Singapore's hidden gems: 12 places off the usual trail
Twelve places most residents drive past: a Joo Chiat house museum whose curator lives upstairs, a quarry turned lake, a jazz lounge behind an unmarked door.
- Where: Across Singapore
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Twelve places most residents drive past: a Joo Chiat house museum whose curator lives upstairs, a quarry turned lake, a jazz lounge behind an unmarked door.
Fifteen odd corners for a weekday morning: the 1942 surrender in two buildings, a kampong that refused to leave, an airport museum with a jet to race. Most are free.
Six wine bars by mood: natural wine with chicken nuggets, a walk-in cellar, a 600-label book, grand cru by the sip and fizz with a skyline. Tell the staff your budget.
Ten bars for different nights: world-ranked shophouse rooms, a gin tower in Gotham, a hotel rickhouse and the Long Bar, once. If you only book one, book Jigger & Pony.
Seven bakeries worth an early alarm, from a Joo Chiat croissant to a 1925 Katong coffeeshop's cream horns. Pick by neighbourhood and go before noon.
Chilli crab where it began, black pepper where it's claimed, white pepper at Geylang supper and hairy crab into November. Ask the price before you point at the tank.
Two-star sushi, a starred tempura counter, kappo on Scotts Road and an eight-seat ramen bar in Bedok. Book the counters weeks ahead; the ramen only needs you there at opening.
Korean food in Singapore beyond the barbecue: two-star tasting menus, Busan pork soup, Seoul's 1954 noodles and a makgeolli bar. Meta for an occasion, Mijin for lunch.
Asia's top-ten regular, a Korean bar with soju bombs, a curtained agave den and a sommelier's cellar, all a short walk apart. Start with wine, finish with somaek.
Bars where finding the door is half the fun and the drinks justify the search: a coffee-shop curtain, a kopitiam fridge, a shelf of old magazines. Groups should book.
Nine rooftops, from 282 metres above Raffles Place to a shophouse roof by the river. Choose by the view you want, not the height, and arrive before sunset.
Shoukouwa for the big occasion, Ginza Sushi-Ichi's lunch for a gentler start, Tentsuru if you'd rather it was fried, and Candlenut for an omakase with a Singapore accent.
