How Singapore’s BBQ hotspot Burnt Ends still has diners fighting for tables 12 years on
Burnt Ends’ chef-owner Dave Pynt talks about his searing success at the Michelin-star grilled-meat restaurant and his plans for the future
New wood-fired restaurants continue to light up Singapore’s dining scene, but few can hold a candle to Burnt Ends, a modern Australian barbecue institution on Dempsey Hill.
The restaurant, which has held one Michelin star since 2018, is also No 38 on the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2025 list, and debuted in fifth place on this year’s World’s 101 Best Steak Restaurants list – the highest new entry.
But what reveals Burnt Ends’ position as Singapore’s go-to barbecue establishment more than anything is that it is still difficult to get a seat there 12 years after its opening.
Burnt Ends began as a pop-up called Burnt Enz in East London in 2012. For five months, founder Dave Pynt ran it as a residency in the courtyard of coffee roaster Climpson’s Arch.
“We threw a party on the opening night, and were quite modest with our portioning, and it went f*****g mental,” says Pynt, who was born and raised in Perth, in Western Australia. “From that point, it was game on.”
