Top 8 Singapore restaurants

The vibrant city-state of Singapore saw eight of its restaurants make it into the top 50 of Asian Restaurants this year – as voted for by more than 900 food critics, chefs and restaurateurs.

Now in its second year, Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants awards, sponsored by S.Pellegrino & Acqua Panna, announced its 2014 winners at an awards ceremony in Singapore in February.

Its 900 voters, who make up The Diners Club World’s 50 Best Restaurants Academy, deliberated over hundreds of restaurants from 25 countries in Asia to come up with the best of the rest.

For our top 10 of restaurants in Asia, click here.

Scroll through as we count down Singapore’s top 10 restaurantsas decided the Asian 50 Best Restaurants competition…

8. Imperial Treasure Super Peking Duck

Dedicated to Peking duck, this restaurant is regularly hailed as one of Singapore’s finest described as the “jewel in the crown” of the Imperial Treasure group which has 18 restaurants spread across Asia. Located on the fifth floors of a shopping centre and accessible by escalator, guests are treated to Peking duck cooked Beijing-style and sliced at their table. Its Art Deco theme, brimming with gold and brown, brings a touch of glamour to the dining hall, which is almost always packed.

Head chef: Tong Yuk Sing

Style of food: Chinese

Standout dish: Peking duck

Contact: 42/45, 5th Floor, Paragon, 290 Orchard Road, Singapore 238859, +65 6732 7838, www.imperialtreasure.com

Overall position: 40

Last year: 49

7. Shinji By Kanesaka

Bringing authentic Japanese omakase dining to Singapore, Shinji, set up by Michelin-starred sushi chef Shinji Kanesaka, does ont have a menu – hence omakase (I’ll leave the choice up to you). It is part of Singapore’s Raffles Hotel and and boasts a sushi counter carved from a single piece of wood from the trunk of a 220-year-old Japanese hinoki (Japanese cypress) tree. Expect to be served Japanese sushi specialities such as sashimi, nigiri and maki sushi.

Head chef: Koichiro Oshino

Style of food: Japanese

Contact: Raffles Hotel, 1 Beach Road, Singapore, +65 6338 6131, www.shinjibykanesaka.com

Overall position: 35

Last year: 32

6. Tippling Club

Mixing modern cuisine with funky cocktails is the Tippling Club, previously based at a former army barracks in Dempsey Hill, is now located on the Tanjong Pagar Road. Its English chef, Ryan Clift, and one of its founders, counts Marco-Pierre White, Peter Gordon and Melbourne-based Raymond Capaldi as previous employers and has a quirky take on serving food. Amuse-bouches are served in test tubes, plant pots and jam jars, while tasting-menu dishes are arranged with an emphasis on colour, with ingredients including flowers and freeze-dried fruits to cocoa butter and micro-herbs.

Head chef: Ryan Clift

Style of food: Modern, global, eclectic

Contact: 38 Tanjong Pagar Road, Singapore 088461, +65 6475 2217, www.tipplingclub.com

Overall position: 23

Last year: New entry

5. Jaan

Located on the 70th floor of Singapore’s Swissôtel The Stamford, Jaan boasts breathtaking views across Singapore’s Marina Bay and city. Head chef Julien Royer took over from Taiwan-born Andre Chiang in 2011 and has succeeded in evolving an already successful menu into one that is very much his own.

Head chef: Chef de cuisine Julien Royer and sous chef Kirk Westway
Style of food: Modern French

Contact:Level 70, Swissôtel The Stamford, 2 Stamford Road, Singapore 178882, +65 9199 9008, www.jaan.com.sg

Overall position: 17

Last year: 22

4. Les Amis

Les Amis celebrates its 20th anniversary this year its Les Amis group amassing 12 restaurants in that time – however its flagship restaurant remains its most renowned. Its design sees French and Asian influences collide maintaining an elegant and classical interior, which also boasts the biggest wine cellar in Asia. Timothy Goh, Les Amis’ director of wines, has been crowned Asia’s sommelier of the year on three occasions. It menu, redeveloped since the appointment of executive chef Sebastien Lepinoy last summer, combines French influences with unique Asian ingredients with dishes including blue Crab and Hokkaido sea urchin with a lobster custard and fennel foam, and French eels and fois gras served alongside a Japanese dashi broth and citrus fruits.

Head chef: Sebastien Lepinoy

Style of food: Modern European

Contact:1 Scotts Road, Shaw Centre, Singapore 228208, +65 6733 2225, www.lesamis.com.sg

Overall position: 14

Last year: 14

3. Iggy’s

Taking inspiration from Europe, Asia and Australia Iggy’s is a melting pot of global fine dining. Managed by award-winning sommelier Ignatius Chan, Iggy’s has been location in Singapore’s luxurious Hilton Hotel since 2010. Chan’s love of wine and Japan is evident in the restaurant’s cooking which includes dishes such as tuna belly with Pinot Noir, yam, hearts of palm and garlic oil.

Head chef: Masahiro Isono

Style of food: Light and fresh with clean Japanese flavours

Contact:Hilton Hotel, 581 Orchard Road, Singapore 238883, +65 6732 2234, www.iggys.com.sg

Overall position: 12

Last year: 9

2. Waku Ghin

Located at the luxurious Marina Bay Sands hotel in Singapore, chef Tetsuya Wakuda offers guests to Waku Ghin fine Japanese dining. The restaurant has just 25 covers across four private rooms each with its own private chef who will prepare guests a 10-course tasting menu on a teppanyaki grill. Specialities include raw seafood such as sea urchin and abalone. Its name is derived fromtwo Japanese words; waku, meaning to arise; and ghin, meaning silver. – Wakuda’s favourite colour. For a more informal setting, the Bar at Waku Ghin features traditional Japanese-style cocktail-making and has an extensive list of premium whiskies and sakes.
Head chef: Tetsutya Wakuda

Style of food: Modern Japanese

Contact:Atrium 2, Level 2, Marina Bay Sands, 10 Bayfront Avenue, Singapore 018956, +65 6688 8507, www.marinabaysands.com

Overall position: 7

Last year: 11

1. Restaurant André

Serving “delicate southern French nouvelle cuisine” Restaurant André prides itself of sourcing its ingredients from small, artisanal producers. Housed in a 19th-century terraced-house, Restaurant André’s offers a dining experience in a 30-seat room which features antler lampshades and Chef André Chiang’s own hand-crafted clay figurines. Chef Chiang employs his own ‘Octaphilosophy’ to the restaurant, a way of describing the key characteristics of his creations, namely unique, texture, memory, pure, terroir, salt, south and artisan.

Head chef: Chef-patron André Chiang and executive chef Johnny Jiang

Style of food: Delicate Southern French nouvelle cuisine using ingredients from small, artisanal producers

Contact:41 Bukit Pasoh Road, Singapore 089855, +65 6534 8880, www.restaurantandre.com

Overall position: 6

Last year: 5