Getting a little panicky now that Chinese New Year is over and Valentine’s Day is on the way? Fret not, for we’ve got your back with our list of restaurants that covers everything from casual dining and gluten-free plates to riverside cruises and hilltop views. Check ’em out below and make your bookings to join the masses in celebrating the annual day of love.
alittle tashi
Take the pressure off the commercialized “holiday” with a casual evening at the Jalan Besar space, where a communal menu of sharing plates will be served. Dishes include signatures like grilled skhug beef short ribs and charred miso brussels sprouts, as well as specials for the day, such as sake kelp cured kingfish and a rich double chocolate cake.
Feb 13-14, 5pm onwards at alittle tashi. $129-$179/couple.
Arbora
For couples who prefer to keep things new and exciting, the Mount Faber restaurant, which recently opened in October last year, sits on the hilltop peak with panoramic views of Sentosa and the surrounding flora and fauna. If you like picturesque dates, pick a spot here and nibble your way through the four-course set — which includes the likes of cajun spiced prawns, pistachio-crusted salmon fillet, and clam chowder — to the backdrop of live acoustic love songs.
Feb 14, 6pm-9pm at Arbora. $248/couple.
Botanico
Hide away from prying eyes at the 1920s Art Deco building that houses Botanico, surrounded by the lush foliage of the Botanic Gardens. With a four-course sharing menu, the restaurant offers dishes like pan-seared foie gras, Hokkaido scallops carpaccio, wagyu striploin, and chocolate praline cake for lovers to savor together, with an acoustic duo providing the melodies of love songs from 7pm till 10pm. Each couple will also be served Elixirs of Love cocktails, just in case you need a little something to keep the flame alight.
Feb 14, 6pm-7:30pm and 8pm-9:30pm at Botanico. $250/couple.
Porta
A complimentary glass of Prosecco welcomes you to Porta at Park Hotel Clarke Quay, followed by a five-course menu that aims to do to your stomach what Cupid’s Arrow did to your heart. Start off with smoked trout and sweet corn soup, accompanied by Hokkaido scallops with watercress and a choice of beef brisket or pan-seared cod. To end on a sweet note, you’ll be served a plate of 12-hour caramelized banana with vanilla ice cream, Victoria sponge, and rum.
Feb 14, 6:30pm-8:30pm and 8:30pm-10:30pm at Porta. $68/person, includes a glass of Prosecco “Love Potion”.
Salt grill & Sky bar
Perched way up high in Ion Orchard, this modern Australian restaurant offers shopaholics prime views of the stretch, with a five-course menu made specially for Valentine’s Day. The Sri Lankan mud crab kicks off your evening meal, followed by sake and white soy cured blue fin tuna and mushroom ravioli. For something a little heartier, choose between the Geraldton kingfish with Hokkaido scallop or the Westholme wagyu tenderloin, then sweeten the deal with a mille feuille served with dark chocolate cherry mascarpone.
Feb 14 at Salt grill & Sky Bar. $398/couple.
Summerlong
The riverside restaurant does V-day a little differently this year, with a boat ride from Havelock to Marina Bay Sands just in time for the light show, which you can watch before or after your dinner. If your date’s easily impressed by laser lights and fountain jets dancing in sync to tunes, perhaps you’ll wanna pick up the tab for this three-course dinner. It’ll start with freshly shucked oysters, tomato and watermelon gazpacho, and watercress salad, before you continue on to mains like barramundi fillet or grass-fed ribeye, sharing sides, and a choice of chocolate sacher or raspberry sorbet.
Feb 14, 5pm or 8:30pm at Summerlong. $200/person.
The Botanic
Also new on the scene, The Botanic’s plant-based sharing plates will appeal to those on a vegan, vegetarian, or gluten-free lifestyle. Treat your date to a three-course dinner here that includes fresh oysters, kingfish sashimi, and seared beef tenderloin, plus a classic Valentine’s dessert: chocolate.
Feb 14 at The Botanic. $98/couple, with an additional $78 for wine pairing.
The Butcher’s Wife
For a gluten-free Valentine dinner that’s not just a mere afterthought, take your significant other to the modern European bistro in Tiong Bahru, where you can clink glasses of Prosecco with your date to celebrate however many days/months/years you’ve been together. The three-course menu takes you from cured beetroot salmon to grilled black onyx’s beef shoulder to coconut mousse with passionfruit, lime, and roasted pineapple.
Feb 14 at The Butcher’s Wife. $55/person.
The Sampan
Pick a spot overlooking the Singapore River at this chill Boat Quay joint, where romance is the theme of the week. Munch on pan-fried scallops with pumpkin croquettes or bone marrow and red chimichurri to start, then opt for baked red snapper with ginger or Asian-spiced ribeye steak as your mains. Made to share, the dessert creation features poached pear with white miso caramel and green tea ice cream poached pear on cajanus crumble.
Feb 11-15 at The Sampan. $128/couple.
The Spot
This seven-course V-day menu could hit the spot with its line-up of oysters, Boston lobster, abalone risotto, wagyu short rib pastrami, gin and tonic granita, and three “shades” of chocolate dessert (from milk to dark). To get you pleasantly buzzed, bubbly is served on an endless stream for the day, plus you’ll be serenaded to the tune of velvety jazz melodies by local musicians.
Feb 14 at The Spot. $108/person.
Wild Honey
A Valentine’s collab with The Fabulous Baker Boy, this three-course dinner features smoked salmon gougères and a choice of four mains (grilled onglet steak and house-cured duck confit, amongst others), alongside a free flow dessert and s’mores bar put together by the bakery. To get high on a sugar rush with your partner, dig into signature sweets like the “Diana Ross” layer cake of milk sponge and milk chocolate, the Valrhona chocolate cheesecake, and the lemon meringue shortcrust pastry.
Feb 14, 5pm-11pm at Wild Honey Mandarin Gallery and Scotts Square. $70/person, includes a glass of Ruffino Prosecco Blanc or Seedlip Garden Martini.
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