Cover Violet Oon, the grand dame of Peranakan cuisine
Violet Oon, the grand dame of Peranakan cuisine
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In celebration of Singapore’s 60 years of independence, Tatler looks at how the country continues to make an outsized mark on the world—not through scale, but through foresight and ambition. From tech visionaries and design trailblazers to cultural leaders and a decorated Paralympian, these individuals reflect the nation’s unique blend of agility, integrity and global influence rooted in a strong sense of identity. We speak to Violet Oon on the power of food as a vessel for identity and nationhood
Long regarded as the grande dame of Peranakan cuisine, Violet Oon has spent over five decades preserving the tastes and traditions that define Singapore’s multicultural identity. As the nation turns 60, she reminds us that memory is the root of identity.
Oon’s expansive view of culture was shaped early by a childhood rich in travel and exposure. Born in 1949, she grew up criss-crossing continents with her parents. Her father, an executive with Shell, was posted to different parts of the world every few years. She went to school in London, holidayed in Switzerland and Italy, and embarked on road trips through France and Spain before sailing back to Singapore from Gibraltar.
By the time she returned in 1963, she had not only acquired a global palate, but also a deep respect for cultural authenticity and the need to understand her own. “When I was in school in England,” Oon recalls, “I knew Wordsworth [the poet], the Maypole [folk] dance, and English songs. But when my classmates asked, ‘What’s your culture?’, I was confronted with that. People don’t respect you until you know your own roots.”
In case you missed it: What to expect at Violet Oon’s new restaurant at Dempsey Hill
Above Before she became a culinary master, Violet Oon was a food journalist
Before she became a culinary master, Violet Oon was a food journalist
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That moment set the stage for a lifelong conviction: that food is more than sustenance—it is heritage. At 16, Oon began learning to cook from her Indonesian Chinese grand-aunt, Aunty Nanny. “She made her own yeast for kueh bika ambon, her own vinegar from pineapple skin. That’s real cooking from scratch,” Oon recalls. “It was like alchemy.”
The kitchen became her first classroom of culture. “I’m glad I learned to cook before machines took over and when you still used your hands,” she says. “Today, we use machines, but only to simulate real life.” Cooking, for her, was never just about technique but also a way to understand the people and places that came before. “We grew up with these things, but people don’t always realise they’re culture,” she says, emphasising the urgency of documenting family recipes before they vanish for good.
Oon began her career in journalism in 1971 as an arts and music critic, but it was her growing passion for food that eventually defined her voice. She became a food columnist at New Nation and later, The Sunday Times. In 1987, she launched her own food zine, The Food Paper. By the 1990s, she transitioned from writing to cooking professionally, opening her namesake outlet at Takashimaya and later a restaurant on Bukit Pasoh Road. Today, she helms three restaurants under the Violet Oon Singapore brand.
Don’t miss: How do you write convincingly about food? Cooking doyenne Violet Oon answers
Above Violet Oon at her restaurant in Dempsey Hill
Violet Oon at her restaurant in Dempsey Hill
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Her contributions have earned her some of the country’s highest culinary accolades, including two Lifetime Achievement Awards in 2018—from the World Gourmet Summit and the Asian Masters—and the Singapore Tourism Board’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019 for Outstanding Contribution to Tourism.
Yet for all her acclaim, Oon remains steadfast in the belief that culture begins with understanding history. “You cannot regret change, but you must know your past,” she says. “The trouble with people in Singapore is that they don’t even know their 10- or 20-year past.”
To her, the rhythms of daily life—family meals, hawker breakfasts, communal tables—are what anchor a nation’s soul. “Every coffee shop has a chicken rice, prata, and nasi Padang stall. And we are all eating together,” she says. “That’s our daily life. The way we eat together is quite unique. I call it the ties that bind.”
Though often regarded as a cultural purist, Oon embraces evolution, so long as we hold on to what matters. “Every generation has something to add. Culture must evolve, because if it doesn’t, it dies.”
Oon’s message this SG60 is a sobering call to action: “Know what came before you. Before it disappears.”
Read more stories from our August issue and Tatler's SG60 coverage here.
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Credits
Photography: Darren Gabriel Leow
Hair: Angel Gwee
Make-Up: Angel Gwee
Nafeesa Saini is the Features Editor at Tatler Singapore, where she shapes long-form stories on culture, business, philanthropy, wellness, and the people driving change in Asia. With a deep interest in storytelling that intersects meaningfully with identity and impact, she has profiled a diverse range of visionaries, from scientific pioneers in AI and health to creative trailblazers and literary minds.
Nafeesa’s writing includes cover stories and profiles that spotlight influential voices, alongside commentary on the trends reshaping our world.
Off the clock, Nafeesa unwinds with fiction, a good thrift hunt, and ‘brainrot’ TikTok scroll—while always keeping one eye on her next cultural getaway, usually to Indonesia.
