Ever wondered who thought up of all those yummy durian pastries from Goodwood Park Hotel?

Durian Pastry Chef Alvin Tan, 44, was a young kitchen helper at Goodwood Park Hotel when he was asked to help its Pastry Chef with the hotel's very first Durian Mousse cake. Since then, he has been creating his own durian pastries, and the rest, as they say, is culinary history.

Who was your biggest culinary influence?
I guess it's in the family - both my elder brothers are also pastry chefs! They encouraged me to join them after I completed my National Service (NS), and so I did.

What was your Big Break?
I was really fortunate when I first started out as a kitchen helper at the Goodwood Park Hotel's pastry kitchen in 1983. Then, there was a French Pastry Chef who needed help with opening durians for his new creation and Goodwood Park 's very first Durian Mousse Cake, and I was picked to help him. I learnt the ropes of making durian pastries from him and have been making my own creations of durian pastries since. The durian pastries have become so popular that every year, my team and I have to come up with new creations, and I think this is good for us - to keep challenging ourselves and stretching our limits.

What makes a good chef?
I think a good chef needs to be constantly creative. You need to offer fresh ideas to the market to stay ahead of competition. A good chef also needs to have a lot of patience - you cannot be in a hurry and just push your creations out. You also need to set high standards and expectations of yourself.

Durian, Pandan & Coconut Cake

How would you describe your baking style?
I can't really describe my style: I have to come up with something new for every major festival and promotion. From cookies for Lunar New Year and logcakes for Christmas, to the fillings for our famous Snowskin Durian and Cempedak mooncakes and the durian pastries, the range of items I get to do requires varied skills and styles.

Do you have a signature dish?
In relation to the durian pastries promotion, I would say I'm most happy with my Durian Puffs and the new Durian, Pandan & Coconut Cake, especially the latter, as I think the three flavours are very well-blended. I'm very encouraged to know that these pastries have been very well received by our customers.

What is your most essential kitchen tool and why?
To me, tools are not the most essential things in the kitchen. Rather, a skillful pair of hands are more important as they translate and transform your creativity into reality.

What are the must-haves in your fridge at home?
Water, eggs and butter. With these three ingredients, I can create something almost immediately to fill my stomach!

When you do cook at home, what do you whip up?
I seldom cook or bake at home these days, compared to those days when I first started out, because I already do that at work the entire day! But if I do bake at home, I would make a simple yet tasty butter cake.

What is your favourite local dish? Why and which stall do you go to?
The Wanton Noodles at Lavender Street where you can see long queues - I can't recall the name of the stall but it's run by this elderly couple. The sauce and noodles just taste very special to me, but I'm not sure how they do it, though.