Singapore-born restaurateur Ellen Chew has linked up with Singapore government agencies and businesses to open a new restaurant showcase for the island state’s unique Chinese-Malay cuisine.

Singapulah, which launches on February 15 in a four-storey site on the edge of Chinatown in Shaftesbury Avenue, will offer a menu based around ingredients supplied by 13 of Singapore’s prime food manufacturers – some of them rarely found outside their home territory.

The venture – supported by Enterprise Singapore, Singapore Brand Office and Singapore Tourist Board – will operate as a bridge linking these manufacturers with UK distributors and retailers. Partner brands will rotate every six months and some items will be available for retail sale.

Ellen began her working life as a street-food hawker in Singapore, and opened her London flagship Rasa Sayang in 2008. Her Chew on This group now has restaurants in London, Birmingham, Oxfordshire and Heathrow.

She says: “My dream has always been to bring the taste of Singapore to London. I’ve been bringing essential ingredients back in my luggage since opening my first restaurant, Rasa Sayang. To finally be able to work with these brands directly for Singapulah feels like a full circle moment.

“Singapulah heralds a fresh restaurant concept, a vibrant celebration of the finest Singaporean cuisine, culture, and design in the heart of London. What sets Singapulah apart is the authenticity; the ingredients, the brands, the decor, the methods of cooking and the expertise of the Chef all bring the essence of Singapore to London.”

The restaurant’s interior evokes a 1970s vision of Singapore designed to fill southeast Asian expats with nostalgia, and everybody else with “wonder and excitement“.