Xiang Se's Steve Chiu × earnestos' Ernest Toh Reunite After 5 Years: A 4-Hands Dinner Reimagining Chili Crab and Bak Kut Teh
Two 32-year-old chefs who first crossed paths five years ago have both since built families and careers of their own. Now they're revisiting the intersection of Singaporean street food and French technique through an 11-course menu, staged as a 4-hands dinner across two Taipei restaurants from late May through mid-June.
Five years ago, Steve Chiu and Ernest Toh weren't exactly close — they'd simply tasted each other's cooking and realized they were thinking along similar lines. Now, both 32, both have put down roots in Taiwan with families and businesses of their own, and both have led their teams through the pandemic. This time, they decided to sit down, lay out their respective journeys, and piece them together into one shared menu.
Steve, chef of the perennially Michelin-recommended Xiang Se, and Ernest, chef of the up-and-coming earnestos (recognized by Taiwan's "500 Plates"), have co-curated a 4-hands dinner titled "Heritage & Innovation." The 11-course menu will be served across both restaurants: dinner service on May 29 and 30 at Xiang Se, and June 12 and 13 at earnestos. The dinner is priced at NTD 4,980+10%, including 4 wine or non-alcoholic pairings. Reservations for Xiang Se: https://reurl.cc/V2Qxz5 ; reservations for earnestos: https://reurl.cc/0mlqdA
Ernest hails from Singapore, having trained under two-Michelin-star Saint Pierre and one-star Nouri, and previously served as head chef of Asia's 50 Best-listed MUME. Today, he bridges Taiwan and Singapore through his "Modern Singaporean Cuisine Inspired by Taiwan." Steve, born in Pingtung, spent time at Australia's three-hat Attica and Chicago's three-Michelin-star Alinea before returning to Taiwan to rethink what Taiwanese cuisine could become. Ernest says Steve "still enjoys cooking, and still remembers why he started." Steve says Ernest "has grown steadier over the years, and his cooking carries deep cultural context and emotion."
Ernest's Thread: Memories of Singapore's Streets
Ernest's menu reads like an act of memory-keeping. The opener, "Chili Crab Tart," reimagines Singapore's national dish by separating the tiger prawn from the freshly tossed chili crab sauce to preserve the seafood's texture, then layering in tropical notes with kaffir lime leaf and spices. "Childhood Biscuit," created for Singapore's 60th anniversary, takes its shape from the flower-shaped cookies of his youth — a mille-feuille pastry shell filled with a refreshing salad of fennel, apple, and Southeast Asian green chili paste, paired with mackerel, drawing on French, Japanese, and Nordic approaches to acidity all at once.
"Bak Kut Teh" is reworked into a terrine-like form, built on the aroma of kombu, shiitake, and Chinese herbs to create a broth that sits somewhere between Malaysia/Singapore and Taiwan. "Fish Curry" places the memory of Taiwanese salty soy milk alongside Southeast Asian curry — tofu, sakura shrimp, kaffir lime leaf, and seasonal fish come together in something both familiar and slightly foreign. The main course, "Braised Pork Rice," is where the two chefs' styles truly meet — Xiang Se's European-inflected take on braised pork rice, layered with earnestos' command of Southeast Asian spice, served tableside from a clay pot. It's Taiwanese flavor, and yet not quite.
Steve's Thread: From Prep Work to Fire Control
Steve brings a condensed portrait of his own technique. He revisits the "Pearl Meatballs" taught to him by an old master chef, insisting on hand-cutting quality pork shoulder and repeatedly whipping white shrimp paste, swapping the traditional glutinous rice for crisp puffed rice to give this familiar dim sum dish a different rhythm. "Three Generations Chicken Soup" extends from the shock he felt early on encountering French banquet cuisine — boneless chicken wing wrapped around chicken mousse, foie gras, and quinoa, served with aged preserved radish chicken soup and charcoal-grilled vegetables, placing French technique and Taiwanese terroir in the same dish. The main course, "Steak and Cheek," traces his arc from an early obsession with steak when he first entered Western cuisine, to the sauce and fire-control skills he learned at Alinea, finishing with wagyu New York strip, slow-cooked beef cheek, and truffle foie gras sauce.
Dessert continues the same thread. "Cheese and Honey" comes from what Steve realized at Attica — that a great restaurant's achievements are built day and night by everyone on the team. A cheese semifreddo is paired with gardenia honey, marigold pineapple jam, and the acidity of caramelized pineapple flowers, topped with pineapple sorbet and anise hyssop shoots. The caffeine-free "Tiramisu" replays the drive he had as a student to take on a classic — sake lees sponge cake brushed with sake, layered with basil-loquat foam and hazelnut ice cream, finished with osmanthus milk coffee and a mascarpone cream cap. The finale, "Pandan Leaf Tea Cake," is earnestos' signature dish and Ernest's childhood in one — the pandan chiffon cake demands patience to extract the leaf juice and control the temperature just right to bring out its natural fragrance, served with kaya jam made from coconut sugar and duck egg. Simple, but every step matters.
