UBS Monocle
A hunger for knowledge
Lee Yum Hwa
Founder and chef, Ben Fatto 95 and Forma
Anyone strolling down leafy Tembeling Road in Singapore’s Joo Chiat neighbourhood might stop to gaze through a window at a small team of white-clad figures measuring flour and rolling out dough. This is Forma, the first restaurant by chef-founder Lee Yum Hwa, who made his culinary name with private dining establishment Ben Fatto 95. Both focus on fresh, handmade pasta in all its glorious forms, from classics such as spaghetti to obscure, hyper-local shapes that Lee discovers on research trips and apprenticeships in Italy.
Ten years ago, Lee was an accountant; a fateful meal in Bologna – fingernail-sized tortellini, shaped with more finesse than anything he’d seen in Singapore – convinced him to retrain. “The manual aspect really drew me in,” he says. “Every piece is made by hand, and the beauty is that it differs from each pasta-maker.”
Forma’s menu includes a changing array of pasta dishes that many Singaporean diners will be encountering for the first time. For patrons who reserve an evening at Ben Fatto 95 – a private, fixed-menu dinner where Lee cooks, serves and pours the wine – the experience is even more immersive, with an interactive session allowing guests to try making their own pasta.
Lee’s dedication is palpable – he kneads pasta dough every day to ensure perfection. And while he has a near-encyclopaedic knowledge of his craft, the sheer richness and diversity of the pasta world spurs him on even further. “The learning aspect was really driven by my hunger and my curiosity to learn every shape there is,” he says. “You can never be a master of pasta. There’s always something to learn.”
To sample Lee Yum Hwa’s pasta skills, visit Forma at 128 Tembeling Road, Singapore 423638 or make a private dining reservation at benfatto95.com
