ORGANISING A GOURMET event in a country that imports almost all of its fresh produce can be a challenge. Even after award-winning chefs are warned of the difficulties, there can still be mishaps.
Peter Knipp, who's helping to organise the World Gourmet Summit 2005 (WGS) with the Singapore Tourism Board (STB), recalls a frustrated French chef who wanted to serve Maine lobster with a pasta dish. 'He hadn't pre-ordered, so he had to change his menu at the last minute,' he says. 'We try to warn the chefs. Some listen, some don't.
'That's why this event isn't just about how many stars a chef has,' says Knipp, a former chef who's now a food and beverage consultant. 'It's also about how well he can cook, how well he can adapt to the environment. Some chefs say they'll go to the market, as they always do, to buy their products. They don't realise that a lot of things are imported here.'
The international chefs who'll descend on Singapore in the second half of April appear to be well prepared. Bent Stiansen, executive chef of the one Michelin-star Statholdergaarden in Oslo, Norway, is working with Snorre Food to make sure all his seafood comes straight from Norway. Spanish chef Ramon Freixa, from El Raco d'en Freixa in Barcelona, says he's already ordered everything he'll need. And Norbert Niederkofler, from the Michelin-starred St Hubertus in San Cassiano, Italy, will bring along essential ingredients such as oil and spices.
Now in its ninth year, the WGS gives food lovers a chance to sample some of the finest culinary creations from around the world, while providing chefs and restaurant owners with a meeting place to discuss trends and share experiences.
The event was established as a way of positioning Singapore as a gastronomic hub, building on its melting-pot cuisines. 'We always had the mass product,' says Knipp, who was executive chef at the Raffles Hotel for five years in the 1990s. 'But we never promoted the Singapore food scene at the upper level. The WGS was established to do a number of things: to bring people to Singapore; showcase what we have; and expose our chefs and sommeliers to what's happening in the rest of the world.'
Christine S.H. Loh, the STB's assistant director of the local and international fare development division, refuses to disclose details of tourist attendance at the event, saying only that the numbers are rising annually. 'Ultimately, we hope that WGS will contribute to our efforts to establish Singapore as a premier gourmet destination,' she says. 'The summit acts as a platform for overseas and local food and beverage experts to share their expertise, and we hope this will enhance the overall culinary standard in Singapore.'