The Singapore EDITION introduces its signature restaurant FYSH at EDITION and the Lobby Bar by the multi-award-winning chef, restaurateur, and author Josh Niland, his first venue outside Sydney, Australia.
More than just a fish restaurant, FYSH is chef Niland’s reimagining of the steakhouse, and his menu showcases a thoughtful balance of innovative fish, seafood, and meat dishes, much of it cooked over the charcoal Josper grill. Whilst the menu is fish-focused, land-based protein and vegetables are treated with equal reverence and respect.
Josh explains, “I am honoured and excited to be in Singapore, one of the world’s most respected culinary destinations. EDITION’s commitment to changing the way hotel kitchens operate, choosing complexity and training over commercial convenience, and sharing our vision and ethos made partnering with them an easy decision. Fish is so much more than the fillet, and exploring alternatives means that by using the whole fish, we take one from the water instead of two. In deciding to approach fish as a land-based protein, we have opened up endless creative opportunities. With EDITION, we have taken what we do beyond Australia for the first time, and this has been a huge moment for our whole team.”
Josh Fluhr, Senior Vice President, and Global Managing Director of EDITION Hotels, said, “Chef Josh Niland’s creativity and unwavering passion make The Singapore EDITION a truly world-class dining experience for our guests and sets a fresh standard for modern dining within our brand. Chef Niland’s responsible and inventive approach to food not only elevates our dining experience but also helps us operate more sustainably across the entire hotel’s food and beverage offerings. We firmly believe that FYSH is just the start of a transformative journey for our hotels.”
SCALE TO TAIL, DAY TO NIGHT
A profound ethos centred around whole fish cooking lies at the heart of Niland’s dishes. Inspired by traditional meat butchery, his mission is to transform how we appreciate every part of the fish: minimising waste and maximising flavour, showcasing the beauty of often-overlooked components and implementing preservation techniques that extend longevity and intensify flavour.
At EDITION’s first hotel in Southeast Asia, Chef Niland, together with his Head Chef Luke Cawsey, presents a dining experience that is as delicious as it is conscientious, featuring the finest ingredients from world-class fishers, producers, growers and artisanal suppliers. Josh has replicated a similar system to how his Fish Butchery works in relation to his award-winning restaurants Saint Peter, Petermen & Charcoal Fish in Sydney within the context of the hotel setting. Only whole fish are used, and all preparation, butchering, and ageing are carried out in-house. Processing fish this way is meticulous, laborious, and time-consuming, but the reward is the creation of multiple dishes from one fish. The Singapore EDITION’s lunch, dinner, soon-to-launch Sunday Brunch and bar menus allow the team the diversity to deliver dishes that maximise each fish’s yield, respect the full potential of individually sourced sustainable produce and create a circular economy within the hotel.
PHILOSOPHY, PROVENANCE & METHODS
Historically, traditional fillet-only cooking has wasted half the yield; Niland achieves a return of 90% with his maturation and cooking techniques inspired by meat butchery and scale-to-tail dining. He has developed recipes from almost every part of the fish, including the liver, eyes and scales. His approach involves dry-ageing fish in a carefully controlled environment with precise temperature and humidity conditions. This process allows the protein to lose excess moisture, concentrating flavour and enhancing texture. Through his vision, fish, as an ingredient, evolves beyond the traditional to fisheye ice cream, fish fat chocolates and candles, each of which is part of the FYSH experience at The Singapore EDITION.
FYSH OFFERINGS & EXPERIENCE
The fish-focused steakhouse serves traditional cuts like Ribeye, French-trimmed racks, cutlets and chops, all from the in-house butchery of whole fish. For example, when an entire tuna from Walkers Seafood on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, is delivered to the FYSH kitchen, Niland and his team transform the magnificent species to create Dry Aged Yellowfin Tuna Ribeye with Béarnaise Sauce, Yellowfin Tuna Fillet Steak with Cafe de Paris Butter, Mooloolaba Yellowfin Tuna ‘Nduja and Yellowfin Tuna Eye Ice Cream; with the head, bone, and collars being used to make sauces. The gills and gallbladder are the only unused elements. A similar approach is applied to all whole fish species delivered to the restaurant.
Dinner at FYSH is a classic steakhouse service with hero cuts of ocean and land protein surrounded by accompaniments; think Salt and Vinegar Onion Rings or Josper Grilled Asparagus, Macadamia & Curry Vinaigrette. Vegetable sides are often enjoyed as entrees like Dandelion and Smoked Mozzarella Pie with pine nuts and sultanas or a whole Radicchio from the Josper grill served with Sweet & Sour Grilled Grapes, Hazelnuts & Olives.
While dinner celebrates various cuts and species of fish, lunch is a condensed version of the menu, ideal for business lunches or guests on the go. For example, Aquna Murray Cod with Potato Scales can be enjoyed as a single dish for lunch. The fat from this exceptional fish is now featured in the charcuterie, fish Merguez sausages, and even the house martini. The preparation of such products takes time to develop, and while the restaurant opened at the end of 2023, the changing menu is now fully mature and available in its entirety.
Desserts again ascribe to the unconventional. Small, delicate two or three-bite desserts entertain the palette without the rich, heavy finish traditionally associated with the steakhouse experience. Madeleines flavoured with calamansi are served by the half dozen in oyster shells. Kaviari Caviar topped Chocolate Tart with an infill of Murray Cod Fat Caramel, Yuzushu Parfait, Aged Balsamic Meringue & Mango Sorbet; Rose, Coconut & Raspberry Trifle; and of course, Niland’s improbable Valrhona Chocolate Macaron filled with an Ice Cream made from the vitreous humour of Yellowfin Tuna Eyes.
Josh Niland’s touch extends to the Lobby Bar as well, where his inspired light bites showcase thoughtful circularity with dishes such as the Hokkaido Sea Urchin Rice, FYSH egg tart, and the flakey Mooloolaba Swordfish Empanadas extended from the Dry Aged Yellowfin Tuna Ribeye and Swordfish Schnitzel on the restaurant menu. Likewise, the secondary cuts of the restaurant’s Yellowfin Tuna provide the Lobby Bar’s Yellowfin Tuna Tartare Crumpet and Yellowfin Tuna Cheeseburger.
Opened three months ago in late 2023, FYSH has now introduced its full array of dishes. The menu will remain fluid with the seasonality and availability of sustainable fish however the last few months have allowed the time for his aged charcuterie to become available. The ever-changing menu will continue to evolve as relationships with local fishers increase. To guarantee an ethical, sustainable product, Josh has spent years nurturing relationships with forward-thinking fishers who share his approach and values from catch to plate. He and his team are continuing that journey locally in Singapore and Malaysia. March will also see the launch of Sunday Brunch, including the FYSH Trolley, where each day’s cuts are brought to the table for guests to choose from.
Josh Niland further explains, “I spent the initial few months of opening getting to know our guests. Using the entire fish in dishes is not uncommon in Singapore, and we wanted to introduce some new ideas around whole fish cooking to this very informed and experienced audience. Our menu has already evolved, and I wanted to add a little bit of a family tradition from back home with one of my favourites, Sunday Brunch. Think Frenched Rack of Flounder, Local Clams, Smoked Bonito Butter served with a beautiful selection of mushrooms & greens.”
FYSH BEVERAGE PROGRAMME
The cocktails showcase the often-overlooked parts of fruits and vegetables from root to leaf. Elegant and subtle signature cocktails include the appropriately saline Oyster Shell Gin & Sonic, made with Never Never Oyster Shell Gin (Kangaroo Island oyster shell, Tasmanian wakame and saltbush) created for contemporary seafood pairings and as an expression of the Australian coastline. FYSH Martini is a fruity riff on the classic martini with Stranger & Sons Gin, Murray Cod Fat, Fino Sherry Dry Vermouth., whilst agave enthusiasts can imbibe the Tomato Vine Highball with Ocho Reposado Tequila, Tomato Vine, Elderflower and Soda.
Curated by the Director of Beverage for The Singapore EDITION, Giovanni Graziadei, the wine list is not dominated by white wine as expected in a seafood restaurant. Josh Niland’s cuisine re-imagines fish, and the thoughtfully curated red wine selection pairs beautifully with both the fish and land protein dishes on the menu. More saline varietals have been selected with an emphasis on coastal vineyards and grapes that grow near water. Responsibly produced beers such as Lion Brewery Straits Pale Ale and Crust Breaking Bread Ale are also listed.
DESIGN
Guests are welcomed to FYSH via a separate street entrance or through the soaring white aerie of the hotel’s buzzing lobby. Masterminded and conceived by Ian Schrager Company in collaboration with interior design firm Cap Atelier, the high vaulted ceiling and timber lined FYSH restaurant is anchored by a custom-made marble bar in green scalloped Antico Verde marble. The main dining room seats 80 people with intimate jade velvet banquettes and booths and Calcutta white marble tables. Artworks frame the space, with a 14-carat gold leaf etching greeting diners at the entrance, while a custom piece by the artist Christian Furr sits over the bar. An outdoor pergola provides a perch for an additional 44 diners in the cooler tropical evenings.
THE NAME
About Hudson Fysh. A game changer from the early 1900s, aviator Hudson Fysh was one of the first pilots to link Australia and Singapore by air travel, uniting these two territories and improving connectivity across the APAC region. His adventurous spirit, bravery and entrepreneurship were instrumental in forging a link between the two countries for cultural understanding, diplomatic relations, tourism and trade. Josh Niland found meaning in this story, likening Fysh’s incredible maiden voyage from Australia to Singapore to his own journey in opening FYSH at EDITION, his first restaurant outside of Australia. While FYSH at EDITION remains fish and seafood-focused, it is also the first restaurant in which Josh cooks land-based protein since opening Saint Peter in 2016.
