The chef of a popular Singapore restaurant known as 'a restaurant hidden behind a traditional-medicine pharmacy' held a one-night-only special dinner in Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City). It was created by Singaporean chef Ezekiel Tan. The venue was 'Unu,' a restaurant inside an art hotel in Ho Chi Minh City's District 1, with a 'healing through food' wellness-dining theme (reported June 28, 2026). Cuisine that blends traditional-medicine thinking with Southeast Asian ingredients offers plenty of discovery even for Japanese food lovers whose interest in medicinal cuisine and fermentation is growing. Let's unpack the dialogue between two cities' food cultures that this one night posed.
A chef from the back of a Chinese medicine shop shows his skills in Saigon
Tan is head chef of "Synthesis" in Suntec City, Singapore. On the surface this shop looks like a traditional Chinese medicine pharmacy, with a modern restaurant and cocktail bar hidden behind shelves lined with herb drawers. It's known as an unusual establishment even in Singapore, translating the ideas of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) into food and drink.
The theme this chef put forward in Saigon this time is "a healing culinary journey tracing Singapore's food heritage." Tan says "food heals, nourishes and connects people," and expresses his stance of reconstructing Singapore's multicultural food memories with modern technique as "Back to the Roots." Rather than preserving past recipes as-is, it's an approach of building a new dish starting from the "wisdom of nourishing the body" that dwells in herbs and spices.
The venue is Únu, a “restaurant you taste through art”
Unu, the host venue, is also known for placing cuisine on a continuum with art. Located on the ground and mezzanine floors of 'Anima Saigon,' an art-themed boutique hotel in District 1 of Ho Chi Minh City, it flies the banner 'Flavors Nourished by Art.' Its direction of reworking local seasonal ingredients and food memories from various places with an international sensibility overlaps much with Tan's 'Back to the Roots.'
A Singaporean chef with a medicinal-cuisine sensibility, and a Saigon restaurant built around art. The very pairing of two establishments of different origins makes this one night a "dialogue between unexpected formats." The one-off guest-chef event is an approach that has grown in Saigon's fine dining in recent years, and for travelers it becomes a rare experience "you can eat only that day, in that place."
On the plate, elements of Chinese medicine, Southeast Asia, and Chinese cuisine meet
The course featured border-crossing dishes in Tan's style. An appetizer pairing the India-born street food "pani puri" with Iberico pork, given the numbing heat (mala) of doubanjiang and Sichuan pepper. Angus beef dressed in a ginger-and-scallion sauce, said to be mindful of body-nourishing balance. And for dessert, a dish combining snow pear, white wood-ear fungus and jujube, served with longan gelato.
The combination of snow pear, white wood-ear fungus, and jujube is a lineup long loved in the Chinese-speaking world as a classic dessert ingredient for “replenishing moisture.” Rendering it into the modern form of gelato shows well Tan’s touch in translating tradition into the contemporary from a starting point. A composition that switches between Indian, Chinese, and Southeast Asian elements dish by dish mirrors the food memory of multiethnic Singapore as it is.
Why the 'healing through food' theme resonates in Southeast Asia now
The phrase "ẩm thực chữa lành" (healing through food), used in the Vietnamese article's title too, has become a keyword often heard in Southeast Asia's dining scene these past few years. It's a current that finds value in eating experiences that care for the body and calm the mind over showy feasts. Chef Tan's cooking, grounded in the wisdom of Chinese medicine, fits this mood just right.
From the perspective of Japanese food lovers, this movement is by no means a distant story. In Japan, too, interest in medicinal cuisine, fermentation, and eating tailored to one's constitution runs deep.Highlands Coffee's 1,000th storeWhile mass-market chains like this expand, shops selling these small-scale "meaningful plates" are growing at the same time - that's the fascination of Vietnam's dining scene right now. Tasting not just one but both poles on a trip brings the breadth of this country's food into three dimensions.
Practical notes for enjoying a “guest chef night” in Saigon
Collaboration dinners of this kind are limited in both dates and seats. When visiting, check the shop's official social media and the hotel's event information before departure, and assume the course menu requires advance booking. Anima Saigon, which houses Unu, is in the center of District 1, an easy location to reach by taxi or bus from the city's main spots. As transport to the venue,Ho Chi Minh City's buses, made free from Julycombining that lets you get around District 1 while keeping travel costs down.
One-off events often switch to a different course once they end, so you can't count on eating the same menu later. Even so, Únu itself is open year-round, and its art-centered cocktails and cuisine can be enjoyed at any time. Even if you miss "that one night," you can still fully savor the shop's world, so it's worth keeping among the options for travelers who want a slightly special meal in Saigon.
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Guest chefs | Ezekiel Tan (head chef of Singapore’s “Synthesis”) |
| Theme | A wellness dinner tracing Singapore's culinary heritage (healing through food) |
| Venue | Únu Cocktails & Eatery (District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, inside Anima Saigon) |
| Culinary style | The idea of Chinese medicine × crossing Southeast Asian, Chinese, and Indian ingredients |
| Date reported | June 28, 2026 |
Frequently asked questions
Can I eat the guest chef's dinner anytime I go?
This dinner by Tan is a one-night special event, not a permanent menu. Since collaborations of this kind are limited in dates and seats, we recommend checking the latest information on the restaurant’s or hotel’s official social media and booking in advance. Outside the event period, Únu itself operates as usual.
Where is the venue Unu?
It's on the ground and mezzanine floors of "Anima Saigon," an art-themed boutique hotel in the heart of District 1, Ho Chi Minh City. The location is easy to reach from the city's main spots.
What kind of cuisine is "healing through food (wellness dining)"?
It's a food philosophy mindful of caring for the body; this time, dishes combining Southeast Asian and Chinese ingredients were served on the basis of Singaporean herbal-medicine (traditional Chinese medicine) thinking. Rather than flashiness, it's characterized by valuing an ingredient's background and the comfort felt after eating.
Sources
Thanh Nien: Ẩm thực ‘chữa lành’: Hành trình từ di sản Singapore đến TP.HCM
