Matteo Pertoldi is the owner of Atipico, a Singapore-based Italian restaurant. He has also cooked for private dinners for billionaires and large corporate events. This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Matteo Pertoldi, a private chef and Italian restaurant owner.
It has been edited for length and clarity. Before becoming a chef, I was an engineer and architect. I came to Singapore in 2001 to work in construction.
However, I realized that the job was too detached from people. If I designed a nice building, I'd see it in a magazine, but I was not in touch with my clients. I've always loved the concept of hospitality, and cooking is a part of that.
I always looked for that connection through food, even when studying to become an engineer in Paris. I started a small supper club in Singapore that was well received. Eventually, I found myself cooking for people I didn't know, and they enjoyed my work.
I enjoyed the stress of wanting to please people — it was still a stress, but unlike my job, it felt like a positive challenge. I started getting requests to cook for office parties or weddings or prepare cakes. My first break into the luxury sector was when a general manager of Panerai, an Italian luxury watch brand, asked for a recommendation from a friend, and they became my first client for corporate events.
After a couple of years of cooking on the side, I quit my engineering job and opened my restaurant in 2014 — 'Atipico,' which means "not typical" in Italian.