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With Restaurant Zén clinching a coveted spot on the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list this year, executive head chef Tristin Farmer shares his recipe for success in the region’s vibrant and competitive dining landscape
Restaurant Zén’s Tristin Farmer on thriving in a rapidly changing F&B industry; partygoers can continue raving even in a time of social distancing thanks to Zouk Group CEO Andrew Li
What does it take for a restaurant to stand out in Singapore’s dynamic and cut-throat F&B scene? For Scottish chef Tristin Farmer, who has worked in the kitchens of celebrity chefs such as Gordon Ramsay and Jason Atherton, the answer is “delicious food cooked with passion”, all wrapped up into one unique dining experience.
That’s exactly what Farmer and his team offer at Restaurant Zén, the Singapore outpost of three Michelin-starred Restaurant Frantzén in Sweden. Since taking over a three-storey space on Bukit Pasoh Road in Tanjong Pagar, the restaurant has brought chef-patron Björn Frantzén’s signature Nordic kaiseki cuisine perfumed with Japanese accents to the Lion City.
While the restaurant’s DNA remains the same as its sister establishment, Farmer is quick to point out that the team has added its own touch. “We want it to feel like a Frantzén restaurant, but for sure we have our own personality and identity.”
Restaurant Zén has also taken the personalised service started by Frantzén up a notch with a “moving experience” that stretches across three floors. A first in Singapore, the dinner commences with snacks on the first floor, dinner proper on the second, and petit fours on the third.
“The idea is to take all the fuss and stuffiness out of fine dining and offer an experience where we don’t take ourselves too seriously so we can have fun with our guests,” shares Farmer. But just to be clear, the team takes its food and drinks seriously.
The unique dining concept has garnered Restaurant Zén praises from experts in the culinary world, even bagging the Best New Restaurant accolade at the Tatler Dining Best Restaurants Awards 2019/20. Last year, it debuted in the Michelin Guide Singapore 2019 with two stars and, more recently, on the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2020 list at No 28.
It’s a notable feat for the twoyear-old restaurant, and Farmer credits its success to innovation and determination—two key components that has helped the team perform at its best. Naturally, innovation is showcased through Farmer’s tasting menu, which changes depending on the seasonal produce.
“Our cooking is very ingredientfocused and uses the best possible ingredients with energy, umami and personality,” he explains. In fact, a vital part of the dinner here is an engaging presentation of the season’s bounty that will star in the evening’s sumptuous feast.
Determination is a quality expected of the staff, and Farmer is proud to be working with a talented and driven team with members bringing their fun and quirky personalities to the table. A lot of time and effort have gone into training, while pushing each other to do better.
“We are one team... there are no barriers between the front and back of house.” Other than everyone donning the same black uniform during service, the chefs undergo weekly beverage training so they can also confidently explain the alcoholic and non-alcoholic offerings to guests. The service crew is also trained on topics such as the new dishes on the menu, ingredient knowledge, as well as tableside plating, which is done for most of the dishes.
“Personal interaction is a big part of what we do, and to us, this is what defines good hospitality,” enthuses Farmer. At the end of the day, he has a simple wish: for guests to leave Restaurant Zén with a “relaxed and highenergy experience from having had great food and drinks”.
What happens in Vegas, usually stays in Vegas. But when Andrew Li, chief executive officer of Zouk Group, met Tan Min-liang, co-founder and CEO of Razer, in Las Vegas in January, what went down in the Sin City didn’t get left behind.
While they were there, both men spoke about embarking on future collaborations, for instance fitting out Zouk clubs for e-gaming tournaments or incorporating Razer’s technology at Zouk’s Red Tail social bars. “He’s a huge disruptor in his field and we have a lot in common in trying to push the boundaries,” says Li.
When Covid-19 hit, an opportunity arose for the two companies to put some of their plans into action. Inspired by how clubs in China would live stream performances at the peak of the country lockdown in February, Li had already begun to float the idea of doing something similar in Singapore. In March, when the government announced the closure of entertainment venues, Tan reached out to launch a cloud clubbing initiative.
Together with live streaming platform Bigo Live, which Razer has a partnership with, Zouk would curate a series of closed-door DJ sets that would stream exclusively on the app. “We felt the combination of Razer’s technology and our expertise in music would encourage people to stay home, while still giving them a community experience of clubbing,” says Li. In the Razer channel on the app, users can interact with the DJS and each other via the live stream chat and also use its functions to purchase and send virtual gifts, such as “beans” or “stickers”.
The first session, streamed at the end of March, garnered 200,000 views over three hours, with 5,600 people from Singapore and the region watching at once at its peak. There are already plans to expand programming by streaming acts on Fridays and Saturdays, and to rotate the line-up with different genres of music and types of performing artists.
“To be honest, there’s no nightlife now, so people who would normally go out are now interacting with each other in the virtual sphere,” Li observes.
It also makes business sense for Zouk to offer streaming services. A portion of the proceeds from virtual gifts that users send via the app will be paid to the DJS and offset the production costs of closed-door
acts. “There’s also a branding play— when you have a certain amount of people coming online to watch you, you could take the partnership and sponsorship route,” Li observes, noting that alcohol partners, including Martell, have already expressed interest in participating.
For now, the immediate aim is to encourage social distancing by building its online community— the monetary aspect of this endeavour will be implemented later, says Li. The company is also giving back by donating a small portion of proceeds to fund the donation of food items to Singapore’s healthcare workers.
While cloud clubbing is still in its nascent stages, this could be a permanent fixture after the restrictions are eventually lifted. “This situation has spurred us into moving into the online universe and I think it will be here to stay. We could have a Zouk clubbing channel for our clubs in Malaysia and Las Vegas, and on our cruise ships. So the next time we have a DJ like Armin van Buuren or Marshmello in one club, we can live stream the act to our communities around the world,” says Li.
Still, he admits to being “a bit old school” at heart and believes that streaming probably won’t permanently replace in-person clubbing. He says, “You can’t beat the energy and human interaction of having people in a club and reacting to the music together. Or when you are at Zoukout [the annual outdoor dance festival in Sentosa] with thousands of people, and standing at the beach at sunrise the morning after with the wind blowing in your face. You can’t get that online.”