Fast on the heels of its first wave of celebrity-chef openings, Singapore has seen a new crop of pedigreed restaurants open in the last year. Read on to discover the hottest nine tables in town
By Evelyn Chen
Photographs by Caleb Ming
—&MADE Perhaps the biggest news on the city-state’s dining scene this summer was the arrival of Bruno Ménard, former executive chef of the three-Michelin-starred L’Osier in Tokyo. Teaming up with restaurateur Oliver Bendel, he has forgone white linen in favor of a deli joint decked in a cool palette of black and white. The menu plays along, with cheery creations such as the nifty yellow “salad to drink”—a carafe of blended carrot, ginger, and orange served on a tray with mini gougères— and a toasted buckwheat crepe oozing with locally inspired chili-crab cream sauce. A special mention has to go to &Made’s kimchi burger, served with Ménard’s house-made pickled cabbage (9 Scotts Rd., 01-04/06 Pacific Plaza; 65/6238-5549).
—81 DUXTON Tokyo’s Copon Norp doesn’t have a single Michelin star. But if its stellar rating on Tabelog (a popular Japanese review site) is anything to go by, it ranks among Japan’s finest French eateries. And while the restaurant’s Singapore sibling bears a different name, the Ozaki Wagyu steak here is just as good as at the original: the 200-gram marbled slab (from a farm in Kyushu) cuts like butter and is served with hand-cut fries alongside cream of sweet-potato soup perfumed with celery. If that sounds too heavy, try the vegetable parfait, which beckons with a smooth glass of carrots, cucumber, dragon fruit, and avocado ice cream in paprika cream (81 Duxton Rd., Berjaya Hotel; 65/6225-4381).
—CATALUNYA The opening of the domeshaped Catalunya at the Fullerton Pavilion gives Singapore another culinary drum to bang. Not only did the restaurant snag former el Bulli manager Pol Perello to run its floor, but the kitchen is helmed by chef Alain Devahive Tolosa, another disciple of Ferran Adrià. Instead of Adrià’s molecular theatrics, however, Tolosa’s menu is all about Spanish classics executed with contemporary finesse, such as the suckling pig with lemon puree, and potato croquettes with aioli. The best seats in the house are the semi-private booths in the formal dining room, complete with unobstructed views of Marina Bay Sands. But for that privilege, you will be precluded from ordering from the more affordable tapas menu (82 Collyer Quay, Fullerton Pavilion; 65/6534-0886).