Duo's hawker fare with a twist

Singapore

IN a country known globally as a foodie's paradise, aspiring restaurateurs in Singapore often look to distant shores to bring new exotic flavours to the market.

Not for Ven Chin and Ricky Shawn Lim, co-founders and executive directors of GD Group.

The duo decided to look closer to home - to Penang, near where Mr Chin was born - when developing a concept for their new chain of restaurants.

"We knew we had to be different, because if we sold Japanese or Thai food, the landlord would not want us as we cannot fight the big chains," Mr Chin said. "When I first came here, I missed home food a lot, I realised there was not much Penang food or Malaysian food at that point in time."

With around a quarter of those living in Singapore having ties to Malaysia, the company decided that Penang hawker fare would be in strong demand, Mr Chin, who is now a Singapo…