What to look out for in the dining scene in Singapore and around the world in 2025

1. Sugarra at Resorts World Sentosa

Chef Aitor Jeronimo Orive, who helmed the now-defunct one-Michelin-starred Basque Kitchen by Aitor, is set to return to Singapore’s fine-dining scene. This time, the Spanish-Australian chef will lead Sugarra, a Basque fine dining restaurant at Hotel Michael in Resorts World Sentosa. The tasting menus, which start from $148++ a person, features Basque-inspired dishes made with seasonal produce.

The integrated resort is undergoing a major switch-up in its F&B offerings this year, after the closure of Table65 last year. Andreas Oliver Reich, Acting Senior Vice President, F&B General Management, Resorts World Sentosa, says that “the resort is redefining its culinary landscape with the launch of distinct and innovative dining experiences in 2025. As part of our commitment to refreshing and elevating our offerings, these restaurants and new bars at RWS will captivate and delight our local and international guests with innovation and bold creations.”

Find out more here.

2. Belmond’s A Taste of Italy at Mandala Club

Extend the breezy holiday spirit with a taste of villeggiatura — the joy of embracing endless summers with Belmond’s Taste of Italy series of pop-up restaurants from January 14 to February 15.

Four of the hospitality group’s iconic hotels in Italy will set up pop-up restaurants in the private members club over two months, marking Belmond’s longest chef residency overseas. Kicking off the series, which is also open to the public, is chef Vania Ghedini (above) of one-Michelin-starred Oro in Hotel Cipriani in Venice, who will present dishes such as spaghetti with chilli crab, cumin, and lemon, and turbot with mugnaia sauce from January 14 to 18.

This is followed by chef Roberto Toro of the one-starred Sicilian restaurant Otto Geleng in Grand Hotel Timeo, Taormina (January 21 to 25), chef Daniele Sera of the farm-to-table restaurant Tosca in Castello di Casole, Tuscany (February 4 to 8), and chef Armando Aristarco of Ristorante Belvedere at Caruso Hotel, Amalfi Coast, which serves Mediterranean cuisine (February 11 to 15).

Find out more here.

3.  Bon Broth

Renowned Taiwanese chef Andre Chiang, who shuttered his one-Michelin-starred contemporary restaurant Raw in Taipei last month, will make his long-awaited return to Singapore with a new casual dining concept. Chiang, who also ran his eponymous fine dining restaurant here, is zeroing in on broths in Bon Broth at Raffles City, which opens in February.

The concept, a cross-cultural blend of French bone broth and Chinese double-boiled soup, features eight unique and flavourful broths developed by Chiang at his broth lab in Taipei. The number of broths also references Octaphilosophy, a set of eight culinary philosophies that he championed at Restaurant Andre. 

4. Lielle, Los Angeles

Chef Marcus Jernmark, the former executive chef of three-Michelin-starred restaurant Frantzén in Sweden, will make his Los Angeles debut with Lielle, a new Nordic restaurant. The Swedish chef, who has worked at Per Se and Aquavit in New York City has spent the past three years immersing himself in the city’s food culture, before coming up with his first restaurant here. Jernmark was also the Culinary Director at Restaurant Zen, Bjorn Frantzen’s Singapore outpost for over three years. 

Named after his daughter, Lielle, the Los Angeles restaurant features hyper-seasonal ingredients through deep connections with artisans, suppliers, and farmers that Jernmark has built. Lielle promises a personal and relaxing dining experience that showcases the chef’s lifelong passion for delicious food shared around the table. Lielle is slated to open in the summer of 2025. 

Find out more here.

5. Roganic, Hong Kong

British chef Simon Rogan, one of the pioneers of the farm-to-table movement at L’Enclume in the UK, is ready to shake things up at his Hong Kong outpost, Roganic, after five years of operating in the city. The one-Michelin-starred restaurant will open in Lee Garden 1 in Causeway Bay in January.

Rogan has also revamped his menu to a sharing set format, stepping away from the previous tasting menu concept. Diners can have more flexibility in selecting main courses to share as part of a set menu. The new space also features tables and furnishings made with traceable, locally sourced wood.

Find out more here.

6. A new restaurant by Josh Niland, Hamilton Island

Come April, Australian chef Josh Niland, known for his nose-to-tail approach to seafood, will add another restaurant to his stable, including FYSH at the Singapore Edition hotel. His latest restaurant, which he runs with his wife, Julie, will be in The Sundays, an upcoming 59-room luxury boutique hotel on Hamilton Island, near Queensland.

Located at Catseye Beach, which overlooks the Great Barrier Reef, the hotel restaurant will be a seafood diner, which doesn’t stray too far from Niland’s sustainability-driven whole-fish ethos. The couple, who have four children, will craft family-friendly menus featuring local ingredients.

Find out more here.