As the first quarter of the year swiftly passes, an abundance of new openings, brand launches and creative ventures are to be anticipated. It’s a sensational time for art as Saint Laurent Rive Droite presents a collection of artisanal porcelain dating back to 1957 at Milan Design Week 2024. For those looking to catch a breather in style, the new Robertson House offers opulent respite in every corner. Meanwhile, in the realm of food and drink, discerning gourmands can look forward to a sublime seven-course omakase menu at Mandala Club’s Mori in launch of Forged Parfait, and the latest iteration of Maker’s Mark Cellar Aged, exclusively released in Singapore.
Made from cultured Japanese Quail, Forged Parfait brings the future of food to Singapore
Singapore’s dining scene may be perennially bustling—but there’s always room for innovation, especially when driven by ethical consumption and sustainability. To that end, cultured meat company Forged has launched a brand new product in Singapore that is unlike anything you have tasted before. Made through a brilliant scientific process from a small sample of cells taken from a Japanese quail, the end product is a silky, savoury and perfectly delicate flavour bomb made to complement fine food. To showcase its culinary potential, the parfait makes its global debut through an exclusive dinner at Mandala Club’s Mori lasting till the end of this month. In intimate seatings of only fourteen, guests will experience a seven-course omakase menu featuring Forged Parfait. Dishes to look forward to include a divine Hokkaido Wagyu Sando—the creamy parfait adds an extra dose of indulgence—and the signature Forged Brûlée, a sweet-savoury masterpiece of port jelly and cognac-poached morels, finished with hardened caramelised sugar. If you are a gourmand looking for a new experience that might change your whole outlook on the future of food, this is an experience not to be missed.
Make a reservation here.
The new Robertson House weaves storied histories into gorgeous colonial-style design
Staying at The Robertson House is one of the most restorative things you can do for yourself. Occupying the site of the former Riverside Hotel along Robertson Quay, the new boutique hotel is gorgeous, with local touches thoughtfully woven into every corner of the property’s striking colonial-style interiors—from the sketches of native plants that hang on the walls in the room, to the travel paraphernalia that dot the space. This same level of consideration permeates every aspect of a stay, seen in the little details that add up to make an experience here so much more memorable.
Step into your room, and you’ll find mini bottles of East Imperial tonic and Robertson Gin—prepared exclusively for the hotel by local distillery Tanglin Gin—to craft a welcome cocktail. There’s also a selection of unique tea blends, including the hotel’s signature Dr Robertson’s Chai. And if you notice a couple of books on the table, feel free to browse through them or take them home. As part of an initiative in partnership with Thryft, the hotel brings in a curation of second-hand books for the rooms and the 1823 Reading Room, which guests can take with them if they wish to.
As far as dining options go, Robertson House might only have one restaurant, but it’s certainly one worth carving out time for. Entrepôt serves up spectacularly executed Anglo-Asian dishes that celebrate the myriad culinary cultures that have influenced Singapore. Start with the Signature Chinese Terracotta Tea, a fragrant blend of dried mushroom tea and lapsang souchong that arrives in a teapot for you to pour over a delicious crustacean tortellini. The seafood options here are outstanding, from the Charcoal Roasted Spanish Octopus Leg to the Grilled Tiger Prawns Opeh Leaf Flat Noodle. And don’t leave without trying the angus striploin, served atop a charcoal grill with dramatic wisps of smoke. For a nightcap, turn the corner to the hotel’s speakeasy bar Chandu, hidden behind a nondescript door. Like everything else in the hotel, each cocktail here comes inspired by a tale of times long past.
Book a stay here.
Chanel celebrates award-winning novelist Rachel Cusk’s empowering work in the newest installation to Literary Rendezvous at Rue Cambon
Many literature aficionados will be intimately familiar with the work of novelist and essayist Rachel Cusk, who published her first novel Saving Agnes in 1993 and won the Whitbread First Novel Award. Naturally, her most recent book—Second Place (2022)—was just as notable, receiving the French literary award Prix Femina. Cusk’s nonfiction is also beloved, particularly for the way in which they brim with quintessential life experiences including self-doubt, loss, freedom and motherhood—all told from a fearlessly personal and truthful voice that always maintains its poise.
With its deep roots in arts and literature, Chanel launched Literary Rendezvous at Rue Cambon to spotlight the authors and writers working in topics close to the House’s values. One such theme that blankets the series is, unquestionably, female empowerment. So who better than Cusk to headline the 13th chapter of the literary series?
Held last month against the picturesque backdrop of the Librairie 7L, Chanel ambassador Charlotte Casiraghi hosted a conversation with Cusk, writer Erica Wagner and Naomi Campbell to discuss the ways in which Cusk’s work—and her extraordinary ability to raise poignant philosophical questions through the most elemental, everyday occurrences—has touched each of their lives. Wagner, a prolific author and critic herself, steered the discussion to explore the dichotomy of comfort and discomfort in everyday life, while Campbell vouched for Cusk’s literary work as a liberating voice relatable to many modern women. Most excitingly, it was revealed that Parade, Cusk’s highly anticipated novel set to release in June this year, will be set in Paris.
Listen to the full episode on the CHANEL 3.55 podcast.
For Milan Design Week, Saint Laurent Rive Droite reissues 12 hand-painted, limited-edition porcelain plates from Gio Ponti’s 1957 collection
There is no doubt that Milan Design Week is one of the world’s most extensive celebrations of global design. Case in point: a new exclusive exhibition presented by Saint Laurent Rive Droite, in conjunction with the Gio Ponti Archives and Fundación Anala y Armando Planchart. The history of this charming collaboration starts in 1953, when art-loving couple Anala and Armando Planchart appointed renowned Italian architect Gio Ponti to build their avant-garde villa.
As one would expect from the pioneer of Italy’s modern architecture, Ponti designed a set of porcelain tableware harmonious with the villa’s interior in 1957, named the Villa Planchart Segnaposto collection. Crafted by traditional Italian artisans, the crockery is clad in symbols representing the villa, including grandiose iterations of the letter “A”—honouring the homeowners. Some seven decades later, a limited-edition reissue from the collection is now being showcased by Saint Laurent—consisting of 12 original plates hand-painted in Ginori 1735’s Italian Manifattura.
The Gio Ponti-Villa Planchart exhibition will be on view at the Chiostri Di San Simpliciano in Milan from 16 to 21 April. Book tickets here. The limited-edition plates are available for purchase on ysl.com, or in Saint Laurent Rive Droite Los Angeles, Saint Laurent Babylone Paris, and by appointment at Saint Laurent’s Milan flagship on Via Montenapoleone during Milan Design Week 2024.
Maker’s Mark Cellar Aged debuts in Singapore
Those familiar with small-batch bourbon whiskey Maker’s Mark would know that the distillery’s flagship flavour profile—described as smooth, soft and creamy—is credited to its carefully determined ageing time of only six to seven years. That is, until the creation of the Maker’s Mark Cellar Aged in 2023, an amalgamation of long-aged 11- and 12-year-old bourbon barrels. Delivering a rich, deep and more complex flavour, this limited-release expression stays true to Maker’s Mark’s founding philosophy. Expect a captivating blend of dark stone fruit, and the sweetness of caramelised sugar and toasted oaks. Complementing this woodiness is a dark vanilla, promising a lingering, velvety finish that stands testament to the bourbon’s quality.
Available for purchase here.
