A Ritual To Follow With Cassandra Riene Tan!
Food establishments don’t just want to serve great food and great service. Some are taking it upon themselves to impart a lifestyle. We sit with the founder of The RITUAL Cafe Bar, Cassandra Riene Tan, Founder and Entrepreneur of two other restaurants BOTANY and BITSY, and ask her to tell us a little more about her newest project.
Tell us what prompted you to open The RITUAL Café and Bar and explain a little more about the concept behind it.
Cassandra Riene Tan (CRT): The name of the café stems from my pursuit of living a purposeful life through meaningful rituals and to share the importance of having a balance between mind, body and soul. Many people are too focused on just one area of their lives and they find there’s always something missing – hence I wanted to create a safe space where the community can gather and practise healthy rituals that allow them to live a purpose driven life, changing routines to rituals.
Please share with us how you and the team are shaping the menu of The RITUAL Café and Bar.
CRT: The menu is designed to be simple yet a tint of playfulness, wholesome, and most importantly, inclusive with plant-based and gluten-free options. We advocate more on mindful eating rather than just healthy eating. We try to make everything in house – from bagels, sauces, furikake, etc. We use only Himalayan salt in our dishes and no MSG.
We try to change up some menu items once a month, to keep things fresh for regulars and also to provide a creative outlet for the team.
What are some of the other unique aspects of The RITUAL Café and Bar that can be shared with us at Cuisine and Wine Asia?
CRT: Besides operating as a cafe, we are building an inclusive community that gathers like-minded leaders and individuals through our wellness programming and alternative healing experiences in a safe space.
Mental wellness advocates, coaches, industry experts and strong social advocates, also known as The RITUAL tribe leaders, will be leading wellness programmes and experiences to better serve the community and further establish The RITUAL as an inclusive hub for various communities of different backgrounds. Currently the tribe gatherings are by-invite-only.
We also facilitate other communities such as local vendors, start-ups and purposeful causes through pop ups, collaborations and support.
What are some things you hope people understand about The RITUAL Café and Bar?
CRT: I hope that guests who come to The RITUAL will eventually understand that we are not trying to be another hip cafe or Instagrammable joint but instead trying to create a holistic mindful space where you could chill or work yet have good wholesome food and drinks. We also want to attract like –minded guests who would become friends and future collaborators.
What’s next for you and the team at The RITUAL Café and Bar?
CRT: As The RITUAL is still relatively new, the main goal for us right now is to stabilise operations and maintain customer experience in the long run. We also hope to create more dishes which bring joy and really establish ourselves as a wellness cafe.
