To help you understand why so many people are willing to spend half a day in Singapore to join our cooking class, we made a short video to share our story of why we started Food Playground, and how we helped a group of women in our local community find meaningful work and put their hidden talents to good use. This group of women are not trained chefs, but they will charm you with their passion and personal stories of how they grew up learning Singapore's heritage cuisine.
Do you know we have been consistently rated the number 1 Cooking Class/Workshop in Singapore on Tripadvisor, the world’s largest travel review portal for independent travellers?
Our Team
Daniel
[ Founder ]
Daniel is passionate about creating social impact and championing the underdogs. He quit his corporate career in the travel industry to start Food Playground in 2012, and has never looked back since.
The inspiration to set up Food Playground came from
Daniel's adventure travels across South America and Southeast Asia in
2011. He had the opportunity to learn how to cook Thai, Vietnamese,
Cambodian and a variety of Latin American cuisine during his travels,
and discovered that cooking classes enabled him to dive deep into a country’s local culture by connecting with locals and appreciating the stories behind local
heritage food.
Through Food Playground, Daniel has inspired many stay-at-home mothers to return to the workforce by providing them with flexi-work arrangements and opportunities to regain their confidence and discover their hidden talents. The unfortunate reality is that many stay-at-home mothers and active seniors face overwhelming obstacles in finding meaningful work because of their need for flexi-work arrangements. Daniel firmly believes that this group of women has so much to offer and contribute, which is why every single employee in Food Playground is either a stay-at-home mother or an active senior.
Daniel has also been featured by
Spirit of Enterprise for his work building a social enterprise.
Helen
[ Culinary Instructor ]
Helen
began her casual cooking affair about 25 years ago. From the humble
beginnings of cooking simple meals for friends, her interest and love
for cooking gradually grew.
Largely inspired by both her Teochew mum and Peranakan
mother-in-law, Helen subsequently grew her repertoire to include
dishes unique to the South-East Asian cuisine.
Growing from strength to strength, she has mastered
peranakan and local chinese recipes ranging from kueh ko swee,
pineapple tarts and kueh lapis to mee siam, meat dumplings, laksa and
local favourites like bak-kwa, steamed pumpkin cakes and meat
dumplings. She is well versed in numerous dishes from both western and
local cuisines, many of which were brought down by through family
traditions.
For leisure, Helen enjoys spending time with her family and
friends over a meal. As an instructor, Helen hopes to impart her love
for cooking to everyone she meets.
Nur Samat
[ Culinary Instructor ]
Nur’s culinary journey began with her maternal family’s catering business, led by her great-grandmother in the 1960s. Her treasured family recipes have been passed down through generations, and Nur continues to prepare these heirloom dishes for her family today.
Growing up exposed to diverse flavours from various regions of Indonesia has deepened Nur’s appreciation for the art of cooking. Nur’s hands-on experience in the kitchen started during my maternity leave, driven by her desire to prepare quality meals for her family. As a dedicated mum who loves preparing delightful meals for her family, Nur has perfected the art of creating home favourites that do not require hours in the hot kitchen. The warm Singapore weather may encourage quick and simple cooking, but it never diminishes the flavour and joy embedded in each dish.
Nur is excited to translate and share this practical, passion-driven approach to fellow aspiring home chefs.
As a Muslim culinary instructor, Nur is a further assurance of the Halal environment we maintain at Food Playground — we only use Halal-certified ingredients and have cooked with no pork or lard since 2012.Being a Muslim instructor, Nur is part of what makes our kitchen a Halal-friendly space — every ingredient we use is Halal-certified, and we have cooked with no pork or lard since 2012.
Kiat Hui
[ Culinary Instructor ]
Cooking was never on Kiat Hui’s to-do list growing up, as the kitchen was fully helmed by her Hainanese homemaker mother. Homecooked chicken rice, pork cutlets, chap chye, and other delicious dishes often graced the family table, especially during big gatherings. Affection in her family was never verbalized, but expressed through food lovingly prepared. Chicken rice shaped into balls and handmade curry puffs became the love-filled legacy of her grandfather.
Kiat Hui’s food journey began when she left her job as an HR consultant to relocate with her family to Jakarta for her husband’s family business. Feeling homesick, she found comfort in cooking and baking. She scoured the wet markets, fascinated by the wide variety of ingredients and spices. She also enjoyed attending and exchanging culinary knowledge with her multicultural circle of friends during cooking parties.
After settling back in Singapore for the sake of her children’s education, she is delighted to return to the workforce, now working with Food Playground to spread the joy of cooking to people from all walks of life. Through this next chapter, she hopes to continue to honour her family’s love legacy — passing it on not only to her children, but also to everyone who gathers around her table.
Hera
[ Culinary Instructor ]
Hera’s story begins in a small Indonesian town, where she grew up as the eldest of five children in a family that had just enough to get by. Her mother worked tirelessly, cooking and selling homemade food to support the household. Many nights, young Hera and her brother rode on a trishaw with their mother, balancing a large pot of soup on the way to their grandmother’s small eating house, often returning home close to midnight. Despite long days and limited resources, Hera learned early what responsibility meant, helping her family while still doing well in school. Hard work wasn’t taught; it was simply life.
When the opportunity came to move to Singapore, Hera embraced it bravely. She spent years living in a shared rented room before building a home with her husband and two children. Along the way, she taught herself to cook and bake, discovering a joy that felt both familiar and new, like reconnecting with a part of herself she hadn’t realised she was missing.Her recent cancer diagnosis further deepened her appreciation for what truly matters: the joy of simple moments, the importance of kindness, the beauty of connection, and the people who bring comfort and warmth into our days.These are the same values she found reflected in Food Playground, a place where stories, food, and human connection meet.
A decade ago, Hera was a program analyst and account manager at Microsoft. In recent years, she explored entrepreneurship, a journey she eventually chose not to continue. Today, she brings her resilience, life lessons, and love for food to the community, sharing warmth through meaningful connections and showing how good food and good people can bring everyday joy.
Jenn
[ Culinary Instructor ]
Before Jenn found her way to the kitchen, she spent years in the classroom as a Chinese language teacher, guiding students through the nuances of the language and instilling in them an appreciation for Chinese culture and traditions. Teaching came naturally to her — the patience to break down something complex, the joy of watching understanding dawn on a student's face.
When Jenn made the decision to leave teaching and become a stay-at-home mum, she poured that same dedication into caring for her family. The kitchen became her new classroom, a place where she could experiment, create, and most importantly, nurture her loved ones through food.What started as preparing meals for her loved ones soon blossomed into a deep passion for cooking and baking. Jenn’s repertoire spans cultures and traditions: from comforting Chinese dishes like dumplings and baos, to the rich, aromatic flavours of curry chicken, beef rendang, and assam fish, to Thai favourites like pandan chicken and tom yum soup. Her love for Peranakan heritage shines through in her kueh — kueh dadar, ang ku kueh, and the delicate kueh loyang. Jenn’s sourdough bread became something of a local legend, earning enthusiastic praise from a Power 98 radio DJ. Encouraged by friends and family, she eventually started an Instagram shop, where her dumplings, sourdough, chiffon cakes, kueh salat, and bingka ubi quickly became bestsellers.
At Food Playground, Jenn has come full circle — returning to teaching, but this time sharing the stories and flavours of local heritage cuisine. With a teacher's patience and a home cook's heart, she hopes to help every participant discover the joy of creating something delicious with their own hands.
Sobna
[ Culinary Instructor ]
As the youngest of four, Sobna grew up pampered and focused on building her professional career as an engineer till her husband's job relocation to Saudi Arabia resulted in her transition to becoming a stay-at-home mother.
Staples like chicken rice and nasi lemak soon became her comfort foods while living overseas, and she attended two cooking classes at Food Playground to learn how to make these two dishes, which became the catalyst for her culinary exploration.
When Sobna returned to Singapore in 2024, she saw the recruitment ad from Food Playground, and felt an overwhelming sense of connection and purpose. It was a full circle moment as she started her culinary journey at Food Playground and now she is able to give back by sharing her culinary knowledge with others.
Irene
[ Culinary Instructor ]
Irene spent more than a decade in human resources, specialising in compensation and benefits, before stepping away from corporate life in 2012 when her family relocated to China. Living overseas deepened her connection to Singapore food. Missing the familiar flavours of home, and wanting to prepare healthy, child-friendly meals for her children, Irene began cooking more seriously. What started as a family necessity soon became a creative and therapeutic passion. During her years in China, she explored comforting dishes such as braised beef noodles, scallion oil noodles, zha jiang mian, char siu, crispy roast pork, seafood pao fan and crispy seafood noodles.
After returning to Singapore in 2023, Irene felt ready to re-enter the workforce in a meaningful way. Food Playground gave her the chance to bring together her people-centred HR background and her love for cooking.
She looks forward to meeting participants from all walks of life, sharing stories around the cooking station, and helping guests feel at home in the kitchen.
Mary
[ Culinary Instructor ]
Mary's love for cooking was triggered at a tender age by her mother's deep-rooted Teochew culinary traditions. Besides perfecting her craft in traditional Teochew favourites, Mary enjoys cross-cultural food exploration, often trying out new dishes that feature influences from various countries.
Past experiences in sales and organising MICE travels has given Mary an edge to inject fun and meaningful culinary experiences to every class she conducts at Food Playground. Going forward, Mary aspires to become a prominent Singapore Ambassador through sharing Singapore's food heritage and culture with visitors from around the world.
Annie
[ Culinary Instructor ]
Annie’s first cooking teacher was her late mum who advocates that her children must be able to cook. As a mother of two herself, she fully embraces this positive virtue. Traditional Hakka dishes like Yam Abacus, Nanyu Pork, Hakka Salted Pork dumplings, different types of braised dishes like pork belly are some of Annie’s specialties which she has mastered from her mum.
Through self-learning online, as well as trials and errors, Annie managed to further polish her culinary skills. She finds cooking and baking very therapeutic,and she enjoys cooking meals for her family & friends. Whenever she experiments with new dishes, she will invite them over to 'sample' and provide her with feedback to help her further improve the quality of the dish. Annie believes that food is a “common language” that helps connect people from all walks of life.
Having left her Corporate Sales & Marketing career in 2008, and dedicating to her family as a SAHM for 12 years,the ethos of Food Playground resonates strongly with Annie. She hopes to share this new joy of self-discovery with more people and encourage them that cooking is much more enjoyable and is not as difficult as they think!
