SINGAPORE — If you haven’t already given in to the buzz, the 20th edition of the World Gourmet Summit (WGS) kicked off this week; and there are a couple of notable events this weekend to get started on.

These include an opportunity to tuck into some Peranakan fare prepared by the Singapore Symphony Orchestra violinist and Cultural Medallion winner Lynnette Seah, with the help of local culinary doyenne Violet Oon. Yes, Seah isn’t just a co-concertmaster with the orchestra, she is an accomplished cook: She also runs a private dining service, Lynnette’s Kitchen, which features her take on traditional Peranakan favourites alongside some European dishes.

For the WGS, she is collaborating with Oon for a one-night-only dinner event, Culinary Symphony With Austrian Wines, held this evening at Oon’s National Kitchen. Seah will be preparing three dishes: Bakwan kepiting with crab and fish dumplings; assam fish using barramundi; and rebong lemak (braised chicken with bamboo shoots in a coconut gravy). Oon will be serving her signature rendition of itek siyow (braised duck with coriander) and daging chabek, or twice-cooked beef cheek, among others.

The collaborative vibe continues tomorrow evening from 5pm to 10pm, when Hong Kong Street will be transformed into a scene resembling Hong Kong and Shanghai in the 1930s. The Timeless 30s party will feature menus of dishes priced at S$10 each by Hong Kong Street residents Bacchanalia, FOC, Vasco and 28 Hong Kong Street, as well as a food truck by The Butchers Club Burger, which specialises in cheeseburgers made using its signature dry-aged Black Angus beef, minced and cooked to order. (Note: A S$28 entry fee applies.)

This contrast of contemporary, classic and traditional cooking is also evident in the event’s more notable programmes. On Monday, for example, three of Italy’s best female cooks will collaborate in a first-of-its-kind presentation of the popular cuisine. Held at Forlino, the aptly dubbed Le 3 Mamme Dinner will be prepared by Giovanna Randone, Gianna Fossati and Maria Teresa Biovi — all hail from the Liguria region — who will prepare a hearty, homely meal representative of the region’s rustic cuisine.

“You cannot have more real Italian food than what will be served,” said Randone’s son Paolo, the general manager of Deliciae Hospitality Management. “These three ladies have never worked in a restaurant and are not trained chefs; they are just housewives who have been cooking for over 60 years. They do not speak English, they do not know what a 3-star Michelin meal looks like — they just know Italian products because these are what they have grown up with.”

While you can expect dishes with pesto sauce (the three cooks are from Genova, after all) Paolo added: “Do not expect fancy decoration on your plate ... and do not expect small portions either. Remember, pasta is always a starter in Italy and (they) will not be happy if you do not finish your dish.”

Speaking of celebrating culinary roots, this year’s WGS will welcome back its first visiting master chef, Swiss maestro Reto Mathis, whose restaurant La Marmite in Switzerland is the highest-placed restaurant in Europe — literally.

“Being the first and only gourmet restaurant at an altitude of 2,486m (above sea level), we have been delivering unique gastronomic experiences that are not the norm for over 50 years,” Mathis said, pointing out some of the restaurant’s fortes, such as truffle and caviar specialties combined with regional products.

“For me, it is important to stay close to the natural product — I develop new textures, preparation methods and create new ingredient combinations. However, I stay true to my signature dishes that my guests know me for.”

As guest chef at restaurant Stellar, Mathis will be offering two seven-course menus — the Signature Truffles & Caviar and the Mathis Signature (from April 13 to 16). The former, he said, will feature his famed truffle pizza, Wagyu seared carpaccio with truffles and grana chips, and “some specialities such as the rack of red deer in Engadine herb crust”.

FORWARD COOKING

The evolution of gastronomy is an inevitability, but the new stars of modern cooking have not lost touch with their roots. Take Mark Moriarty, winner of the S.Pellegrino Young Chef of the World 2015, who is doing an exclusive partnership with JAAN’s chef de cuisine Kirk Westaway. The chefs will be presenting two special collaborations from April 11 to 14: A five-course lunch menu and an eight-course dinner menu.

“The collaboration is an amazing opportunity to show my culinary philosophy, which, in essence, is modern French with English sensibilities,” said Westaway, who will showcase his Heirloom Tomato Collection, a deceptively simple dish that involves an elaborate process of dehydrating and rehydrating the tomatoes. He will also be including his latest creation, a pairing of Atlantic cod with baby squid, spring vegetables, salsify puree and some squid ink salsify batons. There’s also a “robust yet refined” dish of wild cod fillet with crispy squid and broad beans, which features on the eight-course collaborative dinner menu. “Not only is cod England’s most popular fish, but the combination of crispy squid and sweet broad beans is reminiscent of spring in England,” Westaway explained.

Moriarty will be serving his winning dish of blowtorch-charred whole celeriac marinated in an Irish-style miso made with cooked pearl barley and fermented hay, and topped with hazelnuts. This acclaimed vegetarian plate is the chef’s modern representation of the flavours found in Guinness and traditional Irish food culture.

“The whole celeriac is used, meaning it is a sustainable dish, which is important going forward in this industry,” he stressed, adding that he will also be preparing an artichoke salad with parmesan custard and duck ham, which is inspired from his recent travels in the north of Italy.

He explained that these dishes represent a trend in dining, that the idea of eating out is to enjoy good food and have fun; and whether the dishes have two or 20 elements, they must taste great.

And he added: “I also try to present my food in a fun and personal way; this may involve me explaining a story behind a dish to a customer or just having a laugh with the customer at the table, because that is what people are paying for — a good experience. Too often, chefs lose sight of that and get caught up in having trendy ingredients or how a plate is designed.”