Tatler Weekend Malaysia: What does it take to create award-winning menus in this region?
Editor’s note
Those who have worked at Google never forget their first trip to the famed HQ in Mountain View as a “Noogler”. I remember my first visit for three reasons: meeting Larry Page, the brilliant co-founder; sipping blackberry lassi at the famous Charlie’s Café; and donning the quirky Noogler beanie cap with a propeller on top at TGIF. Curious, I asked someone why Nooglers wear this cap. “So we can identify and warmly welcome you,” she replied. I pressed further, “But why this funny cap? Why not something cooler?” I’ve never forgotten her response: “This cap makes you feel childlike, and remember, innovation springs from childlike curiosity.”
Another person who joined Google that same year and likely wore the same cap was Gary Liu. Gary later went on to lead and transform the South China Morning Post, and—maintaining his childlike curiosity—is now creating a digitally equitable future with his Web 3 startup, Terminal 3. Gary’s inspiring story is our Editor’s Pick for this weekend. In fact, all our stories this weekend feature individuals who continue to innovate and retain their childlike curiosity, even if they’ve never donned a beanie-propeller cap!
Enjoy Tatler Weekend!
Parminder Singh
Parminder Singh
Chief Operating Officer
Forged in battle: How former US Army Special Forces officer Gene Yu turned military grit into entrepreneurial success
Ex-Green Beret Gene Yu recounts leading an unsanctioned rescue mission against a terrorist group and transitioning from soldier to cybersecurity startup founder
“Businessmen are motivated by money. Politicians are motivated by power. But warriors are not motivated by either of these things. Warriors are motivated by honour,” says Gene Yu, the founder and CEO of Blackpanda, a cybersecurity crisis response and insurance company with a presence across Asia and the US.
Describing its work as “cyber firefighting”, Blackpanda offers solutions for cybersecurity technology, incident response and cyber insurance. “We combine these three things into one solution. We productised incident response into an insurance product and wrapped it with the SaaS technology,” says Yu.
The firm has formed strategic partnerships with the Cyber Security Agency of Singapore, Singapore Police Force, and major telecommunications providers across Asia, including Singapore’s Singtel, Hong Kong’s Macroview Telecom, Macau’s Companhia de Telecomunicações de Macau and Japan’s Softbank C&S. Together, they monitor cyber threats and vulnerabilities, enhancing regional defences against cyberattacks.
“Cybersecurity insurance is essentially the digital version of high-risk physical security insurance,” says Yu. “There are criminals everywhere—not just local and regional. The entire world can reach out and touch you on the internet. It’s not an IT issue, it’s a security issue.”
Read more: Singapore is the world’s most competitive economy, while Hong Kong and Taiwan remain in top 10
Aradhita Parasrampuria’s mission to transform fashion: Bridging biotechnology and design for a sustainable future
Meet Aradhita Parasrampuria, the visionary young designer who is reshaping fashion with innovative sustainability
“Each year, 40 billion pieces of fashion jewellery and 20 billion embellished garments are produced and worn only five times on average before being discarded,” says Aradhita Parasrampuria, the Gujarat-born designer-turned-entrepreneur who witnessed firsthand the negative impacts of the textile industry.
“Most affected by the global production of beaded garments are the workers involved, including 200,000 children in India, who suffer from asthma, loss of eyesight, and even cancer due to the toxic materials and dyes used,” she shares, adding that the hundreds of billions of beads introduced into the environment by this waste often cannot be recycled because of their small size and composition, persisting as microplastics, affecting both ecosystems and workers.
“A complete reimagining of the materiality and processes of embellishments is required,” she says.
How do top chefs in Asia craft their winning menus?
We speak to three acclaimed chefs, Julien Royer of Odette, Agustin Balbi of Ando and Pichaya ‘Pam’ Soontornyanakij of Potong, to uncover what it takes to create award-winning menus in this region
Asia’s gastronomic landscape has never been more exciting. Award-winning chefs around the region aren’t just cooking; they’re crafting captivating narratives on plates, weaving together stories that reflect their heritage, and for some, bringing to life their wildest culinary dreams. From self-developed culinary philosophies and cooking non-negotiables to sourcing the best local ingredients and reimagining diverse flavour profiles that tease both the mind and tastebuds, designing winning menus is no easy feat.
To understand what it takes to be at the top of their game, Tatler Dining delves into the minds of these three culinary wizards to uncover how they balance the delicate dance between innovation, tradition, and familiarity. On the dias are Julien Royer, chef-owner of three-Michelin-star French restaurant and Tatler Dining’s Restaurant of the Year 2024 awardee Odette (Singapore); Pichaya “Pam” Soontornyanakij, chef-owner of one-Michelin-star modern Asian restaurant Potong (Thailand); and Agustin Balbi, chef-founder of one-Michelin-star modern European restaurant and Tatler Dining’s Restaurant of the Year 2024 awardee Ando (Hong Kong).
From transforming a century-old newspaper to building Web3: Terminal 3’s Gary Liu on creating an equitable digital future
After stepping down as the CEO of South China Morning Post, Gary Liu has dedicated himself to creating a new era of the internet
The next generation of the internet, Web3, is the digital future that Gary Liu believes in.
“The internet is a wonderful, incredibly powerful tool, [but] it’s incredibly unequal,” says the co-founder of Web3 startup Terminal 3. “Very, very large companies hold the vast majority of the power on the internet because they own the vast majority of the data, but it’s the individual users—you and me—who are generating that data. Yet, the monetisation of that data, the control of that data, the security of that data, are all controlled by these big companies.”
Web3, on the other hand, could offer users more control and privacy, according to its proponents. Unlike current practices, where service providers like Meta and Google facilitate our activities and manage our data, technologies like blockchain allow netizens to interact directly with one another without intermediaries and own their information among a network of computers. That is why Web3 is often described as “decentralised” since it no longer relies on central authorities.
Read more: What exactly is Web3 and why should we care?
