Who: Ms Tamara Chavez, 33, is the chef-owner of Spanish restaurant Tinto and Canchita Peruvian Cuisine, both in Dempsey. She runs the restaurants with her Peruvian chef-husband Daniel Chavez, 43. She has lived in Singapore for nine years, while her husband – they married in October 2020 – has lived here for 17 years. They have no children.

“For the past 15 years of my life as a chef, I’ve never had my weekend fall on a Saturday and Sunday. That is a good thing because, on Mondays and Tuesdays, I don’t have to fight for reservations at a restaurant and there’s less traffic everywhere. 

With a cup of black coffee and a glass of water, I start my day at 6.30am with a one-hour English class on Zoom. I have been doing this one-on-one session with a Jamaican teacher for one year to improve my English.

After class, I go to Virgin Active gym for yoga or pilates. 

By the time I get home, Daniel will be up and he likes to prepare breakfast. He’ll make soup or I’ll have an avocado. 

My home garden grew a lot during the pandemic, so I’ll spend the rest of the morning looking after my plants. 

We then head out for lunch and take a walk in the malls or along green paths. 

We love our jobs, and even on our days off, Daniel and I will still be talking about food. 

In the evening, we’ll watch a movie at home. We recently watched Mississippi Burning (1988) and I was crying a lot. I can’t do that at the cinema in Singapore – it is too cold and everyone is very serious and will be staring at me. 

I’m usually very active on the weekend while Daniel loves to just relax. He likes to rest, go for a massage and cut his hair.  

He will remind me to rest more on the second day of my weekend – sometimes there’s n...