Amused Bouche 01
Bite-sized if not biting commentary. In this issue: a collection of eats, stays and sips across Singapore, an absolute jewel of a city.
Mercure Singapore Bugis.
Business-trip pragmatism with flashes of personality. It won’t be for everyone.
Confession: the Mercure brand has always lived somewhere in my peripheral vision. I knew it existed, I just never imagined myself sleeping in one. Yet here we are. Accor’s dependable mid-tier: a notch above ibis, several elevator rides below Fairmont or Raffles (the original being about ten minutes away by foot).
Singapore is expensive, and corporate budgets are not known for whimsy. So you compromise. The upside? It delivers the essentials for a longer work stay — reliable Wi-Fi, a solid mattress, a hot shower that doesn’t punish you for existing. Functional, competent, a study of beige. The staff were charming and unafraid to inject their personalities which I welcome.
But temper expectations: no desk for actual work (ironic), a perfunctory breakfast (go to the hawker stalls next door), sound bleeds from corridors and neighbours, and its studio-style rooms where sink-shower-toilet-bed coexist in one compact cube. No iron, no ironing board, no luggage nook, very little clothes hanging space.
In short: a perfunctory choice for budget-watching travellers. Cheap-and-cheerful-ish, if you squint.
Sixth Avenue Pork Prawn Noodle.
The perfect introduction to Singapore by bowl.
“Local” was my reply when Jean—friend and resident Singaporean—asked me what I wanted to eat. Sixth Avenue Pork Prawn Noodle is her neighbourhood hawker stall.
Two bowls tangled with noodles, pork and prawns appear through a hole and placed on a red plastic tray. One bowl with broth, one without. Both with accoutrement of chilli powder and chilli flakes.
Both are powerful, rich with the flavour of shrimp heads and a broth reduced over time. And it’s cheap. Cheap for Singapore anyway. About SG$14 or USD$10.
Should you come here? There are many hawker stalls in Singapore, so there’s no need for a special trip, but if you’re 10 minutes away, then it’s worth it.
Toast Box.
A gentrified insight into tradition.
Toast Box is a modern Singaporean café chain inspired by the city’s traditional kopitiams (coffee shops). Like a contemporary polish on traditional and nostalgia. The brand pays homage to Hainanese coffee masters, serving robust Nanyang-style kopi brewed from caramel-roasted beans with condensed milk, alongside soft-boiled eggs and thick-cut kaya toast on pillowy bread.
This is exactly what Jean ordered.
Soft boiled eggs are cracked into a bowl and stirred with light soy and sprinklings of ground black pepper. Slabs of life reducing butter is applied to toast and lubricated with coconut rich kaya, a favourite local very sweet jam. This toast uses the brown, what is known as Hainanese kaya which takes its colour from a slow, long cooking of gula melaka (palm sugar) resulting in a toffee-like flavour. I prefer the green pandan kaya that eludes me during this trip.
Should you go? Yes. It is not fancy, but it is a palpable insight into local tradition. I recommend it over Yat Ka Yan Dessert, which has a bit more of a factory production line feel about it.
Lolla.
Casual cool that reeks of capability.
This was a highlight dinner during our week in Singapore and one deserving of a full write up. Lolla sits in a charming conservation shophouse in the heart of Chinatown.
The kitchen was led by acclaimed chef Johanne Siy, named Asia’s Best Female Chef in 2023. She has since left the restaurant, but the team cooking on the night were energetic capable and effortlessly charming.
Lolla offers produce-driven, seasonally changing Mediterranean-inspired fare, largely served as generous share plates from a bustling open kitchen and communal dining spaces. We sat at the bar upstairs but there is a larger communal table downstairs for groups.
I'll spare the details for the longer review but, suffice to say, Lolla sits very high on my list of restaurants that I would come back to should I find myself in Singapore again.
Fiz.
A ladle of what Nusantara cuisine could be.
Restaurant Fiz opened in 2023 under Malaysian chef-owner Hafizzul Hashim. Think modern, progressive Southeast Asian food using fire and smoke to highlight regionally-rooted tasting menus emphasising Malaysian and wider Nusantara ingredients prepared via fire, fermentation and what they refer to as forgotten techniques. We sat in a group of eight others from Singapore who nodded appreciatively at the nostalgic childhood references woven in. We sat in the private dining room, however, the smart, relaxed, open plan restaurant floor looks like the kind of place where I could spend a lot of time. Expect a longer review soon.
Mama Diam.
A secluded watering hole high on imagination.
A speakeasy style cocktail bar that reveals itself from behind a sliding bookcase. There is a surprisingly large (and dark) bar and restaurant inside. Mama Diam’s cocktail menu stretches from classics to the more imaginative, including my Nasi Lemak cocktail—a riff on the Malay breakfast dish; this time with Junmai Sake, Caylon Arrack, Ancho Verde and Cucumber Shurb. We ordered the chilli soft crab bao that confirmed I would not come back here to eat, but I would definitely come back for drinks.
Shin Katsu
Deep-fried delight with zero pretence
Every now and then, a work-trip meal ambushes you with competence and comfort. Shin Katsu did just that. Tucked off a Singapore mall corridor, it promises fried things, very good fried things. The 4.9 rating on Google Maps caught my eye.
A friendly host spirited us behind a curtain into a cosy semi-private nook, the kind of place where you’re encouraged to relax and order irresponsibly.
The menu reads like a love letter to panko and protein — pork, chicken, prawns, assorted seafood casualties — all coated, fried and served in portions that could feed a village. The pork cutlet arrives audibly crisp, the meat glistens with cut and the panko breadcrumbing imbues a toasty warmth. You should share as portions are enormous.
The restaurant is licensed, which makes washing down tonkatsu with a cold beer feel even better. I would skip the truffle option only because the global truffle-industrial complex has exhausted my patience, not because they executed it badly.
Would I return? Absolutely.
Ce La Vi Observation Deck.
The obligatory tourist flex. Once and done.
We succumbed to Singapore’s most tourist-codified rite: the Marina Bay Sands SkyPark. Perched atop those three architectural toothpicks, the observation deck juts out like a surfboard and, riding it, is Ce La Vi.
Ordinarily, this is not my thing, but SG$100 buys you the express-lift to the top, a prescribed-list drink, and the privilege of admiring an uninterrupted panorama of everyone else admiring the panorama. It’s ground zero for selfies.
Did I enjoy it? Yes, a mere few hours before a return flight to Dubai—a city that’s copied this formula. Would I return? Highly doubtful. It’s a once-and-done experience.
Last Word.
A sanctuary of quiet imbibing reprieve, and a glacial kitchen.
A shophouse aerie on Purvis Street, Last Word is what happens when someone whispers “speakeasy” and actually means it. Minimalist wood, low-lit intimacy, bar team slicker than an Hermès window, and cocktails that respect the canon. It’s grown-up, elegant, and serenely confident.
The drinks: pristine classics with a seasonal menu and Japanese riffs throughout. Champagne is available by the glass, but wine is only available by the bottle.
The food? Surprisingly excellent — light, umami-nudged plates that suggest someone in the kitchen has dreams of Tokyo izakaya glory. The only catch: it arrives on a timeline best measured in epochs. I could have shaved, watched my beard grow back, and commissioned a marble bust before the Wagyu sando appeared. When it finally does, it’s lovely. Almost worth the wait. Come for the cocktails, stay for the serenity — and bring a snack for while you wait for one.
Liam is a restaurant critic, food and travel writer based in the Middle East. He owns EatGoSee and contributes to other publications. You can find Liam on Substack, Threads, Instagram, BlueSky or Facebook.
What a fantastic guide! I now have deep-seated wanderlust to visit Singapore!
Looks like you ate and drank very well - and you got to see our beloved Jean! The best part about Singapore is that there is always so much to discover.