In a sky that is becoming more and more starry, there are those who, like André Chiang, makes an unconventional choice, absurd and questionable for some, certainly courageous. The news arrives at the same time that in Italy, 'La Rossa', during the ceremony of its 63rd edition, was entering or confirming 26 restaurants in the Olympus of starred restaurants.
André Chiang closes his most famous restaurant in Singapore
While the firmament of the Italian restaurant industry was illuminated with new lights, on the other side of the planet, in Singapore, one of the symbols of the Asian gastronomic scene, André Chiang, renounced his coveted award.
There is nothing to discuss in the face of his retreat to Taiwan, away from the spotlight, and his statement: 'I am a perfectionist, and my restaurant is already perfect as it is'. An earthquake for Singapore's restaurant industry, an echo of comments between amazement and general astonishment. Because when your name is André Chiang, news like the closure of one of South Asia's most successful restaurants makes the sound of a meteorite crashing to earth. Born in 1976, a success built up over thirty years, an acknowledged talent of oriental haute cuisine with a French flair.
The gastronomic rediscovery of South East Asia
To André Chiang is perhaps due the work of gastronomic rediscovery in South East Asia, and his most popular restaurant in Singapore (2 Michelin stars) is the fruit of an approach to cooking that is first and foremost personal well-being and the transmission of knowledge. Not surprisingly, he joins the World's 50 Best Restaurants. On 14 February 2018, for us Westerners the festival of lovers, André Chiang abandons his first lovehis restaurant, to devote himself to his love par excellence: just cooking.
With no pressure, no stress and no spotlight, just the joy of doing it and no more sacrifice of private life: Chiang's choice starts with the desire to take a step backwards in order to move forward.
The magician of perfection comes to the reflection that it is more important and pleasurable to cook in order to grow humanly and professionally, than for glory or the craving for likes. He returns home Mr. Chiang, with his head held high, certain that the right path is to return to the essence of cooking, the one free from the anxieties of stared eyes, the slow one of those who pay attention to their craft, to their hands and to the load of culture they carry. That cuisine that is a simpler matter than what it has become for many, it is personal and human growth, it is the training of those who always want to surpass themselves, of those who do not simply want to reach that starry sky, but who want to carry it within themselves.
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