https://www.scmp.com/rss/516670/feed Tan Pin Yen writes about entertainment, travel, and food in both English and Chinese. She finds herself learning and thriving in the interviewer's seat, thanks to her previous work and experiences as Food Correspondent for Lianhe Zaobao in Singapore and as Content Director for Michelin Guide Digital, Asia. She believes the answers are seeking the questions and she intends to ask the right ones to create content that moves. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Tan Pin Yen Tan Pin Yen Chaoshan, a region in the eastern part of China’s Guangdong province, is known for its unique culture and food. For chef Huang Jinghui, the essence of the region’s cuisine is rooted in the salt air of Huilai county, on the coast just south of Shantou. Growing up near Huilai’s historic Shenquan Port, he would listen to his grandmother’s stories of families who, unable to afford cooking oil, relied on sa sek: the method of boiling catch directly in seawater. This necessity gave birth to the... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3335042/best-things-eat-chaoshan-china-food-paradise-guangdong-province?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3335042/best-things-eat-chaoshan-china-food-paradise-guangdong-province?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 03 Dec 2025 23:15:14 +0000 Tan Pin Yen Tan Pin Yen Waist-deep in the heart of a vast, 3,290-acre (1,330-hectare) mudflat, I plunge my arm into the glistening sludge, my fingers sifting through the cool, dense muck until I feel a sharp shell. “There, see those?” says a woman in her fifties, her cheeks dusted with freckles, as she gestures to tiny breathing holes dotting the slick mud. I hold up my prize, but she shakes her head, takes it and cracks it open to reveal an empty shell. Then, in one smooth motion, she reaches back into the mud, pulls... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3329105/best-things-eat-putian-culinary-gem-fujian-china-and-where-eat-them?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3329105/best-things-eat-putian-culinary-gem-fujian-china-and-where-eat-them?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 16 Oct 2025 23:15:09 +0000 Tan Pin Yen Tan Pin Yen The Black Pearl Restaurant Guide, seen as China’s answer to the Michelin Guide, recently held its first overseas awards ceremony. The event, in Singapore, signals the ambition of its publisher for the guide to make a global mark. At a ceremony on April 25 at Singapore’s Marina Bay Sands complex, Black Pearl’s Master Chef Award was presented to Sebastien Lepinoy of Singapore’s Les Amis, which has three Michelin stars, in recognition of his decades of work showcasing French culinary excellence in... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3309071/why-black-pearl-restaurant-guide-2025-awards-ceremony-singapore-was-coming-out-party?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3309071/why-black-pearl-restaurant-guide-2025-awards-ceremony-singapore-was-coming-out-party?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 05 May 2025 08:15:08 +0000 In December 2024, the Michelin Guide shone a spotlight on Fujian province in southeast China for the first time, announcing its Bib Gourmand and restaurant selections for the cities of Xiamen, Fuzhou and Quanzhou. The guide covers 69 establishments, including five awarded a Michelin star, 47 Bib Gourmand restaurants that serve good-value gourmet meals, and 17 “Michelin Selected” locations – places that demonstrate good-quality cooking but are not yet at a level to merit a Bib Gourmand or... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3294709/michelin-guide-shines-light-fujian-cuisine-we-sample-best-food-xiamen?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3294709/michelin-guide-shines-light-fujian-cuisine-we-sample-best-food-xiamen?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 15 Jan 2025 04:45:08 +0000 “I told my wife I would get an MC [medical certificate] to stay out of the event,” recalls Edward Chong, executive Chinese chef of Peach Blossoms at Parkroyal Collection Marina Bay in Singapore. It was June 27, 2023. The event Chong wanted to avoid was the Michelin Guide Singapore awards ceremony, which was being held at the hotel where he worked. That evening, the city state’s top chefs and hospitality professionals would be there to hear if they had received, retained or lost Michelin stars... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3265274/no-michelin-star-no-problem-chef-peach-blossoms-singapore-forging-his-path-and-finding-recognition?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3265274/no-michelin-star-no-problem-chef-peach-blossoms-singapore-forging-his-path-and-finding-recognition?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 04 Jun 2024 23:15:10 +0000 As Typhoon Koinu battered Hong Kong on October 9, 2023, forcing the Hong Kong Observatory to issue a No 9 storm alert, 69-year-old chef Peter Tsang was whipping up another storm in the kitchens of the Wan Chai Convention and Exhibition Centre on Hong Kong Island. Typhoon or not, the culinary maestro rallied chefs to give their best for the seventh International Master Chef Charity Gala Dinner in Hong Kong attended by 2,000 guests. In the end, more than HK$10 million (US$1.3 million) was raised... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3263363/they-call-him-boss-now-career-peter-tsang-chinese-chef-more-50-years-asian-kitchens?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3263363/they-call-him-boss-now-career-peter-tsang-chinese-chef-more-50-years-asian-kitchens?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 22 May 2024 23:15:08 +0000 “I do not think I am gifted,” says Mason Ng, when asked about how he managed to become the youngest person – and the only one from Southeast Asia – to win the Best Sommelier of Asia & Oceania award. Instead, the 29-year-old explains that his achievement is all down to simple hard work. The wine director of Park90 Group in Singapore won the 2022 title in Tokyo last November, after defeating 23 other contenders from 12 countries, and ending a multi-year streak of winners from Japan. Ng recalls... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/food-drink/article/3241879/hes-best-sommelier-asia-and-29-youngest-mason-ng-passion-wine-started-early?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/food-drink/article/3241879/hes-best-sommelier-asia-and-29-youngest-mason-ng-passion-wine-started-early?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 19 Nov 2023 23:15:15 +0000 Speaking with Korean-American restaurateur Simon Kim brings to mind Lao Tzu’s famous line from the poem Dao De Jing: “The highest form of goodness is like water.” “The restaurant business is about people. And people first,” the founder of Korean-American steakhouse Cote, whose New York and Miami outlets each have one Michelin star, explains. “Whether it’s the landlord or a billionaire, we want to meet and talk to everyone with respect.” We are meeting in one of Singapore’s newest hotel rooms at... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3239374/michelin-star-korean-american-steakhouse-cotes-creator-simon-kim-being-authentically-you-he-prepares?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3239374/michelin-star-korean-american-steakhouse-cotes-creator-simon-kim-being-authentically-you-he-prepares?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 28 Oct 2023 10:15:09 +0000 With 8.4 million Instagram followers, Cédric Grolet is one of the world’s most famous pastry chefs. His social media following has become so large that Grolet now employs a social media professional who accompanies him on work trips to assist with content development. But he admits that he doesn’t read too much of it. “Of course I am happy with the numbers, but whether it is 800,000, 1.2 [million] or 8.2 [million], there are always positive and negative sides. In fact, I stay away so as to be... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3234478/french-pastry-chef-and-mega-influencer-cedric-grolet-now-singapore-instagram-fame-and-how-his?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3234478/french-pastry-chef-and-mega-influencer-cedric-grolet-now-singapore-instagram-fame-and-how-his?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 Sep 2023 23:15:13 +0000