CHEF-RESTAURATEUR Jereme Leung attained international acclaim as founder and creator of the immensely successful Whampoa Club restaurants.
With a string of achievements to his name, he quit the establishment in January this year to devote his professional career to restaurant consultancy.
Why the change?
'My passion is cooking,' he explains. 'Running a restaurant had too much to do with daily chores and too little to do with the creative process, whereas in a consultancy company, you get to execute a lot more ideas in a shorter period of time.
'And since I see myself as a very hands-on person, I feel very excited about the possibilities afforded by this new extension of my career.'
Established in 2008, Jereme Leung Creative Concepts works with hotels and hospitality operators to create restaurants focusing on 'New Chinese Cuisine' - looking at traditional culinary offerings of the local heritage and exploring how they may be updated and improved upon.
This principle retains original cooking methods, yet introduces new ingredients, playing with presentation so that the dish is both pleasing to the eye and palate.
The company has completed a few projects to date, with its most notable one being Empress Jade restaurant at Mount Faber.
Yet, unlike other consultancies, Mr Leung's company is not so much touch-and-go. While, in some cases, it simply charges a fee for advisory services, Jereme Leung Creative Concepts often steps in and executes the entire project, even taking a cut out of restaurant profits as payment.
'It's a complicated process,' says Mr Leung of his company's working style. 'We look at their idea and talk about every single detail, covering a full range of services from dining to construction, conceptualisation to execution.
'When I was appointed consultant chef for Empress Jade, we decided on food presentation, restaurant space, ambience, tabletop decor and even service sequence. Subsequently, we may also stay on at the restaurant and retrain staff, or reveal new offerings and promotions each quarter.'
His years in the culinary line has taught Mr Leung to be discerning with the partners that his consultancy business works with.
Jereme Leung Creative Concepts takes on only projects that he thinks 'will get back to a win-win situation' - one in which his name benefits the project, and the project reflects well on his brand.
Currently headquartered in Singapore with offices in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Beijing, the consultancy has a number of projects in the pipeline, many of which are forays into new Asian markets such as Tibet, Taiwan and Japan, and are slated to open by 2011.
Mr Leung believes that the firm can achieve its projected revenue targets for the next three years.
He declined, however, to reveal exact figures.
Despite its short history and small size, Jereme Leung Creative Concepts looks set to conquer the Asia-Pacific with the rich experience and expertise of its founder.
Mr Leung remains unfazed about the economic gloom.
'While I'm sure the recession has an impact on the market, I would say that what's crucial is being good enough,' says Mr Leung.
'It's all about making your offerings relevant so that you can cater to demand, which will always be there.'
