Singapore's rise to stardom from a British naval base-cum-trading outpost to what it is today was no mean feat. A small city with a total land area of 268 square miles, or roughly three-and-a half times the size of Washington, D.C., this once sleepy fishing village has evolved into one of Asia’s most important financial centers. Its economy is powered largely by the services sector, while manufacturing assumes lesser importance as plants move to other countries where operating costs are lower. Today, Singapore is one of the busiest ports in the world, as well as a major oil refining and distribution center. In time, Singapore may become a regional medical hub as the government works to expand its biomedical and pharmaceutical sectors.
With an ethnically mixed population of about 4.4 million, made-up largely of Chinese, Malays and Indians, the city offers a dazzling array of cultural festivities ranging from Chinese New Year celebrations to the famous Orchard Road Christmas light-up. Home to perhaps the world’s best airline (Singapore Airline or SIA) too, this ultra modern city with soaring skyscrapers and a squeaky clean reputation—literally—is set to sizzle when several multi-billion dollar integrated resorts (including a casino resort and Universal Studios theme park) open their doors for business in 2009. Never mind that Singapore gained notoriety for the public caning of American Michael Kay in 1994. This controversial "dot on the map," which earned a name for itself as a "fine" city (you can be fined for littering, jay walking, not flushing public toilets or smoking in public), will undisputedly be the object of envy as it gets set to become the next party town in Asia.
Facts
to Know Before You Go |
Currency: Singapore's unit of currency is the Singapore Dollar (S$), which is divided into one hundred cents. It’s managed against a trade-weighted basket of currencies, constituting an exchange rate that allows for fluctuation within a policy band. Foreign exchange facilities are available at the airport, hotels, large department stores and licensed moneychangers—the latter normally providing a better exchange rate than most banks or hotels. Plentiful ATMs that dispense S$ can be found throughout the city. The Brunei dollar is accepted as legal tender in Singapore.
Transportation: Changi Airport is located about 12 miles from the Central Business District. Numerous modes of transportation will zap you across from Changi Airport to the city center—bus, MRT (Mass Rapid Transit system) or taxi. For maximum efficiency, head for the taxi stand (taxi signboards are abundant in the airport terminal). A metered taxi ride to the city will take you about 15-25 minutes and cost you no more than US$12-15 (inclusive of up-charge). Note that all taxi companies charge additional for trips starting from Changi Airport, advance phone booking, trips between midnight and 6 a.m., peak traveling hours and entry into the Central Business District.
Information: Straits Times is the de facto English language newspaper in Singapore that provides a comprehensive spread of local and international news. For business angled content, check out Business Times. Channel News Asia is a dedicated news channel that provides round-the-clock updates on the latest happenings in Singapore and throughout the region.
Four Seasons Hotel, Singapore
190 Orchard Blvd.
Singapore 248 646
(65) 6734 1110
www.fourseasons.com |
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Located at a tree-lined nook off the Orchard Boulevard, the classy Four Seasons Hotel, Singapore offers easy access to the malls of Orchard Road—less than a five-minute walk—and to the business district, only fifteen minutes away by car. Some 1,500 pieces of the owner’s collection of artworks acquired through auctions and private collectors are displayed throughout the hotel, resembling the opulent residence of a wealthy tycoon. Expect each of the hotel’s 254 rooms to contain comforts such as complimentary fruit baskets, terrycloth bathrobes, remote control drapes, and CD and videodisc players. Busy executives will be pleased to know that each room also has two-line speakerphones with data ports and voice mail, as well as in-room high speed Internet access. A dinner at the highly expensive Jiang Nan Chun Cantonese restaurant is a must if you’re out to make an impression on that important client. Otherwise, a casual business meal at One-Ninety can make for a pleasant—and productive—evening.
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In a city flooded with branded luxury hotel chains and up-and-coming chic boutique accommodations, The Fullerton Hotel Singapore stands out prominently for its grandeur and old-world charm. Built in 1928, the Fullerton building was once home to the nation’s General Post Office. After a makeover costing US$250 million in 2001, this historic building was converted into a 400 room and suite luxury business hotel with much of its Palladian style architecture and façade intact. The hotel’s interior, particularly its sunlit atrium courtyard, showcases the sleek touches of designer Hirsch Bedner. Within the four walls of your elegant nest, white washed floor-to-ceiling bay windows provide sweeping views of the marina (alternate views overlook the city and the hotel’s atrium courtyard). High-speed Internet access, data ports and voicemail are standard features in all guest rooms. What this property lacks in direct access to Singapore’s hub of retail therapy on Orchard Road is more than made up by its strategic position in the heart of Singapore’s central business district and cultural center.
For stylish lodging in a location in the heart of Singapore’s Orchard Road district, Grand Hyatt is the place to be. Choose from one of two spacious wings: 399 rooms and suites at the Grand Wing fronting Scotts Road and 264 rooms at the Terrace Wing overlooking the hotel pool and garden. All rooms feature wired and wireless broadband Internet access, personal voice messaging and a dual line telephone with fax capabilities. If you need to host an informal business meeting, a room at the Grand Wing comes with a separate living area. The Grand Club offers complimentary use of the Club boardroom for the first hour, in addition to other perks like suit pressing and packing/unpacking services. For a smart casual dinner, check out the award-winning Mezza9 restaurant or opt for nine other dining venues.
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If you regularly bunk in super deluxe accommodations and seek a refreshing change in ambience without compromising comfort and service, consider the InterContinental Singapore. The only luxury hotel in Singapore to be styled in unique Peranakan (Straits Chinese) architecture, the hotel features 327 guest rooms and suites as well as 82 units of Peranakan inspired shop-house rooms and suites. If you book the new Club InterContinental rooms, for an up-charge, you get all-day club lounge access, breakfast, tea, evening cocktail and the complimentary pressing of three pieces of clothing. Located in the heart of Singapore’s civic and cultural district, the hotel boasts near instantaneous access by public transport to the financial district—Orchard Road is reachable via a linked walkway through Bugis Junction complex. Here, the 24-hour Business Centre provides full professional secretarial services and has fully equipped workstations. Ten function rooms with wired and wireless broadband Internet access, ISDN lines and satellite linking capabilities are also available for meetings. For dining options, both Man Fu Yuan (Cantonese cuisine) and KO (Japanese cuisine) are well suited for a smart business lunch or dinner.
The Ritz-Carlton, Millenia Singapore
7 Raffles Ave.
Singapore 039 799
(65) 6337 8888
www.ritzcarlton.com |
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If you have time for only one night in Singapore, award-winning The Ritz-Carlton Millenia is a savvy choice. Strategically located in the heart of Marina Centre and the upcoming Integrated Resorts, this 32-story designer hotel oozes luxury with a capital "L." With 608 bigger-than-average über-plush guest rooms, you can expect to be greeted with nothing less than breathtaking views of either the Marina Bay or Kallang Bay. All rooms feature high-speed internet access and two-line speaker telephone with multi-lingual voice mail, while Club Suites have added fax machines for enhanced connectivity. For the jetlagged, re-energize by ordering a butler drawn "Gentlemen's Bath" in "the world's sexiest bathrooms." Enjoy spectacular views of the waterfront and city's skyline through the gigantic octagonal window while you soak, puff a Cohiba Cigar and sip on cognac. Afterwards, make an appointment at the Fitness Centre and Spa, gloss over the gamut of alluring treatments and indulge in an anti-ageing facial. Art aficionados may rejoice to know that this hotel offers a self-guided podcast tour of the hotel's priceless collection of 4,200 pieces of museum-quality modern paintings and sculptures; this alone puts The Ritz-Carlton Millenia a high cut above the rest.
Shangri-La Hotel, Singapore
22 Orange Grove Rd.
Singapore 258350
(65) 6737 3644
www.shangri-la.com |
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Located just five minutes from the bustling Orchard Road shopping district and fifteen minutes away from the central business district, the Shangri-la is often referred to as Singapore's second botanical garden. Resting on fifteen acres of lush greenery, the hotel houses 750 tastefully furnished guest rooms and suites. We recommend the Valley Wing for sheer exclusivity—we hear that its Presidential Suite is the preferred address for President Bush and members of royalty during their visits to Singapore. Renovated at a cost of about US$35 million in 2003, the wing offers 136 elite rooms and suites. It also boasts its own private driveway, entrance and reception, as well as an elegant function room. Designed by British interior designer, Charles Robertson, rooms are furnished with Queen Anne chairs, Italian-made bed linens, Wedgwood tea sets, and tropical rain showerhead fittings in the bath facilities. A private fax machine, broadband Internet access and an ample supply of stationery (including a stack of customized business cards for guests in residence) make for a professional home office touch. The panoramic Summit Room serves a complimentary private breakfast, while the Champagne Bar offers unlimited Champagne, wine and canapés throughout the day. If you're in the mood for fine dining, take your pick from the legendary Shang Palace for Cantonese cuisine, Nadaman for the reliably good traditional Japanese food or The Line for Singapore’s most stylish and hip buffet spread.
da paolo il giardino
501 Bukit Timah Rd.
#01-05, Cluny Court
(65) 6463 9628
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14/20
$$$$$
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In the highly exclusive residential enclave of Cluny Road, close to some of the largest and most expensive homes in Singapore and not far from the Singapore Botanic Garden, lies a casual chic shophouse restaurant called Il Giardino. This is the place to be if you want to impress your business partners with insider knowledge of where the affluent go for their fix of consistently good (but not totally expensive) Italian food. Once you get past the obscure entrance, a dimly lit path lined by bamboo trees leads to a grotto of sorts—you can have a choice of al fresco dining in a lush garden setting or air-conditioned comfort in a sleek interior, which is separated from the kitchen by a glass wall that doubles as a display shelf for wine glasses. Service here is impeccably professional and prompt. For starters, opt for the pan seared duck liver or, if you want something lighter on the palette, a minestrone soup. Follow with a squid ink pasta and end the meal with a copious amount of cappuccino (outdoor).
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Behind a dark and an obscure sliding door along the trendy Purvis Street sits an upmarket Italian eatery named Garibaldi. The unsuspecting guest may well miss its unobtrusive entrance, an elegant antechamber cum bar that leads to a stylish inner dining room where the well-heeled local and expatriate community gather to partake in chef Galetti's authentic Italian creations. Skip the French inspired dishes such as pan fried goose liver and opt for Galetti's "Granchio Allo Zafferano" or air-flown spanner crab with avocado and orange and saffron sauce. Follow with "Capellini Con Aragosta" where the angel hair pasta, done al dente, is tossed in a bisque-like lobster shell reduced tomato-based sauce with green peas. You can have this à la carte, or as part of a six-course Gourmet Menu. Garibaldi recently found fame for serving up some of the most expensive items in Singapore. So if price is no object, pick the Langoustine Risotto with 30 grams of Iranian Beluga Caviar or Scallop Carpaccio with a 30-gram tin of Golden Oscietra and champagne Jelly; you are guaranteed to make an impression on that all important client with a slight dent to your robust expense account.
Situated in the Orchard Hotel, Hua Ting is a venerable establishment that serves fine Cantonese cuisine in a contemporary setting of understated elegance. Chef Chan Kwok, at the kitchen’s helm since 1999, takes center stage here with culinary skills that exhibit the clean flavors—sometimes with an almost mischievous streak of nouveau expression. An appetizer of sliced roast duck accompanied with deep fried pig intestines hints at the master’s touch. Score points with your client by asking the captain for "off -menu" items that are reserved for regulars.
Jade
The Fullerton Hotel
1 Fullerton Square
Singapore 049 178
(65) 6877 8188
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15/20
$$$$$
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For a formal Chinese meal, Jade is a super classy alternative to the claustrophobic atmosphere of some Orchard Road restaurants. Celebrity chef Sam Leong helms and rumor has it that he personally serves the VIPs, including former U.S. President Bill Clinton. Designed by Hirsch Bedner, Jade’s interior speaks of refined elegance with table settings from the distinguished ranks of Bernardaud, Riedel and Wedgwood. You can’t go wrong with signature dishes like crispy fillet of marble goby or pan seared scallops skewered in lemongrass with mango dressing. Kurobuta Pork Roulade with fresh ginseng may not be listed on the menu, but it pays to make inquiries about its availability prior to your visit.
If you have time for only one memorable meal in Singapore, don't miss a trip to this suave restaurant considered an area institution for fine dining. Founded in 1994, Les Amis is one of the few top contemporary European restaurants to survive the ravages of time and trend. It has been widely credited for putting Singapore on the world gourmet's map. Try the Wagyu beef carpaccio with rocket leaves or the roasted rack of black pig. At any one time, Les Amis stocks about 1,200 to 1,500 labels of wine—it's one of the few places in town to offer wine gueridon service by one of Singapore's best and most professional sommeliers. This is the place to impress and be impressed.
Perhaps more than any other restaurants, Morton's of Chicago has held on to a decade-long reverence in food-obsessed Singapore for its reputation as a steak house serving the finest, detour-worthy beef. Despite the onslaught of new and funky restaurants going all out to challenge the old order, this gem of a steakhouse continues to be a magnet for the corporate types and chichi crowd with its starched white tablecloths, subdued mood lighting, dark wood paneling and lavish display of food and wine. Lots of overlapping conversations here make for an atmosphere that is both lively and convivial. The food here is reassuringly accomplished and the service is highly professional and personal. Start the evening with lusciously fresh oysters on the half shell. Then, tuck in to the excellent chopped salad. With an unusual mix of iceberg, romaine lettuce, hearts of palm, artichoke hearts, bacon, purple onion and tomato with a Dijon mustard vinaigrette dressing, this is a classic appetizer that provides a good balance of zest, crunch and savoury bits all in one mouthful. Proceed to main course with caution: for carnivores with a healthy appetite, you can't go wrong with aged USDA or Australian beef selections done medium rare. Light eaters may opt for the lobsters or, if they're lucky, Alaskan Crab Legs (an off-menu item) steamed or oven baked served with drawn butter on the side. End the meal with a warm chocolate cake, a dessert that beats any other chocolate cakes we've had hands down.
Shiro
24 Greenwood Ave.
Singapore 289211
(65) 6462 2774
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15/20
$$$$$
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Tucked away in a row of shops at an upscale residential estate, Shiro is one of Singapore’s top Japanese restaurants. It’s known for being exclusive—no children are allowed, and no one enters without a reservation. After you’re allowed entry upon ringing the doorbell, you’ll discover stylish interiors done in tones of brown, gold and cream. From the à la carte menu, adventurous diners may opt for the salted ox tongue or the grilled cod fish sperm with special sauce. Those who believe the test of top Japanese cuisine is the raw fish will be impressed with the skillfully executed sashimi and sushi moriwase. Consider this venue if you seek the finest Japanese dining for your VIP guests.
Song of India
33 Scott Rd.
Singapore 228 226
(65) 6836 0055
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15/20
$$$$$
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Situated just off the Orchard Road shopping belt, this acclaimed restaurant features fine Indian dining. With its Christofle cutlery, Riedel stemware, custom Potterhaus tableware and art-adorned walls, the Song of India exudes a subtle opulence. Signature Lucknavi cuisine is characterized by complex blends of spices and long, slow marinades. For starters, impress your business partners with the star anise spiced foie gras or scallops with fennel and coriander. For main courses, opt for the outstanding Goan fish curry, tandoori roasted whole leg of lamb or chicken biryani. Be prepared to dress well, as you’ll be dining among top Indian corporate honchos and families of the well-heeled Singapore Indian community.
Tenshin
The Regent Singapore
#03-01 Cuscaden Rd.
Singapore 249725
(65) 6735 4588
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16/20
$$$$$ |
Those with a sizeable expense account should not pass up the opportunity to indulge at Singapore’s first and only tempura bar, where the battered and deep fried dishes have been elevated to an art form. Here, the interior is minimalist and the menu simple. A choice of set courses features tempura, while kaiseki courses include sashimi and either a steamed or grilled dish. Lightly crisp and not at all oily on the outside, the tempura is moist and succulent. The best seats in the house are at the counter, where patrons can watch the experts at their copper-domed stations. Expect to rub shoulders with celebrities and socialites, as Tenshin is a hit among the hiperati. |
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