After years of travelling and testing the finest dishes from around the globe, Singaporean Celebrity Chef Justin Quek returned home last year to help design the menu and template of Sky on 57 in Marina Bay Sands.

Taking time out of his busy schedule late last year, Mr Quek shared the secrets of his return with e-Travel Blackboard and spilled on his favourite culinary destinations.

e-Travel Blackboard: Thanks for talking to us today.

Justin Quek: You’re welcome.

e-Travel Blackboard: Why did you choose to return to Singapore and work on Sky on 57?

Justin Quek: Well we opened the restaurant up a year ago and before that I was away from Singapore for more than seven years. And I was just pulled back to Shanghai for a bit and the people that had the idea for this restaurant knew I was in Shanghai and they spoke to me in 2008. They spoke about wanting an Asian chef, particularly a Singaporean chef.

In October 2009 I came up and had a look and then in January 2010 I said ‘lets talk’. During out talks they asked me what can I do with this space and I said well I’ve been away from Singapore for seven years but I want to show people my country, I want them to see Singapore.

So a year ago we opened and that’s where we are.

e-Travel Blackboard: What was your first impression of Marina Bay Sands and the space for Sky on 57?

Justin Quek: It is an iconic building. When I saw Marina Bay Sands and then I saw the space they had for the restaurant and the view and said what a better way to welcome someone to my home, Singapore.

The setting is so nice and the view is beautiful. You know all around the restaurant there is a view it is so beautiful, you can see the city, the water and the financial centre and convention centre. It is beautiful.

Marina Bay Sands also gives people a reason to stay in Singapore longer.

e-Travel Blackboard: When people try your food what countries will it remind them of?

Justin Quek: The whole idea was to produce traditional Asian food but upgrade it without cutting out the taste and because I studied French flavours and French food for at least 28 years, I decided to use French as the base of the dishes but combine the flavours with Asia.

It was important to keep it as traditional Singaporean because these days you have more mothers working than cooking so they go out as a family and eat out. So I wanted this to not only be a place for tourists but also to remind people of home, like welcoming them to my home.

The other thing is with restaurants on the street, they make a lot of great food and it can taste nice but sometimes they use a lot of MSG. It was important for me to tone that down, bring down the spice and bring in elegance.

We also use little butter and cream, we let the product speak for itself.

So when people eat here they think this is the perfect place and people love it.

e-Travel Blackboard: What’s the first thing you do when you visit another country?

Justin Quek: When I go overseas, I eat and try different flavours. As a chef it is important to taste good food and bad food.

In any city I go to I always try the top restaurant to see why they are so good and I also go to less popular restaurants. Sometimes it is not about the size of the restaurant but about the chef. If the chef has passion then that can also contribute to how the food tastes. Someone frying a chicken may just be frying a chicken but if he has passion behind it, it can make the taste different because he puts that passion into the dish.

Also when you try the comfort food of a country you understand the country and the types of flavours they use.

e-Travel Blackboard: Through all your travels and living overseas what’s one thing you’ve noticed shifting in the world?

Justin Quek: Everyone is different but the world is becoming small as people travel around the world. Especially in places like Asia where there is only a seven hour flight and a small time difference of one hour, it is so easy to travel.

Asia is also really booming with more people coming here.

e-Travel Blackboard: What’s your favourite type of holiday and where do you choose to take it?

I really like nature, walking, hiking. I love taking trips outside. I just came back from Cambodia, a place called Anka Wat. It is so beautiful. Very cultural and the nature is beautiful. 

e-Travel Blackboard: What’s your favourite thing about Singapore and why would you recommend people visit?

Singapore is and always has been a gourmet city. It has every type of food plus its own style. Over the past couple of years the Government has made it into a financial hub. It has a good tax system for people to get their tax back at the airport. Everything is organised and the language often used is English so it is easy to communicate.

We get a few from Europe, they have to choose between Hong Kong and Singapore. Hong Kong is probably more vibrant but the Singaporean air is better and the space in Singapore is better.