Joël Robuchon shuts down two restaurants in Singapore, but city’s fine dining ‘not in danger’
An ex-Robuchon chef suggests the Singapore closures may be due to the restaurants’ location in Resorts World Sentosa and the cost of importing high quality produce. Robuchon’s outlets in other countries remain unaffected
There was shock in Singapore foodie circles on Thursday morning with the news that celebrity Michelin chef Joël Robuchon is closing both Joël Robuchon Restaurant and L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon at the end of this month in the Lion City.
Robuchon operates six restaurants and food outlets in Hong Kong, including L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon, cafes and take away bakeries as well as Robuchon au Dome in Macau’s Grand Lisboa hotel.
He was named the Chef of the Century in 1989 and has been awarded 31 Michelin stars for his restaurants around the world, more than any other chef. In 1995 he retired from cooking at 50, but he didn’t stay out of the kitchens for long.
“I helped build the place up – I was there before anything was there,” the German-born chef says, referring to the area where the two restaurants are located along with a group of other fine dining restaurants at Resorts World Sentosa.
“In 2016 [when Michelin published its first Singapore guide] we got two Michelin stars for L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon and three stars for Joël Robuchon Restaurant, and the same the following year. All the staff I hired and trained are still there.”
