Michelin-starred chef Andre Chiang announces retirement, closes Taipei restaurant Raw

Michelin-starred chef Andre Chiang surprised the culinary world on July 29 when he announced at a press conference in Taipei that he will retire as a chef and close his famed restaurant Raw at the end of 2024, reported Taiwanese media.

The 48-year-old Taiwanese culinary star made the announcement as Raw, which opened in December 2014, approaches its 10th anniversary. Raw is a two-Michelin-starred restaurant serving creative Taiwanese cuisine in Zhongshan district. Its popularity means it is often booked out months in advance. Raw’s last day of operations will be Dec 31.

At the press conference held at the restaurant, Chiang said: “Today, I announce my retirement from the front line of restaurants. Raw has completed its mission of leading Taiwan’s culinary scene, showing our young chefs the qualities and the standards needed to become world-class.

“As a two-Michelin-starred restaurant, we serve 30,000 diners a year and have served nearly 300,000 customers in the past 10 years. The accomplishment is unparalleled in Taiwan, Asia and the world. We are proud and will continue to uphold this spirit until our last day.”

Raw, which changes its menu multiple times a year, will begin serving its final menu, called The Last Dance, on Aug 16 until it closes on Dec 31.

Chiang added that he has plans to transition Raw from a restaurant to a culinary academy for aspiring young Asian chefs, one that can “produce 10 to 20 Michelin-starred chefs every year”.

He said: “The social status of Asian chefs has significantly improved compared with 15 or 20 years ago. However, I see a severe lack of professional education, training, creativity and global vision among young chefs, which has become the weakest link in their growth. Our industry urgently needs solutions.

“Advancing better education and continuously creating new opportunities and solutions for our industry and the next generation has become extremely important to me, more so than running a successful restaurant.”

Chiang was the chef-owner of the two-Michelin-starred French fine-dining establishment Restaurant Andre in Singapore. It was once No. 2 on the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list. He came to Singapore in 2008 and the restaurant was established in 2010. It closed in 2018 after he announced his decision to return to Taiwan.

He said that while customers will no longer get to taste his food after his retirement, Restaurant Andre and Raw made him immensely proud.

“For the past 40 years, I have been committed to bringing the best Asian flavours to the world, and striving to be an ambassador for this beautiful Asian landscape, showcasing our proud culture to the world. In the past 20 years, I’ve created 14 restaurant concepts,” he said.

“A monumental task that included building my two culinary temples: Restaurant Andre in Singapore and Raw in Taipei. These establishments have operated at total capacity for two decades, putting Singapore and Taiwan on the global culinary map. And this journey has been the most fulfilling of my life, and I’m proud to say that I have achieved the goal that I set for myself.”