Tag: city hall
Although it would be wildly irresponsible to suggest alcohol as a feasible remedy for ailments, it’s also hard to argue against intoxication’s positive effect on mood. At least, that’s the cheeky innuendo suggested by Fairmont Singapore’s lobby bar, Antidote. Continue reading “ANTI:DOTE”
It’s 7:30pm and the rustic bar along Purvis Street is already packed. The space is awash in a sea of chatter and laughter and walking space becomes more scarce as eager guests start swarming the counter. That’s the scene at Draft Land’s Singapore outlet, early into its maiden Friday service. Continue reading “Draft Land”
Unusually small. Dwarfed by adjoining countries. Devoid of resources. The Lion City is an irrefragable state-building miracle and a country with many unexpected virtues. Even after you understand all its feats, Singapore’s flourishing cocktail bar subculture would probably still jump out to the layperson. Continue reading “Best Cocktail Bars in Singapore”
Sometimes, little discernment or foresight is needed to identify the immense potential of a new opening. To those of us living in 2023, Frantzen Group’s latest local outfit, Brasserie Astoria at the Victoria Concert Hall, saunters effortlessly to a podium finish for one of this year’s most anticipated openings in Singapore.
I remember being entranced by the luxurious sweeping vistas over the Singapore skyline when I first visited Smoke & Mirrors. Seeing the MBS, Esplanade, and Singapore Flyer illuminated during golden hour in all their majesty. Continue reading “Smoke & Mirrors”
Nutmeg & Clove is a legendary name in Singapore’s bar scene. Love it or hate it, there’s no doubt the bar is one of the trailblazers, leading the charge for local speciality craft bars in the early 2010s with its inspired incorporation of regional flavours.
[Update: Fizzy Dayz has closed and Draft Land has taken over the location.] “Soft reset” is a trend I’d attribute to Singapore’s bar scene in 2022 — the scene seemed to have developed swanky speakeasy fatigue and new bars were getting more and more ratchet as dive was coming back in trend and Fizzy Dayz is leading the charge in 2023.
Continue reading “Fizzy Dayz”
The inherent artistry of Sushi is well-settled. Crafting sushi demands elegance, finesse, and intricacy. The journey to becoming a Sushi Chef is an arduous one that few can resiliently traverse. That alone speaks boundless volumes about Shinsora main man Chef Sky Tai’s pedigree as a former World Sushi Cup champion. Continue reading “Shinsora”
A sleek black glass monolith protrudes out of the ground, fenced in by an outer area populated with sleek white marble fittings and two dainty trees that extended skyward undeviatingly. Only a cryptic logo of Waga Waga Den is emblazoned onto the facade of the enigmatic glass enclosure as a hint of what’s inside.
The interior is yet another striking minimalist marvel — svelte black tables are welded to the metallic structural skeleton while zen garden pebbles lined the perimeter to give it a distinct cyberpunk edge.
What ties Waga Waga Den’s futurist aesthetic together succinctly is a cluster of overhanging geometric lights which flicker and snake vividly, like you’re sitting in a futuristic Tokyo district or something out of Westworld.
Waga Waga Den’s lavish sense of aesthetic is unrivalled by even the chicest brunch spots in Singapore — that said, it’s not designed as a mere cafe for coffee runs.
Conceived by the Black Cow team, this new spot at South Beach is envisioned as a tranquil unwinding hangout and lifestyle concept for CBD denizens.
While still figuring out operation nuances currently, they will progressively modify and eventually roll out after-work luxuries such as Sake that come straight from Black Cow itself.
It is with that vision in mind that all the intricacies are planned out and crafted into the space, especially the picturesque garden featuring oblique marble benches that actually draw out their insignia when viewed from above.
Ultimately, Waga Waga Den is meant to be a holistic hybrid that will allow customers to lounge in its vogueish premises round the clock — so even the shadows in the bar area will evolve based on the Sun’s position of the day and how daylight trickles in through their ceiling-height glass panes.
As with Black Cow, their new concept places a lot of pride in procuring premium ingredients to ensure pristine quality is translated into their offerings.
Provenance is assiduously planned for at Waga Waga Den, where premium ingredients like Japanese red sugar and some of the best quality Kyoto Matcha are sourced for.
At this fledgling phase, the main focus is funnelled into fine-tuning their coffee for the vicinity’s daytime crowd. In the long run, offerings will change with the seasons, as is the norm with speciality coffee, but the espresso blend will persist as a Brazilian-Guatamelan blend to ensure quality control.
The menu at Waga Waga Den is considerably varied but the unique creations that will probably capture your attention are their unique “cloud” drinks.
Extremely unique in presentation, the Cloud ($9) is a coffee that’s adorned with luscious mounds of chocolate-dusted clouds at the brim. A rare sight of the unique cloud as the progenitor of the style, Omotesando, had already ceased operations in Singapore.
Being milk-based, Waga Waga Den’s speciality is blessed with a soft creamy body to match the medium roast profile of the espresso. The overall profile is balanced, robust, and enriched by a beautiful dose of fragrant chocolate. No artificial sweetener, just good quality chocolate.
Atop their drinks, Waga Waga Den also has a few food items on the menu —mainly Japanese in scope— and their Warabi Mochi ($10) was what jumped out at me. Mochi is a simple tidbit but that also means deficiencies are made even more glaring.
Suffice to say, the Warabi Mochi here is executed to perfection. To the teeth, they are fluffy, light, and delightfully chewy while to the tongue, the coating and syrup imparted a brand of toasted sweetness that was bright but elegant.
Aesthetics-wise, Waga Waga Den blows most of its Singapore competition away — very few cafes are given this elaborate attention to detail. In a way, it’s a small enclave in the CBD area where you’d feel spirited away to a futuristic Japan or Korean suburb.
Operations are still in process of fine-tuning, so this isn’t the finished product yet. But if they remain steadfast in their devotion to fine quality, I can’t wait to see what the future will bring.
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French in Singapore is commonly associated with leanings of grandeur and a mis-en-sense of tables set with starched white linen — but that doesn’t have to be the case. Entre-Nous Creperie demonstrates that the rustic, homely side of French food divorced from all the frou-frou has its charm too. Continue reading “Entre-Nous Creperie”
