When we think of Singapore, definite pictures come to mind. Orchids, Clarke Quay, Gardens by the Bay; the River, the Merlion, the historical Fort Canning Park and the Universal Studios; spick and span streets and verdant parks; and all the gastronomic pleasures under the sun. Singapore is one of the most opulently distinct city states in the world. And with such an impressive mix of cultures derives a tizzy of cuisines and every kind of food experience conceivable.
From the Wanton Noodles of Hong Lim in Chinatown and Muthu’s Fish Head Curry in Little India to the contemporary South Italian plates of Andrea De Paola, Odette’s French Kitchen and Bedrock’s finest grills, The Lion City rightly has it all. Now, we wouldn’t be so arrogant as to call this a complete list of Singapore’s best dining spots — it is a culinary paradise, after all. But let’s just say it’s a fairly decent start. So, pack that umbrella, flex those abs and organise to experience Singapore at its most lip-smacking.
NEW EXPRESSION OF SINGAPORE AT LABYRINTH
So, what is Singapore cuisine? Chef owner Han Li Guang who heralds the One Michelin restaurant for the past nine years answers this question as he discovers more of what Singapore has to offer over its resident producers. The outcome is a menu comprising mostly of locally-sourced ingredients. Enthused by the flavours he grew up with his grandma’s cooking, much-loved hawker dishes and the profusion of hidden ingredients, Han has created a tribute to his Singapore, with reimagined varieties of resident fare, such as Bak Kut Teh, Rojak, Cereal Prawns, and Char Kway Teow. A highlight is the ‘Memories of Newton Hawker Centre’, counting miscellany of Chef Han’s favourite supper items such as satay made with locally farmed pork, orh luak (fried oyster omelette), popiah, roti john, and otak-otak (ground fish cake) re-explained with uni and nori. The snack platter is offered on a tray created like a table in a hawker centre, replete with a packet of tissue on the side a tongue-in-cheek reference to the culture of chope-ing, or stashing, a table in Singapore. All in all, this is an innate dialogue Chef Han has pursued, one that heeds to the very origin of a cuisine: its ethos.
STEAMBOAT BUFFET AT THE M HOTEL
A sparkling hot pot meal forever gratifies. Fancy an individual hotpot with the soups of your choice in elegant surroundings? At this hugely popular buffet, you can. Cosy up in the stylish restaurant where you can enjoy highly customisable hotpot sets, that comes with your choice of soup, unlimited condiments from the buffet-style bar, noodles, rice and curries, ice slushies, dessert on a tiered stand and tea. Our much-loved part, however, is the dual hotpot alignment. That’s where you’ll get to choose two out of the soup bases that are created with the freshest ingredients — how’s that for diversity!
FRENCH MEETS ASIAN CUISINE AT BORN
Positioned at Jinrikisha Station, this heritage structure was previously a gharry yard back in 1903 and has seen a multitude of changes and influences over the years. Chef-owner Zor Tan draws inspiration from his personal journey and cooks up nine courses entwined to nine guiding principles that begins with Birth (to see with new eyes) to Legacy (leaving the world a better place). Expect a marriage of French epicureanism harmonising with a profound knowledge of Chinese flavours gallant and acquainted expressions recount his story. Keep aside a few hours, each course comes over a chronicle while some comprise clever concluding touches that are worth whisking your camera out for Instagram. From a selection of pickles that heads the course, Pickled Japanese Daikon Skin, Winter Melon with Purple Shiso Jus and Jellyfish Pickled with Mountain Chilli; depicting a lot of hard work to reach one’s ambitions; to the Toasted Rice, Chestnut & Sable, a dessert with milk ice-cream, toasted rice cream, puffed rice, caramel, black garlic, sable, French chestnut purée, and Chinese candied chestnuts, the blend of ingredients which expresses of Zor’s roots with its multicultural linking of technique and inspiration, as well as the elevated craft necessary to achieve it… Born keeps you enthralled!
MICHELIN SELECTED HUA TING, THE ORCHARD HOTEL
Forget Chinatown or treasured locals with dishes by numbers, Hua Ting has proven incomparable, standing since 1992, offering refined flavours in authentic Cantonese cuisines, added rooms for private dining, from cosy spaces to the luxurious 20-seater Chairman’s Room with its own dedicated entrance. Golden Fried Diced Sea Perch and Salted Egg Yolk is typical, as is the Braised 6-head South African Abalone, Chinese Mushroom Supreme Oyster Sauce and Double-boiled Buddha Jumps Over the Wall, Superior Bird’s Nest 10 or 4 head South African Abalone, Sea Treasure. Enjoy at your leisure.
ENDLESS ITALIAN SUMMERS AT DA PAOLO
Positioned in the picturesque area of Dempsey Hill, congregates the superlative of its theory under a drooping well-preserved olive tree. The menu variations depend on your time of call: Breakfast for example is on till 11.30 am, votes go all out to the piquant shakshuka. If you are there for lunch or dinner, go for the Naples style 8 Cheese pizza, with a chef’s variety of cheeses and a domestic dough that’s fermented for over three days to get that easy, chewy nibble. The Butternut Pumpkin Mezzelune with cashew curcuma creme and brown butter is another great choice. The Gran Antipasto offers an extensive array of cheeses and cold cuts that change seasonally. To end on a sweet note, dig into a portion of Pistachio Tiramisu made with Sicily-imported nuts, or grab a scoop of gelato, churned in alliance with Chocolat Milano. Want to carry home an Italian food souvenir? The retail counter will not let you down.
A SLICE OF GRAND CENTRAL AT ORIGIN GRILL
The revitalised Shangri-La, with its renewed Tower Wing rooms and services, has also got a dependable Grill restaurant finally. The marvellous space induces the magnificence and ardour of wandering by train — distinct bends hang from over; striking leather benches line the buoyant space and the earnest colour outline gives the feel of Grand Central in the city state. With a focus on sustainable and select ingredients, the menu encompasses an array of dishes like the Pan-seared Hokkaido Scallops with Fragrant Chilli Jam to a John Stone Grass-fed Dry Aged 35 days Ribeye on the bone.
NANYANG STYLE, FLAVOURS, RED HOUSE SEAFOOD
Locals are no strangers to this restaurant when it comes to live seafood. After pleasing plates for 47 years, they have now a chic new restaurant at the river-front flagship at Grand Copthorne. A crowd puller undoubtedly, is the tomato-forward Chilli Sri Lankan Crab with the freshest claw meat and the velvety sweet custard covered — meaty, chunks of crusty Tasmanian Rock Lobster.
All in all, Singapore’s intoxicating food act will have you revisiting, more so with the amazing list of global dining selections and just like the Island itself, the city state’s dining panorama keeps reinventing itself.