Bigger and better than ever, the Singapore Food Festival features more than 80 kampung-style dishes representing the best of Singaporean cuisine.
Held this year at Royal Brunei Catering’s Horizons Seafood Restaurant in Bandar Seri Begawan, diners can enjoy an array of mouth-watering dishes such as nyonya curry laksa, chilli crab, nasi lemak with sambal sotong, and Singapore Hainanese chicken rice — all served from live cooking stalls.
This year’s special draw is that the dishes are conceptualised by chefs from the famed Hjh Maimunah’s Restaurant in Singapore.
“We are excited to introduce one of our famous dishes – the tauhu telur. It’s a simple dish but it requires a lot of technique and you can’t find it anywhere here,” said chef Ismail Didih, grandson of the restaurant’s founder.
Well-known among Singaporeans for its authentic Malay cuisine, Hjh Maimunah’s has been around since 1992, growing from a small café to two restaurants and a catering service.
Many Bruneians seek out the eatery when in the city-state, searching for the comfort of traditional Malay food.
“We feel very honoured to be given this opportunity to represent Singapore and its cuisine. We keep our standards high because we love what we do, we love the dishes that we make,” said Ismail.
“For me, I eat my own food everyday, I never get tired of it. When you believe in what you do, then people will come.”
Ismail and his sister Maria were in Brunei over the weekend to train the RBC chefs on how to cook signature dishes from Hjh Maimunah’s, and they also organised a live cooking demo for lucky Baiduri Bank customers.
Ismail also welcomed collaboration with local chefs to share knowledge about Malay cuisine.
“Our belief is that sharing our culinary skills actually maintains our culture. There are no secrets in our kitchen.”
The Singapore Food Festival was launched on Saturday night by Minister of Finance and Economy II, YB Dato Seri Paduka Dr Hj Mohd Amin Liew Abdullah.
“Not everybody in Brunei will have the chance to fly to Singapore during this holiday, so we brought Singapore here for you,” said RBC’s General Manager Hj Jeff Hadiman Dato Hj Danial.
For the next two weeks, diners can indulge in Singaporean cuisine without having to use a passport.
And did we mention diners also stand to win a chance to win an all-expenses paid trip to Singapore?
There are three prizes to give away:
- 1st prize: A pair of return flights to Singapore; 3D/2N stay at Marina Bay Sands Hotel; shopping vouchers worth $1,000 at Takashimaya
- 2nd prize: A pair of return flights to Singapore; and a Crazy Rich Asians behind the scenes food tour
- 3rd prize: A pair of return flights to Singapore; tickets to the Ed Sheeran concert on April 26
The Singapore Food Festival is part of this year’s month-long Brunei December Festival.
The Singapore Food Festival at Horizons Seafood Restaurant will be held from December 1 to 23, from 7pm to 10pm daily.
Every Monday to Wednesday the buffet is priced at $24.90 per adult and $12.90 per child. From Thursday to Sunday, the buffet is priced at $29.90 per adult and $14.90 per child.
A 10 percent discount applies for RBC Dining Privilege Cardholders and Baiduri Bank Cardholders.
For reservations, contact Horizons at 2233400 and for updates, you can follow them on their Instagram page.