Maximalist meals: enter Maymay Liechtenstein’s whimsical dining room

“This is me. It’s my way of expressing myself, expressing what’s inside. I love to create,” she says, beaming with contentment. In her wavy kaftan, Liechtenstein shares that she doesn’t run ideas by her family because they often say “Mum, that’s weird”—to which she would chuckle and retort, “Don’t clip my wings”! Previously, she worked in the world of perfumes for decades. This creative industry changed her perspective and further awakened her artistic senses.

Her years working with fragrances sharpened her artistic instincts, helping her cultivate a strong sense for aesthetics, emotion and storytelling—skills she now channels into every element of her hosting. Today, each dinner is a full-blown production: immersive, whimsical and unlike anything else in town. 

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“I avoid repeating menus. I prefer to get to know my guests and craft something uniquely tailored for them. After all, it’s the company that truly defines the experience; it’s what transforms a meal into something memorable,” she expresses. To this host, the company you keep is key, and making people happy is her elixir to a joyful life. Seeing her friends’ wild reactions, stunned faces and delighted palates is the ultimate satisfaction. “The best ingredient in cooking is the company that we share it with,” she says with a knowing nod.

Entering Liechtenstein’s home (mind you, she has one just for entertaining, a stone’s throw away from her residence) is like stepping into a fascinating universe. Designed with intense whimsicality and a curiosity for surrealism, it is filled with striking decorative art pieces and mobiles that twist and turn, many of them by the late kinetic art proponent Gabby Barredo. Appetisers are presented on a large silver statue of intertwined hands, inviting guests to grab dried fruits, a variety of cheese and an array of nuts right out of their palms. The buffet spread with light bites to start the night is already a play of heights with peaks and valleys, and rivers of snacks, tempting guests to embark on their own tasty adventure.

The dining table itself is a maximalist marvel, layered with towering floral arrangements, curious objects and crockery sourced from her global travels. She serves on stone, wood and even glass containers with live fish swimming beneath the dishes. Plates are hand-picked, sometimes featuring guests’s faces printed on desserts. Every object tells a story; she is able to recount delightful tales about each piece, sharing a memory of a trip, or an encounter with a craftsman.

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But the artistry doesn’t end at the table. As a self-taught cook, Liechtenstein spends days sketching menus, only finalising them in the hours before dinner, while she cooks. Her approach is intuitive, like painting: she layers flavour, texture and colour with instinctive precision. Her imagination is intricately woven into her food as each tasting menu unfolds. Dishes aren’t merely plated; they are performed. 

Remarkably, she never outsources the work to caterers. Instead, she’s trained her home team to deliver banquet-style service as she regularly hosts 30 to 60 guests. “It’s all in the planning,” she says with conviction. In fact, Liechtenstein sources a lot of her ingredients from overseas, continuing her relationship with tried and tested foreign purveyors. She contacts them in advance and flies in what she needs for each occasion, much to her guests’s delight. “Food for me is my love language, like you cannot be in the house without eating,” Liechtenstein shares with a smile.

Liechtenstein’s dinners are more than meals. They are stories told through scent, sight, sound and taste—a testament to a life lived with passion, curiosity and a deep love for others. In her world, hospitality is not simply a gesture; it’s an art form.

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