Singapore F&B brands setting up shop overseas

Some home-grown restaurateurs are turning their gaze to South-east Asia and beyond, eyeing the hordes of diners and lower overheads

- Cherie Lok

Cannot get a reservation at Burnt Ends in Dempsey? You might have better luck in Bali.

Chef-owner Dave Pynt is hauling his wildly popular style of cooking to the Indonesian island, where it will run as The Ledge by Dave Pynt, the culinary crown jewel of upcoming hotel Waldorf Astoria Bali.

When it opens in 2027, expect Burnt Ends' signature brand of modern barbecue, laid-back but professional service and technical finesse.

Pynt has not worked out the menu yet, but foresees there will be "a little bit of crossover" with the Singapore slate of offerings.

The four-tonne brick kilns that underpin operations in the one Michelin-starred Dempsey restaurant-making possible fiery favourites like its Blackmores' striploin ($88++ for 100g) - will be reconstructed in Nusa Dua.

Pynt is even toying with the idea of adding a third cavity, which could mean more variety on the menu and, potentially, a more efficiently run private dining experience.

Though the design process has only just started, he already knows what he does not want: "A semiclosed kitchen, a basic sound system, square tables and chairs, no built-in design feature that challenges the way people use the space."

The plan, then, is to push the boundaries of restaurant design and take risks. Pynt wants to work with Indonesian craftsmen and locally sourced materials - volcanic glass, for instance, is on the cards.

This will be his second overseas restaurant, following The Ledge by Dave Pynt in the Waldorf Astoria Maldives Ithaafushi, but the 41year-old Australian chef, who has been based in Singapore for 13 years, has no designs on world domination.