Irish chef Singapore An in A

ndrew Walsh and his chefs are busy planning the spring menu at CURE, one of the Mayo native’s four restaurants in Singapore. It’s a process that doesn’t differ dramatically from planning a menu in Ireland, despite the fact that Singapore doesn’t experience distinct seasons the same way we do. “We import a lot of produce over here and because we create Irish dishes, we follow the European seasonal calendar. It makes sense as we want to use the freshest, most seasonable food available. The island doesn’t really have clear-cut seasons like summer, spring, autumn and winter. The weather is warm and humid all year round, it’s very unusual to see rain.” More than 90% of Singapore’s food is imported, with only 1% of its land set aside for food farms. “Singapore doesn’t have a huge amount of natural resources. I bring in the best oysters and duck from Ireland and amazing fish from the likes of Japan and Australia. We’re lucky that we have so much great produce coming in from all over the world, but the fact that it’s imported has to be reflected in the price point which can be challenging,” said Andrew. Back in 2021, the chef introduced his ‘Nua’ Irish menu at the restaurant, presenting dishes inspired by childhood memories, traditional meals and produce from Breaffy, Andrew’s hometown. Described as a “playful expression of Irish cuisine”, the Nua menu is all about letting the ingredients shine. Stand-out dishes include Childhood Memories of Peat with Bailey’s Autumn Mist and Tipperary Brie Cheese; Soda, Stout & Treacle Bread with Tayto Crisps, Jerusalem Arthichoke & Jameson soft serve; and Gallagher Speciale Oyster with Porridge of sea urchin. Music is just as important as the food; playlists are carefully curated, with guests treated to the likes of Van Morrison, The Pogues, U2 and The Wolfe Tones.

Before taking the leap and setting up CURE (which in Latin means to take care of), Andrew paid his dues in London, working with high profile chefs such as Tom Aikens, Richard Corrigan and Jason Atherton at Pollen Street Social. The success of Pollen Street Social led to Esquina, Atherton’s first concept in Singapore which Andrew was chosen to head up. After three years, he felt it was time to break out on his own. CURE opened in 2015, followed by Butcher Boy in 2017, Bao Boy in 2019, CATFISH in 2020 and finally, Ember Beach Club in Malaysia, his first overseas venture in 2020. His interest in cooking was sparked at the age of 15 when he left school and started washing dishes for his brother, a chef in the Traveller’s Friend Hotel in Castlebar. “I learned how to cook a steak, fillet a fish and bake a nice simple apple tart. Then my brother enrolled me in GMIT and it all started from there. I did some work experience at Sheen Falls and I worked for Kevin Thornton in Dublin which was a great experience. Then it was time to leave Ireland and I haven’t lived there since.”

In late 2022, Good Food Ireland announced that Andrew was to take up the role of International Ambassador. The Ambassador Programme will, says the organisation, play a vital role in attracting and inspiring visitors to Ireland and enhancing export opportunities for Ireland’s food and drink sector. Only individuals who are fully committed to sourcing premium quality Irish food and drink will be considered for the role. “It’s all about being a representative for good Irish food, for preaching, shouting and talking about the quality of Irish food, about the people, the culture, the heritage. I’d love to see Ireland getting more recognition for the great produce we have and for the fact we can cook to an amazing level. For me personally, being so far away from home, it’s nice that Irish eyes are smiling across at what we’re doing here and that my peers are proud of us.”

Irish eyes were most definitely smiling when Andrew was awarded a Michelin star for CURE in 2021. It made all the years of missed birthdays and Christmases worth it, he says. “For myself, my family, the small rural community I’m from in the West of Ireland, for everyone, it means a great deal. Also of course, it’s been huge for my staff and for my guests to the restaurant. It’s one thing winning it but another maintaining it. Why not aim for two stars? Why not keep pushing and striving to be better? I feel obliged to push it because I’m the only Irish chef that I know off in Singapore and certainly the only one I know with a star.” There comes a responsibility with being the only Irish chef doing Irish food in Singapore. “In a way, it’s kind of nice that I’m the only Irish chef here. I don’t mean I own it, but it’s nice to be the only Irish guy who has this cuisine to himself, for now anyway. There’s also a responsibility to do it right, to keep pushing myself, to show that Ireland’s food and drink culture can compete on a world stage.”

Andrew believes Butcher Boy, his Asian fusion bar and grill, would work well in the Irish market. He’s also been working on a concept for a new kind of overseas Irish bar. “There’s a fakeness and a commerciality to some Irish bars you go to. Terrible food, wheelbars hanging off the roof, that type of thing. I want to take the concept of Nua and apply it to a public house. In Ireland, pubs were traditionally named after the publican so it’ll be Walsh’s Irish Public House and it’ll be a modern Irish tap house and grill. Pub food, but done really well. Again, I’m aiming high; could there be one in Dublin, Hong Kong, Sydney, why couldn’t it be franchised?” As of now, Andrew has no plans in place to move back to Ireland, but never say never. “I’m 40 now so of course I think about moving back to Ireland and bringing the CURE concept with me. I’ve lived in a lot of cities and I think I’d like to live somewhere where I could grow my own produce and maybe even have some livestock. That’s one thing I miss about Ireland, that connection with the land. Right now though, the focus is very much on building the restaurants back up after Covid and developing the International Ambassador role. Watch this space!”