The Best Places to Eat and Drink in Chinatown & around

The cocktail menu here is formatted as a magazine, which tells you something about how seriously this bar takes its own mythology. Tucked inside the Amara Hotel in Tanjong Pagar, Jigger & Pony manages to feel nothing like a hotel bar, which is a quiet miracle. The focus falls on reimagined classics, done with enough precision that the place holds spots on both Asia's 50 Best Bars and The World's 50 Best Bars.

1. The 50 #9 · The World's 50 Best Bars
2. The 50 Altos Bartenders’ Bartender Award 2025 · The World's 50 Best Bars
3. The 50 #3 · Asia’s 50 Best Bars

Björn Frantzén's Singapore shophouse holds three Michelin stars and a tasting menu that moves you floor by floor, aperitif and amuse-bouche downstairs, the full neo-Nordic progression upstairs. The kitchen leans on seafood and Japanese ideas without quite belonging to either, and the non-alcoholic pairings are eccentric in a way that somehow makes you trust them more. Worth knowing the restaurant is temporarily closed before you plan around it.

1. Michelin Guide 3 Stars
2. The 50 The 50 Discovery

A former rickshaw depot at a Chinatown crossroads, the triangular building alone stops traffic before you step inside. Born is a fine dining restaurant where glass ceilings and a suspended paper sculpture set the tone for chef Zor Tan's multi-course menu: Modern Chinese cooking shaped by French technique, with each course tied to a principle like Memory or Legacy. It holds a Michelin star and a spot on Asia's 50 Best Restaurants.

1. The 50 #23 · Asia's 50 Best Restaurants
2. Michelin Guide 1 Star

Each seasonal tasting menu at this fine dining restaurant arrives framed as an "episode," with past chapters organized around Jeju Island, a sunset walk along the Han River, and a backyard barbecue. Chef Louis Han reinterprets Korean nostalgic cooking through Western technique, so cold buckwheat noodles become haute cuisine and a buttery sauce quietly channels a spicy fish stew. It landed on Asia's 50 Best Restaurants list, and the intimate shophouse room, all cream and warm light, keeps the focus on the plates.

1. Michelin Guide 1 Star
2. The 50 #45 · Asia's 50 Best Restaurants

1. The Pinnacle Guide 1 Pin
2. The 50 #44 · Asia’s 50 Best Bars
3. Spirited Awards 2026 · Top 10 Nominee · World’s Best Spirits Selection

1. Michelin Guide 2 Stars
2. The 50 The 50 Discovery

Fermented grasshoppers and laksa leaves turn up in the cocktails here, and the aprons and drinking vessels are locally sourced too, because the commitment runs that deep. Native is a Pan-Asian cocktail bar on Amoy Street where nothing on the menu is a classic and the bottles are ones you won't recognize. It ranks on both Asia's 50 Best Bars and The World's 50 Best Bars, and the zero-waste philosophy gives the whole operation a quiet coherence that makes the strange ingredients feel inevitable.

1. The 50 #84 · The World's 50 Best Bars
2. Difford's Guide 4.5 stars · Difford's Guide
3. The 50 #45 · Asia’s 50 Best Bars

A cocktail bar on Amoy Street where the insect garnish is not a mistake. Fura runs on a sustainability-forward philosophy, which in practice means ferments, foraged ingredients, and flavors that take a moment to place. The team includes a former head forager from Noma and an ex-head bartender from the late Operation Dagger, so the weirdness is considered. It holds 2 Pins from The Pinnacle Guide and a spot on Asia's 50 Best Bars.

1. The Pinnacle Guide 2 Pins
2. The 50 #95 · Asia’s 50 Best Bars
3. Spirited Awards 2026 · Top 10 Nominee · Best International Restaurant Bar

The bread alone causes a small scene: guests are openly encouraged to ask for seconds, and the room obliges in unison. This fine dining restaurant inside the Mondrian Duxton pairs Chilean soul with Japanese technique, the work of a chef whose resume runs through El Bulli and Mugaritz. It holds a Michelin star. Flavors are surprising without being smug, and the kitchen's curiosity reads as genuine hospitality rather than theater.

1. Michelin Guide 1 Star
2. The 50 The 50 Discovery

1. Michelin Guide 1 Star
2. The 50 The 50 Discovery

1. Michelin Guide 1 Star

The foldable seats and sliding back-bar fridges tell you this 22-seat cocktail bar was designed with an architect's obsession, not just a decorator's budget. Night Hawk takes its name and mood from the Edward Hopper painting, all late-night quietude and slightly cinematic isolation in a Tanjong Pagar shophouse. It holds a pin from The Pinnacle Guide and a spot on Asia's 50 Best Bars, which is not a bad return for a room this compact.

1. The Pinnacle Guide 1 Pin
2. The 50 #77 · Asia’s 50 Best Bars
3. Difford's Guide Difford's Guide

Ivan Brehm calls his cooking "crossroads cuisine," which sounds like a thesis statement until you taste Afro-Brazilian fritters pulling turmeric and coconut curry, or risotto threaded with yuzu kosho. The Michelin-starred tasting menu restaurant on Amoy Street draws from his Italian, Brazilian, German, and Spanish roots, with a sleek communal marble table designed to make strangers talk. Brehm came up at Heston Blumenthal's Fat Duck, and the intellectual ambition shows.

1. Michelin Guide 1 Star
2. The 50 The 50 Discovery

Barrels of cocktails aging under a solera system for seven years sit at the end of the bar, which tells you immediately what kind of operation this is. D.Bespoke is a Japanese cocktail bar on Bukit Pasoh Road that runs on ritual and precision, all deep armchairs and the quiet confidence of a Ginza establishment that took a wrong turn and ended up somewhere better. Sit at the bar; the private room in the back misses the point.

1. Difford's Guide 5 stars · Difford's Guide
2. The 50 The 50 Discovery

Look for the iron hand on the shophouse door, then climb three flights to find one of Duxton Hill's more characterful cocktail bars. The team built most of it themselves from salvaged and upcycled objects, and the sparse back bar lands somewhere between a friend's apartment and a very cool squat. The owners describe it as "raw as fuck," which sets expectations neatly. A spot on Asia's 50 Best Bars list confirms it's found its crowd.

1. The 50 #56 · Asia’s 50 Best Bars
2. Difford's Guide Difford's Guide

1. The 50 #53 · Asia’s 50 Best Bars

The pressed tin ceiling and a resident fortune teller in the entryway signal that this is, in spirit, a Manhattan speakeasy that somehow materialized on Amoy Street. It's a cocktail bar that takes the classics seriously, then quietly does something unexpected to each of them. The kitchen sends out bacon-wrapped lamb chops and bone marrow poppers for anyone who skips dinner. Difford's Guide rates it five stars.

1. Difford's Guide 5 stars · Difford's Guide
2. The 50 #89 · Asia’s 50 Best Bars

1. Spirited Awards 2026 · Top 10 Nominee · International Bartender of the Year · Uno Jang
2. Spirited Awards 2026 · Top 10 Nominee · Best New International Cocktail Bar

1. Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand

1. Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand

1. Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand

1. Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand

1. Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand

1. Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand

1. Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand

Kok Sen is a no-frills zi char spot on Keong Saik Road, which has since filled up with boutique hotels and cocktail bars that probably don't know it was here first. It's wok-fried Cantonese home cooking, ordered fast and eaten faster, and the Bib Gourmand has not shortened the wait. Put your name down, then spend the half hour studying how efficiently the staff ignore you. Bring cash-register patience and an appetite for gravy.

1. Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
2. The Infatuation The Best Restaurants & Bars To Eat And Drink At When You're Visiting Singapore

1. Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand

1. The 50 The 50 Discovery
2. Difford's Guide Difford's Guide

1. The 50 The 50 Discovery
2. Difford's Guide Difford's Guide

The coffee shop chairs don't leave at 4pm; the bartenders just arrive. Stay Gold Flamingo splits its Amoy Street shophouse between a daytime cafe and an evening cocktail bar, and the two halves share almost nothing except the address. Come nightfall, the team behind Jigger & Pony and Employees Only Singapore are mixing drinks for a crowd that clearly got the memo about happy hour.

1. The 50 The 50 Discovery
2. Difford's Guide Difford's Guide

1. Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand

A cocktail bar in Chinatown that treats Little India as its pantry, sourcing everything from nearby Tekka Market and turning the haul into distillates, ferments, and jellies that line the shelves like a apothecary's fever dream. The room itself goes full commitment: wood, gold, and vermillion, so the vibe lands before the drinks do. It earned a spot on The 50 Discovery list, which tends to find places like this before everyone else does.

1. The 50 The 50 Discovery
2. Difford's Guide Difford's Guide

1. Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand

1. Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand

1. Spirited Awards 2026 · Top 10 Nominee · International Bartender of the Year · Uno Jang

The house Gibson arrives with a smoked quail's egg, pickled onion, and housemade nukazuke, which tells you everything about the ambition level here. This cocktail bar on Bukit Pasoh Road leans into Asian inflections on the classics, pairing Roku Gin with a homemade Ginjo sake-vermouth. The mood is relaxed without being casual, and the food menu runs surprisingly seafood-heavy for a drinks-first room.

1. Difford's Guide 5 stars · Difford's Guide
2. Spirited Awards 2026 · Top 10 Nominee · International Bartender of the Year · Uno Jang
3. The 50 The 50 Discovery

1. Spirited Awards 2026 · Top 10 Nominee · International Bartender of the Year · Uno Jang

Mid-century Japanese design, neutral tones, and cocktails that lean toward the delicate end of the spectrum: Live Twice is a cocktail bar on Bukit Pasoh that draws a direct line from Singapore to Ginza. It's a sibling to Jigger & Pony, and the drinks share that same considered approach, built around sherry, shochu, and quiet precision rather than anything showy. Happy hour runs six to seven daily, if you'd like a reason to arrive early.

1. Spirited Awards 2026 · Top 10 Nominee · International Bartender of the Year · Uno Jang
2. The 50 The 50 Discovery
3. Difford's Guide Difford's Guide

A Neapolitan-style pizza bar in the Jiak Chuan Road dining strip, where the dough is long-fermented, the crust rises high, and the aperitivo list is taken as seriously as the pies. Negronis and Americanos anchor the drinks, and the room, dark-toned and minimal, fills quickly with people who know to book ahead. It ranks on the 50 Top Pizza World list, with a 2025 One to Watch special award to go with it.

1. 50 Top Pizza 2025 · One to Watch · 50 Top Pizza World Special Awards
2. 50 Top Pizza #95 · 50 Top Pizza World
3. 50 Top Pizza #15 · 50 Top Pizza Asia-Pacific

Terrazzo floors, brass fittings, and rattan chairs give this natural wine bar on Club Street an aesthetic that can't quite decide what decade it wants, which turns out to be part of the charm. Le Bon Funk pours a tightly rotated list of natural wines alongside sharing plates that sit somewhere between casual and considered. The kind of spot where no one opens the menu before ordering a second glass.

1. The 50 The 50 Discovery

Vintage vinyl lines the floor-to-ceiling shelves at this Duxton Road bar from the team behind the Ginza-style speakeasy D.Bespoke. The specialty is Japanese shochu, served across an extensive range that shows how varied the spirit can be, which puts it ahead of most bars in Singapore for anyone curious about it. Guest DJs work the actual records regularly, so the collection is more than decoration.

1. The 50 The 50 Discovery

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

Charcoal smoke sets the tone at Fiz, a tasting menu restaurant in Tanjong Pagar where the kitchen rotates its focus between regions and ingredients each season. One menu might trace the fermentation and curing traditions of a specific Indonesian region; another opens with kaya toast topped with century egg and caviar. The kind of place where every detail signals that someone thought hard about it, which the Michelin Guide has quietly noted.

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
2. The 50 The 50 Discovery

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

The custom-built tawa, the hand-built tandoor, and an open fire give the kitchen at this modern Indian restaurant on Tras Street more heat sources than most places have cooks. The sunken open kitchen is the real draw, which is awkward for the much-celebrated silver-and-black dining room behind it. Bold seasonal cooking comes off the woodfire rig in combinations that lean confidently away from tradition. A chef's table rounds things out for those who want a front-row seat to the smoke.

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
2. The 50 The 50 Discovery

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

Ozaki wagyu, raised longer than convention allows, is the single organizing principle of this kaiseki restaurant on Tras Street. The chef came up through sushi and brings that same exacting focus to beef, working tongue-to-tail through grilled, braised, and deep-fried preparations before landing on sukiyaki with soft egg and black truffle. It's a serious, single-subject tasting menu in a city that does those well.

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
2. The 50 The 50 Discovery

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant

1. World Coffee Map Essential Coffee Shops in Singapore
2. World Coffee Map Best coffee shops for work in Singapore
3. World Coffee Map Best cafes for reading in Singapore

1. World Coffee Map Your Guide to Coffee in Singapore
2. World Coffee Map Essential Coffee Shops in Singapore

1. World Coffee Map 10 Best Specialty Cafes & Coffee Shops in Singapore
2. World Coffee Map Best cafes for reading in Singapore

Marble-effect tiles, upbeat music turned up a notch, and enough kinetic energy to power Chinatown: Fortuna is a pizza trattoria on Craig Road that doesn't pretend to be anything quieter than it is. The dough is well-handled, the crust light enough to hold its toppings without sagging, and the fried options alongside classic and specialty pies give the menu real range. It ranked 33rd on 50 Top Pizza Asia-Pacific.

1. 50 Top Pizza #33 · 50 Top Pizza Asia-Pacific

1. World Coffee Map Singapore Coffee Map for First-Time Visitors
2. World Coffee Map 10 Best Specialty Cafes & Coffee Shops in Singapore

1. Difford's Guide 5 stars · Difford's Guide

Tucked through the back entrance off Club Street, this compact specialty coffee bar keeps things minimal in design and serious about the cup. Pour-overs are the move, served alongside freshly baked pastries to the laptop crowd and the pre-dinner-out crowd in equal measure. The Club Street location means the neighborhood turns lively by evening, making it a useful gear-shift between the workday and whatever comes next.

1. World Coffee Map Your Guide to Coffee in Singapore
2. World Coffee Map Singapore Coffee Guide for Travelers

1. World Coffee Map Singapore Coffee Guide for Travelers
2. World Coffee Map Your Guide to Coffee in Singapore

A cocktail bar on Tanjong Pagar Road where the menu reads less like a drinks list and more like a dare. Tofu, togarashi, roast potato skin, and salted liquorice all show up in the shakers, alongside modernist classics like the Smokey Old Bastard, served in a mason jar with a straight face. The kind of place that rewards going in curious rather than cautious, and where asking the bartender to just pick something tends to end well.

1. Difford's Guide 5 stars · Difford's Guide

1. World Coffee Map Singapore Coffee Guide for Travelers

1. World Coffee Map Where to Drink Coffee in Singapore

Marcy's is a dimly lit seafood restaurant on Duxton Road's shophouse strip, where the disco-leaning playlist is clearly there to make a first date feel less like an interview. The menu reads Italian with a Latin accent, so raw fish and citrus show up to keep the richer dishes in check. Pastas run light, the cocktails lean tropical, and there's a miso-touched pecan pie sundae if things are going well.

1. The Infatuation The Best Restaurants & Bars To Eat And Drink At When You're Visiting Singapore

Look for the Robot Coffee graffiti on Telok Ayer Street and you've found the door. Inside, this cocktail bar runs long and narrow, with chequer-tiled floors and raw cement walls that lean into a speakeasy mood. The real menu is a conversation: tell the bartender your spirit and whether you want something sour, spicy, or sweet, and they take it from there. A written cocktail list exists for the less adventurous, and no judgment is passed.

1. Difford's Guide 4.5 stars · Difford's Guide

A counter-format Japanese steakhouse from Tokyo, where wet-aged beef goes over binchotan charcoal and the chef works close enough that the whole meal feels like a conversation you weren't expecting to enjoy this much. Warm timber, clean lines, no flourishes competing for attention. It landed on the World's Best Steak Restaurants list at number 30, which tracks for a room this focused on doing one thing without making a fuss about it.

1. World's 101 Best #30 · World's Best Steak Restaurants

1. Difford's Guide 4.5 stars · Difford's Guide

A basement cocktail bar tucked beneath a colonial shophouse in Chinatown, with white leather sofas, a glowing resin bar, and a wall of whisky heavy enough to earn its own library card. Members stash personal bottles in dedicated lockers, which sets the tone nicely. It skews serious about spirits without taking itself too seriously, and the room is small enough that the bartenders actually know what they're doing with your order.

1. Difford's Guide 4 stars · Difford's Guide

The cigar smoke hits you before you find your seat, which is partly the point. This speakeasy-style bar occupies a converted shophouse above a hawker spot in Chinatown, and locating it is half the ritual: ignore the yellow plastic chairs downstairs, walk past the shuttered cigar shop sign, and keep going up. Inside, interconnecting rooms fill out with bookshelves of whisky and the obligatory Che Guevara portraits keeping watch.

1. Difford's Guide 4 stars · Difford's Guide

A U-shaped granite bar anchors the ground floor of a heritage art deco building in the CBD, where the after-work crowd files in for beer, wine, and a whisky list long enough to cause decision fatigue. The cocktail menu is short, leans whisky-heavy, and runs a little sweet. Upstairs, the Powder Room has the more atmospheric lounge setup if you're staying past the first round.

1. Difford's Guide 3.5 stars · Difford's Guide

1. Difford's Guide Difford's Guide

1. Difford's Guide Difford's Guide

1. Difford's Guide Difford's Guide