Top UK chef Raymond Blanc cooks surprise dinner for Singapore Botanic Gardens' staff

The gardeners and management of Singapore Botanic Gardens, the nation’s first UNESCO World Heritage Site were given a special treat last night when they arrived at the historic Burkill Hall. The venue was beautifully set up for a unique dining experience prepared by chef Raymond Blanc of Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons, in Oxford, UK. The venerable chef and his team flew into Singapore this week, courtesy of Kenwood.

A passionate advocate of the locavore movement, Blanc visited the sustainable fish farm Kühlbarra, one of the top five barramundi farms in the world, and Open Farm Community at Dempsey. He and his team harvested and used sustainably grown local produce for his two-day showcase, which included a 'Garden to Plate' master class with Kenwood at Burkill Hall. The Garden to Plate theme is inspired by Blanc’s book Kew on a Plate and his work at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, UK. "Food connects with everything – our landscape, our soil, our heritage, our health and the kind of agriculture and society we are creating for tomorrow," says Blanc, who's brand ambassador for Kenwood's Titanium series.

Gallery photos courtesy of Kenwood Singapore