Reflections of 2024 - The Goodies, the Roughies and the Toughies!
It’s that time of the year again. 2024 has been another amazing year journeying through Asia, discovering uncharted opportunities, forming fresh perspectives and setting new milestones. It was a jet-setting one for the team, and we are incredibly grateful to our clients around Asia who fed us from Bangkok to Bombay.
Of course, like all good adventures in life, the road must be marked by both highs and lows. So rather than paint a perfect picture for our yearbook, here’s a look back at the good times and rough moments that thankfully, we can brush aside with a smile as we wrap our massive year.
#1 FN Team Retreat in Bali
The year started with a fun retreat with the team in Bali, Indonesia. As always, we ate and drank, laughed and whined, ate and drank some more, and participated in “team-bonding” activities, before wrapping up the 5D4N getaway by setting our 2024 company goals. While 80% of the team stumbled their way home between bathroom visits (the result of a big final night and conga lines around the villa), we were pleased to report that everyone made their flight and landed home as scheduled!
#2 Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants in Seoul
FoodNews was officially appointed as the lead agency for Asia’50 Best Restaurants in 2024. This was an exciting milestone for us, having worked with 50 Best on Asia’s 50 Best Bars since 2017. Our PR family also got an upgrade, as we joined forces with partner agencies across Asia – GHC Asia, Aviareps, Geocm – to drive global coverage for the awards. At the time of writing this post, this A-Team is being brought together again, with work commencing for Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2025!
#3 MILUX F&B Workshop in Bangkok
As an F&B focused marketing agency, our expertise spans across Communications, Campaigns, Content and Coaching. Since 2020, FoodNews has been churning out tailored marketing and PR training programmes for hospitality organisations such as Marriott International. To date, we have coached and trained over 200 F&B leaders and marketing professionals in the group. In May 2024, we conducted our first in-person training, with attendees from across their luxury property portfolio in APEC.
Interested in our coaching and training services? Drop us a note here.
#4 Asia’s 50 Best Bars in Hong Kong
If “food” is our first love, then “cocktails” are the ones we want to marry! Our seventh appointment for Asia’s 50 Best Bars took us to Hong Kong. Right off the plane, we headed for the famed Typhoon Shelter Spicy Crabs. This was followed by a whirlwind of 50 Best activations, from “Meet 50 Best” at COA to “Bartenders’ Feast”, the awards ceremony and after party at Rosewood Hong Kong. The trip ended with a quick sip at Bar Leone, which was crowned the Best Bar in Asia 2024.
#5 Stopover for Mates’ Mash-up in Saigon
One of the biggest highlights of the year for us, was definitely the star-studded line-up as part of Akuna’s Mates’ Mash-up – a collaboration series featuring Chef Sam Aisbett’s best buds from around the world. The series kicked off with chefs Rishi Naleendra of Cloudstreet, Sun Kim of Meta and of course Sam Aisbett of Akuna, goofing around in the kitchen and cooking up a storm in the process. It was the first time we booked a turnaround flight for a meal! And man, it was worth it.
Looking for help to plan your 2025 collaboration calendar? Drop us a note here.
#6 Visiting Papa’s and The Bombay Canteen in Mumbai
And then there was Mumbai. Another first for us (at the time of writing this post, we had booked our second trip to celebrate The Bombay Canteen’s 10th year anniversary), we were so blown away by the vivid city, full of colour and life. The trip was marked by delicious meals compliments of the Hunger Inc. Group (a leader in advocating “New India” hospitality), but the highlight was most certainly Papa’s, a speakeasy-style 14-seater restaurant tucked away in the attic of a neighbourhood sandwich shop.
Read more about it here.
#7 We Unveiled SOCraft Awards 2024/25
In May, we added another feather to our cap with the unveiling of winners for the first edition of SOCraft Awards. Established as a platform to connect global craft spirit makers to Asia’s thriving bar industry, the inaugural edition saw entries from across 15 countries. A total of 43 distilleries were awarded between 1 to 3 STARS, and 22 winners were recognised with a Green Ring for their excellent green practices.
SOCraft Awards will open for entries again from 1 February 2025. For more information, visit the website here.
#8 Singapore Cocktail Festival (On Break!)
So here’s the rough moment we promised. After nine great editions, we were gutted to cancel SGCF this year (more updates on this another time). The upside is, we took the time to reset and recalibrate, something we knew we needed, but never managed to find time for. And its quite amazing, what a little time on hand can foster. Stay tuned for news of SOCraft Festival, a brand new experience brought to you by none other than FoodNews!
#9 Kotuwa Re-opening in New Bahru
The opening of New Bahru by The Lo & Behold Group was probably the most highly reported event of the year, and thanks to Kotuwa, we got a slice of the action. The popular restaurant relocated to New Bahru with its famed Sri Lankan classics and a brand new bar to boot. Led by Head Bartender Ashaka, Kotuwa Bar champions the spirits, stories and ingredients from Chef Rishi Naleendra’s beloved homeland.
To find out more, read this recent feature by our friends from Honeycombers.com!
#10 Bord Bia Trade Mission in Bangkok and Saigon
Our third trade mission for the Irish Food Board took us to Thailand and Vietnam. This time, we travelled with Minister Pippa Hackett and Bord Bia CEO Jim O’Toole, driving conversations around Irish exports and spotlighting the country’s dedication to quality, food safety and sustainable food systems. From organising press conferences to navigating ministerial interviews, the FN team brought their A-game, working with our local agency partners to deliver a flawless PR campaign from end-to-end.
#11 (Because why stop at #10)
IGNIV’s and Akuna’s Michelin Star Wins
The pride and joy from witnessing the acknowledgement of talent and hard work, is the kind of reward that fuels us. This year, Akuna won its first Michelin Star within a year of its opening in Saigon, while IGNIV in Bangkok celebrated its fourth Michelin win with new chef Arne Riehn at the helm. We are grateful to be working alongside the best in the industry and draw inspiration each day from their dedication to craft and their spirit of excellence!
If you are looking for an agency to drive your international press efforts, drop us a note here.
And with that (we could go on, but there’s a fine line between humble reflection and subliminal boasting heh), we bid farewell to 2024. The new year beckons, and we are looking forward to diving right in. Saigon, Bombay and Seoul are already booked for the first quarter. So if you hear a noisy eater in your hood, that may just be us doing what we do best. Sharing delicious food and drink stories with gusto, wherever we go!
