About Whey
Whey, opened in 2021 in Sheung Wan, is chef Barry Quek's love letter to Singaporean and pan-Southeast Asian cuisine through a modernist French lens. One Michelin star arrived inside a year; the dining room runs thirty-eight covers across an open kitchen counter and intimate two-tops at the back wall.
The eight-course tasting menu is the only option — chef Quek is Singaporean, French-trained at Spoon by Alain Ducasse and Akrame in Paris, and the menu shows both genealogies. Standouts include a chicken-rice essence served in three forms, a Singaporean-chilli-crab raviolo, and an aged-duck breast over fermented kemiri; the dessert is a deconstructed bandung that has converted plenty of hardline traditionalists.
It is a smart, unstuffy room — cocktail-driven bar at the front, focused dining at the back, music low enough for conversation but present enough to give the room energy. The wine list runs short and intentional, with a strong by-the-glass programme that pairs through the menu. The bar's pandan-and-Singapore-sling cocktail is a small classic.
Bookings two weeks ahead via Tableapp; counter seats easier than booth seats. Two seatings nightly. Dress smart-casual; the bar accepts walk-in. Service is bilingual, fast, and unusually warm for a starred kitchen.
Best Occasion Fit
First-date Hong Kong used to mean Italian. The new answer is Whey — a counter format that disarms, a tasting menu that gives ordering decisions to the kitchen, a chef who interacts when invited, and a bar that absorbs nerves on the way in.
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