SINGAPORE – Since the 1970s when international five-star hotel chains like Hilton and Sheraton started opening in Singapore, food and beverage (F&B) offerings have always been at the forefront of these operations. Their restaurants drew local diners, shored up profit margins and won accolades and awards along the way.

In the early days, their F&B operations were dominated by Western executive chefs, often from countries like Germany and Switzerland, as there were no local chefs with the requisite experience to run a hotel’s massive kitchen operations.