News Editor

Kita Food Festival 2025 om Singapore is set to return from 12 to 17 March 2025. This highly anticipated weekender is bringing its most ambitious programme to date to Singapore. Supported by the Singapore Tourism Board, this year’s expanded line-up solidifies the festival’s role as a platform for connection, innovation, and celebration of Southeast Asia’s vibrant culinary diversity. Featuring 12 extraordinary events and over 50 participants, the festival champions its mission of fostering collaboration, advancing sustainability and celebrating the rich heritage of the region’s food culture.

A celebration of culinary innovation

The Singapore Weekender will feature world-class chefs and culinary talents in an extraordinary showcase of four-hand dinners, kitchen takeovers, and the grand Big Barbecue finale.

Kita Food Festival 2025 Singapore highlights include:

• Award-winning Chef Kelvin Cheung of Jun’s (Dubai) will join Eugene See Birds of a Feather (Singapore) for a four-hands dinner.
• Two Michelin-starred Chef Syrco Bakker from Syrco Base (Bali) will be hosting a kitchen takeover at 1880.
• Acclaimed Chef Keiko Kuwakino from Satoyama Jujo (Japan) will be presenting her artistry at PO in The Warehouse Hotel, showcasing her unique approach to food inspired by Ayurvedic philosophy.
• Recently recognised as The West Australian Good Food Guide’s Young Chef of the Year, Brian Cole of Hearth Restaurant & Lounge (Perth) will be delivering a six-course West African-inspired feast at Tamba

The Big Barbecue, held at Gourmet Park Kampong Bugis, will celebrate bold flavours, featuring chefs:

• Ricardo Allen of Camp Caribbean (Singapore), known for recreating some of his grandmother’s classic recipes to bring a taste of the Caribbean to Southeast Asia.
• Adam Penney from modern British diner, Carnaby (Singapore), who brings a modern flair to comforting British classics.
• Linn Yong, Chef Patron of Limau and Linen (Kota Kinabalu), known for championing sustainability in Sabah, focusing on community partnerships and working closely with local farmers.
• Taiki Rattanapong from Homburg (Bangkok), whose take on the classic American burger took the internet by storm back in 2018.
• Waymann Cheong of Lucky Hole (Penang), winner of the Michelin Guide Kuala Lumpur & Penang 2025 Young Chef Award.

Driving Conversations on the Future of Food

Central to the festival is the Future of Food series, developed in partnership with creative data consultancy Synthesis Partners and supported by sustainable water company, Be WTR.

The series culminates in the Future of Food Symposium on 17 March, which will feature thought leaders including:

• Joxe Mari Aizega, General Manager at Basque Culinary Centre, a pioneering academic institution with the first Gastronomic Faculty in Spain with an Official Degree in Gastronomy and Culinary Arts.
• Eelke Plasmeijer, Dutch co-founder of Bali’s award-winning restaurant Locavore Nxt and now, a groundbreaking restaurant that includes a distillery, farm and research lab.
  Award-winning social entrepreneur, Helianti Hilam of JAVARA, whose initiatives builds supply chains, works with smallholder farmers and food producers, nurtures rural entrepreneurs, introduces value added technology among producers, and creates a wide range of organic food products of rural Indonesia.
• Australian restaurant critic- turned farmer, chef, TV host and food writer- Matthew Evans known for his TV programme The Gourmet Farmer, as well as books SOIL, On Eating Meat and The Real Food Companion.
• Dalia Adler, Head of Marketing at Eat Vow a food company that crafts entirely new meats through cell-culturing.

The symposium will address critical issues in food security and sustainability, embodying Kita Food Festival’s commitment to uniting chefs, producers, and food enthusiasts to inspire meaningful change in the food and beverage industry.

Kita Food Festival is more than a culinary event – it is a movement that celebrates and advances Southeast Asia’s food culture. By spotlighting diverse flavours, championing sustainability, and fostering collaboration, the festival bridges the gap between those who grow and produce food and those who enjoy it. Kita’s events aim to create spaces where ideas can flourish, ultimately paving the way for a more inclusive and sustainable food future.

This year’s expanded programme introduces several exciting additions that are a first for the Kita:

• Three Future of Food seminars across January and February.
• Pop-up menus showcasing innovative ingredients and futuristic culinary creations.
• A large-format event highlighting Southeast Asian flavours and culture.

“The future of Kita lies in its ability to adapt and evolve, and the move to Singapore as a hub represents an exciting new chapter. It’s not just about curating exceptional dining experiences but fostering meaningful conversations that resonate beyond the kitchen. Kita has always been about community, sustainability, and the narratives that define our food. By embracing this next step, we’re creating opportunities to explore fresh perspectives, connect diverse voices, and inspire change – not just within the industry but across the wider community,” commented Darren Teoh, co-founder of Kita Food Festival and chef-patron of Dewakan, Malaysia’s first and only two Michelin-starred restaurant.