In a rare meeting of visual art and haute cuisine, Odette, the three-Michelin-starred French restaurant housed within National Gallery Singapore, has partnered with the Gallery to launch a one-of-a-kind culinary experience inspired by its latest major exhibition, City of Others: Asian Artists in Paris, 1920s-1940s.
Running Tuesdays to Thursdays until 14 August 2025, this collaboration offers diners a specially curated four-course lunch menu by celebrated Chef-Owner Julien Royer, alongside complimentary access to the landmark exhibition. For more information on the exhibition, you can check out our article on it here!
It’s more than a meal. It’s a carefully composed experience that invites guests to explore the cultural intersections between Asia and France, not just on the plate, but also through the lens of modern art history.
A Menu Inspired by Cross-Cultural Journeys
Odette has long been known for its refined approach to French gastronomy and for infusing those techniques with Asian flavours, ingredients, and philosophies. This affinity for cross-cultural expression makes it a natural partner for City of Others, an exhibition that repositions Asian artists at the centre of Paris’ modern art scene in the early 20th century.
The four-course menu is a quiet, elegant reflection of the themes found in the exhibition: migration, influence, identity, and stylistic innovation. Diners begin with a delicate starter, followed by a fish course, a rich and expressive main, and a dessert that closes the meal with both flair and restraint.
While the menu itself remains a surprise, it mirrors the thoughtful complexity of Royer’s trademark style, technical precision paired with emotional resonance.
The experience doesn’t end at the table. Each diner receives a complimentary ticket to City of Others, inviting them to explore the Parisian stories that inspired the menu, and perhaps find subtle echoes of those narratives in each dish.
City of Others: Rewriting the Story of Modern Art
Currently on view at the Singtel Special Exhibition Gallery (Level 3), City of Others is a defining exhibition in the Gallery’s 10th anniversary year. Featuring over 200 artworks and 200 archival materials, it tells the story of Asian artists who lived, worked, and exhibited in 1920s–40s Paris – a time when the French capital was a magnet for artistic innovation, but also deeply entangled in colonial politics and social hierarchies.
Artists such as Foujita Tsuguharu, Georgette Chen, Lê Phổ, Liu Kang, and Sanyu emerge not as peripheral figures but as key contributors to modern art. Their works, often shaped by both Asian traditions and Western avant-garde movements, complicate the dominant Eurocentric narratives of the era.
The exhibition unfolds across multiple thematic sections: from the decorative arts workshops of the Art Déco era, to the politically charged International Colonial Exposition, to the bohemian streets and studios of Montparnasse, where many of these artists lived and worked alongside contemporaries like Picasso and Modigliani.
Yet, for all its scale and academic depth, City of Others is also deeply personal. Through self-portraits, letters, and archival footage, visitors encounter artists wrestling with questions of identity, belonging, and representation – themes that remain urgent today. This emotional resonance is perhaps what most closely aligns with the experience at Odette, where the act of dining becomes its own form of storytelling.
Where Art and Gastronomy Meet
Julien Royer has always been attentive to the stories behind ingredients, techniques, and traditions. At Odette, he has created a space where food is not only artfully composed but deeply reflective of culture and memory. The City of Others collaboration extends this philosophy into new territory, using food as a bridge between eras, between Asia and Europe, and between the visual and the sensory.
The setting, too, adds to the experience. Nestled within the restored City Hall wing of National Gallery Singapore, Odette’s dining room is itself a quiet dialogue between classical architecture and contemporary design. It’s a space where history and the present coexist, much like the stories told within the exhibition galleries above.
A Limited-Time Experience Worth Savouring
With bookings extended to 14 August 2025 due to high demand, the City of Others x Odette collaboration is quickly becoming one of the city’s most sought-after cultural experiences this season. And rightly so — it offers something rare in Singapore’s dining scene: a seamless integration of fine art and fine dining, presented with thoughtfulness, restraint, and beauty.
Whether you’re an art lover, a gourmand, or simply someone intrigued by the idea of tasting history, this is a collaboration that rewards curiosity and lingers in memory.
🗓️Date: Tuesday and Thursdays until 14 August 2025
📍Location: 1 St Andrew’s Rd, #01-04 National Gallery, Singapore 178957
💲Price: S$298++
⏰Opening Hours:
- Monday: 6.30am – 8pm
- Tuesday to Saturday:
- 12pm – 1.15pm
- 6.30pm – 8pm
City of Others x Odette is available Tuesdays to Thursdays, now extended until 17 July 2025. Each experience is priced at S$298++ and includes a complimentary ticket to the City of Others exhibition at National Gallery Singapore.
Reservations can be made via the SevenRooms website. For more about the exhibition, visit the National Gallery website, and be sure to keep up with the latest updates through the National Gallery Instagram, TikTok and YouTube!
Visuals courtesy of National Gallery Singapore and Odette.
