New restaurants, bars, or seasonal menus perfect for a fancy date night or casual dining with friends …would be an honest, albeit SEO-driven description of these establishments. Not that we are any authority, but each has definitely earned their spot on this written highlight reel. Or if you have already been eyeing these places, take this as a lowdown of key dishes and worthy mentions to try. Succinct? You betcha.
Maybe we shouldn't start by raising your expectations, but it's hard not to rave about a restaurant when its fare is decent across the board. While only select items shine in many menus today, Amor pleases with each dish. You need no introduction to Barcelona or Madrid to appreciate the Spanish flair. The interior looks indistinguishable from most sharing the same street, but what's served does the talking.
Meats like slow-cooked Wagyu Short Rib and Jamón Ibérico de Bellota receive due respect on the grill, while sharing plates and standalone paellas uphold the same standard. For less conventional, Happy Eggggg a truffle sabayon on a 65°C onsen egg and roasted pumpkin coulis contrasts texturally with crispy jamon chips, brown butter sourdough croutons, chervil and dill in a martini glass. Your best bet is to catch the lunch sets from SGD38.
Vibe: The food so good nothing else really matters
Must-trys: Lobster Arroz Meloso, Happy Eggggg
Amor is located at 107 Amoy Street, Singapore 069927
At the heart of Barrel, you’ll find a curved bar surrounding a wood-fired grill as the restaurant’s centrepiece. Herein lies the core of the restaurant: a contemporary Japanese izakaya, subtly laced with whisky across its flavour profiles. The Teba Gyoza exemplifies this best—chicken wings stuffed with pork gyoza filling, grilled and spritzed with whisky for a complex undertone of flavour. Tonsoku Harumaki follows suit, with braised pig trotter wrapped in spring roll skin and deep-fried to achieve a gelatinous, lightly aromatic interior.
But Barrel isn’t confined to just izakaya. Sushi platters like the Sashimi Moriawase showcase the best cuts of the day, moving through a range of textures and nuanced flavours brought out by unconventional pairings. Here’s the showstopper, though: Barrel’s Chicken Rice crowned with a dollop of oscietra caviar. You’d think the caviar would be the highlight, but it’s the slightly boozy, umami-laden oyster sauce that does the heavy lifting, transforming the humble chicken rice into a dish that manages to justify its price tag.
For dessert, you’ll need nothing more than their Soft Serve drizzled with ropes of Okinawan brown sugar caramel and a splash of whisky for a satisfying finish.
Vibe: Tarantino wouldn’t need much convincing to stage this restaurant as the backdrop of a scene in the next hypothetical Kill Bill
Must-trys: Barrel Chicken Rice, Sashimi Moriawase, Teba Gyoza, Soft Serve “OKINAWA”
Barrel Story of Hibiki is located at 19 Cecil St, #01-01 The Quadrant, Singapore 049704
It’s only been open for a coupla' days at the time of writing this, but Sabòr already feels like it could be the quintessential joint for go-to Spanish tapas moving forward. Its ambience is a highlight; floor-to-ceiling glass walls invite natural light in the morning, while the soft glow of the courtyard terrace sets the convivial atmosphere at night.
Open with Croquette Jamón for hearty bites of cheese and cream encased within a light crust, where bits of ham add swirls of smokiness. The ‘Dirty Pepe’ chicken wings come tossed in hot honey, giving sweet heat to the front of the tongue. But the most addictive tapas had to be Bikini Sobrasada, which presses melted cheese and honey between crisp, airy slices of toast.
No tapas joint would be complete without paella, and Sabòr does them extremely well. The Grilled Wagyu Beef, in particular, stood out, with rice studded with charred bits that stuck to the bottom of the pan, but it was far from dry. Dollops of cream-based aioli help mellow out the smokiness. The steak was also treated with equal respect, tender and well-seasoned, built to be eaten with each spoonful of fragrant rice. For the proteins, Crispy Pork Belly with green apple balances a gelatinous tenderness with a slight lift from the fruit, preventing it from being overly cloying.
Save space for the Crema Catalana with Cookies, which layers a lemon-infused custard between a crème brûlée crust and crumbled cookies at the bottom. Easily one of the best bites you'll have at Sabòr.
Vibe: A new spot, but it’s already got main character energy
Must-trys: Bikini Sobrasada, Grilled Wagyu Beef Paella, Crema Catalana with Cookies
Sabòr is located at 30 Victoria St, #01-33 CHIJMES, Singapore 187996
Les Canons is probably one of the most comfortable, accessible spots for classic French fare without breaking the bank. Everything—and I do mean everything, apart from the wine bottles—is priced under SGD25. You’ll find the staples of French bistro cooking here: Duck Rillettes on French toast, Escargots drowning in garlic butter. What you really want to try, though, is their Foie gras—roasted and crowned atop a piece of toast-like pancake, drizzled in a maple-syrup-based sauce. It’s silky, decadent, and slightly sweet in all the right ways.
The loudest dish on Les Canons’ menu is the SG22 Steak Au Poivre, but we felt the flavours didn’t quite match its noise. In fact, most of the food here isn’t forceful on the palate; they lean on the lighter side, which some may prefer over punchier profiles. We didn’t try it during our visit, but we’ve heard some good things about the Beef Bourguignon, so keep it on your radar if you’re after something deeper and more robust.
They don’t hold back at all on desserts, though. The Mont Blanc is a meringue-based dessert served with hazelnut ice cream and bits of shaved chocolate, while Tarte Fine aux Pommes layers thinly sliced apples to form a delicate tart, finished with a saucer of vanilla ice cream on the side.
It’s also worth noting that they have an all-day happy hour menu, where bartenders shake up SGD6 highballs and gin and tonics behind the bar, amongst other very well-priced cocktails. Do what you will with that information.
Vibe: A cosy French joint that feels loosely like an elevated Saizeriya-adjacent bistro
Must-trys: Foie gras, Tarte Fine aux Pommes, SGD6 cocktails
Les Canons is located at IOI Central Boulevard Towers, 2 Central Blvd, #01-07, 018916
