From The Straits Times    |

janice wong 2am opening dim sum restaurant singapore national gallery

Image: The Straits Times File

The chef-owner of 2am: dessertbar in Holland Village may be famous for her artistic sweet treats, but diners here will soon get a taste of pastry queen Janice Wong’s savoury food.

Come Aug 17, she will open her flagship Janice Wong Singapore restaurant, selling dim sum and noodles at the National Museum of Singapore at Stamford Road. The 1,500 sq ft restaurant will also serve the 33-year-old pastry chef’s repertoire of popular desserts, which have been the highlight of her nine-year career. 

Her dim sum creations will be based on her book Dim Sum: A Flour-Forward Approach To Traditional Favorites And Contemporary Creations, which was published in 2013.

“The filling of dim sum is so over-rated,” says Ms Wong, who is looking to blend a variety of flours to make the skin for her dim sum. She is in the midst of planning the menu, which includes a high tea experience that is “not your usual three-tiered deck”. 

Ms Wong says that it could be “difficult” to change the perception of diners, who would think of delectable desserts at the mention of her name.

“But I need to expand, and Singapore diners have not experienced this side of me,” says the chef, referring to her expertise in savoury food. Before setting up her dessert-centric brand, Ms Wong cut her teeth in restaurants such as Les Amis in Singapore, Alinea in Chicago, as well as Per Se in New York.

At her three-month-old Cobo House by 2am: dessertbar in Hong Kong – a farm-to-table restaurant – she serves savoury food.

The 3,000 sq ft restaurant – with a rooftop herb garden – has a full lunch and dinner menu, as well as a wide selection of desserts. Its neighbouring Artisan Room is a hip cafe serving artisan coffee. 

Ms Wong also flies frequently to Tokyo, where she owns dessert restaurant Janice Wong in the bustling Shinjuku shopping district. 

In addition to her eponymous restaurant here, Ms Wong will also open a shop selling chocolate and mochi at the Paragon later this year. Over the past few years, she has had up pop-up stores at Marina Bay Sands and Ion Orchard. 

 

This story was originally published in The Straits Times on 20 June 2016. For more stories like this, head on over to www.straitstimes.com/lifestyle.