The Restaurant Association of Singapore (RAS) has named the team that will take the Epicurean Star Award & Gala Dinner into 2027. Two Co Chairs from the industry floor, two from the RAS Secretariat, and one seat still open. The gala returns in 2027, and this is who is running it.
The 2026 edition gathered 1,106 guests, 254 nominations, 52 People's Choice nominations and 47 mystery judges across 762 restaurant visits. The 2027 team inherits that benchmark with one brief: make the award bigger for the industry and fairer for the small operators in it.
Paul Liew, Managing Director, KEK Seafood, Co Chair
Paul runs one of Singapore's best loved zi char institutions, a family business now in its third generation, and sits on the 23rd Term RAS Management Committee. He was in the room for the 2026 gala as a committee member and spent the after action review asking the questions an operator asks: how did the sponsors actually get seen, and did the food do the industry justice. He brings the kitchen's point of view to the Co Chairs' table, and he is not shy about it.
Seah Ern Xu, Group Head of Growth and Operations, Commonwealth Concepts, Co Chair
Ern Xu grows and runs restaurant brands for a living, across a group that feeds Singapore every day of the week. He joined the team with a request - How can we give the single outlet operators a fighting chance next year? The 2027 categories will carry his fingerprints. If the award feels fairer next year, start by thanking him.
The third Co Chair, to be announced
One seat on the Co Chairs' bench is still open, and we will announce it as soon as we've found the final piece to the Epicurean puzzle!
James Chan, RAS Secretariat, Event IC
James is the RAS Communications and Partnerships Manager and the person in charge of the Epicurean Star Award & Gala Dinner for the second year running. In 2026 he ran the judging portal, the nominations, the sponsors and the seating plan for 1,106 guests, and most of the emails you received about any of it came from him. For 2027 he is building the whole thing into one portal so that nominees, judges, sponsors and guests can see where they stand without asking. He will still answer if you ask.
Xianna Lock, RAS Secretariat, Event 2IC
Xianna was second in command for the 2026 gala and the calm end of the phone for its judges. When a judge found a problem with a score sheet, it was Xianna they called, and the fix shipped the same evening. She also carried the liaison with the Guest of Honour's office through every clarification before the night. In 2027 she is the second pair of hands on everything James touches, which means that if he is at a wedding on a Saturday, the portal still answers.
What happens next
The team meets this quarter to set the 2027 categories, the judging criteria and the calendar. Nominations open early in the new year, and every announcement between now and the night will land here first. Follow #onevoiceforfnb, and if you run a restaurant in Singapore, start thinking about which category you want to be judged in.
Be part of 2027
Put your brand in the room with Singapore's food and beverage industry as a sponsor of the night. Nominations are not open yet: the 2027 award categories are still being set. Register your interest and you will hear the day they open.
