks and snacks are a relatively simple way to impress your guests and bring a taste of the Thai street snack culture into your home.
Claire has been a huge foodie since young. As a child, she would tiptoe and check out what people were enjoying on their tables. During her teenage years, her mum introduced her to Mrs Field’s cookies. And that was it! She had to recreate them in her kitchen. Armed with her very first recipe book, Claire begins her baking journey.
After Junior College, Claire moved to Kuala Lumpur to study Hospitality. Being brought up by Malaysian parents, Claire felt the need to explore her roots despite being a true blue born Singaporean. She graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree of Hospitality and Tourism Management from Taylor’s University & Universite de Toulouse le Mirail.
When she returned to Singapore, the F&B sector was it for Claire. She has worked as a fromagère, a supermarket manager and a business manager in the wholesale industry. She was featured in a video by WDA Singapore.
Over the years, Claire’s baking skills are almost entirely self-taught with guidance from her mother. Once the teacher, her mum now takes advice from Claire herself. While Claire cooks pretty well, she enjoys creating beautiful centrepiece cakes for her friends and family more. Inspired by Australian bakers like Bakedown Cakery and Unbirthday Bakery, Claire’s specialty bakes are the decadent chocolate drip cakes topped with delicious treats.
She goes by the motto that “Cake should always taste as good as it looks! “ If she can create such beautiful and tasty cakes at home, so can you.
Joining as Group Executive Chef of The Big Idea (TBI) which includes a stable of notable and exciting dining establishments including Kinki, Fat Cow, Bedrock Bar & Grill, The Pelican Seafood
Bar & Grill, The Marmalade Pantry, The Marmalade Toast and Oriole Coffee, Boston-born Dan is well-recognised for opening some of the most respected restaurants in Asia including Rainer Becker’s London-based Zuma in Hong Kong in 2006 and M1NT Shanghai, a modern day members club which instantly topped the charts as one of Shanghai elite’s favorite eateries in 2009. His latest creation before joining TBI was as opening Executive Chef at KU DÉ TA Singapore atop the iconic Marina Bay Sands Integrated Resort in 2010.
Dan began his career in the United States at the age of 16. His culinary adventures have taken him to nearly 20 countries over five continents. Besides helming acclaimed restaurants, the enterprising chef also set up Umami Concepts, a management firm providing innovative hospitality solutions throughout Asia since 2009.
Under his leadership, Zuma Hong Kong received prestigious accolades from Condé Nast Traveler’s coveted “Hot List” to San Pellegrino’s “50 Best Restaurants in the World”. Dan is also no stranger to the media, having appeared on Channel News Asia, CCTV10, Hong Kong’s TVB, a weekly cooking segment on China Radio International and was the subject of a 52 minute film which aired on the Food Network in Asia, United States and the United Kingdom. The documentary was titled’ “A Culinary Coup: The launch of KU DE TA”.
Chris’ style of cooking is a reflection of his East and West experiences. After spending his formative years in Singapore, he lived in the U.K and ate his way across Europe. His exposure to traditional and modern European food forms the foundation for producing food that warms the heart and soul.
He aims to combine fresh ingredients with a balance of classic and modern techniques. His current home in Singapore means his dishes can be based on classical Western cuisine with the occasional Oriental twist.
Chris holds a degree from the London School of Economics and has also completed a Diploma in Culinary Arts from at-Sunrice. Additionally, he has trained under Bruno Menard, a three Michelin star chef.
Having successfully managed Ah Bong’s Italian, he is currently the chef and owner of Ah Bong goes to school – a food stall located in his daughter’s primary school that aspires to provide home-cooked healthy meals to young children.
