World Environment Day falls on 5 June, and Analogue Initiative will be serving a special menu and playing host to an exclusive art installation this upcoming weekend to commemorate the occasion, in collaboration with Booking.com — a novel partnership for the both.
A Conscious Affair is an art and food pop-up experience, with a menu curated in time for the return of travel and tourism. Food is an integral part of travel, and the dishes are inspired by different destinations to remind guests of the urgency and importance of mindful travel that keeps the environment in focus.
Start the meal off with the Aztec Tepache — Analogue’s first zero-waste rum cocktail. Infusing lapsang souchong tea with a pickled pineapple cordial and a hint of black pepper, the drink is available with and without alcohol for a refreshing tropical-flavoured aperitif either way.
The Japanese Puris were a pleasant surprise. In this unique take on the traditional pani puri, the classic spicy filling is replaced with sautéed enoki mushrooms. The mushrooms are nestled in two puri shells and garnished with coriander for a delightful umami flavour with a crunch.
Made from locally-grown tomatoes, the Spanish Sun is a satisfying palate cleanser that softens the flavours of the puris before indulging in the main dish. Farmed vertically in a Singapore-based urban aeroponics farm, the tomatoes make for a delightfully light and flavourful gazpacho that pairs well with the puris.
The highlight of the menu is the Moroccan Morsel, prepared using five of the most carbon-efficient vegetables — zucchini, carrot, onion, potato and celery. Maple grilled carrots are seasoned with caraway seed for subtle earthy flavours. The soft and succulent carrots are then topped with a tangy onion jam and crunchy potato jagabee, and served with a portion of ribbon salad made with celery and yellow zucchini.
A cooling agar jelly ends the meal on a sweet and tangy note. Named Bangkok Jam, the soft jelly is infused with lime and a mix of seasonal fruits — chosen as they are more environmentally-friendly than fruits that are forcefully grown off-season.
After savouring the delicious plant-based fare, explore the As We Move art installation specially created for World Environment Day. Booking.com has commissioned Singapore-based visual art and culture collective Mama Magnet — known for their social and ecologically-themed projects — and Bangkok-based light and visual design collective Human Spectrum to create the interactive light installation. Guests are encouraged to engage with the art that intends to invoke a stronger sense of awareness in them about the impact of their travels on the environment.
Sitting at 37th place on the list of Asia’s 50 Best Bars, Analogue’s focus on sustainability is nothing new, and extends far beyond this limited-time menu to the business’s core. Alongside a fully plant-based menu, their unique blue wave bar top is made entirely from recycled plastic bottles, and they use coasters re-purposed from recycled plastic products.