Singapore is a veritable food haven. Whether you’re craving hawker classics, gourmet cuisine or a home-cooked meal, the options are endless. Here are six affordable dining ideas that will satisfy your taste buds, your wallet, and most importantly, your significant other.
Happening hawker food safaris
Hawker centres have the reputation of being hot and stuffy, not exactly ideal venues for romantic dates. Yet true-blue Singaporean foodies know that that’s where you’ll find the most soul-satisfying dishes, at wallet-friendly prices too. Bridging the gap, new-generation hawker centres boast better ventilation and unlikely Insta-friendly settings.
Take, for example, the brand-new Woodleigh Village Hawker Centre, where you can savour Mexican-fusion cuisine from Pura Vida Cocina and Style Palate’s restaurant-standard French mainstays. Or head to Anchorvale Village Hawker Centre, which opened in June, for a taste of the popular Kawan Bowl and Michelin-recommended Pin Wei Chee Cheong Fun.
Prefer old-school hawker fare? Then you can’t go wrong with Old Airport Road Food Centre, which just reopened on 1 October after four months of restoration works, complete with huge new ceiling fans!
Love hawker food but prefer eating in air-conditioned comfort? Then dine at Prata Wala Jurong Point or EAT @ City Square Mall, where SAFRA members and snsmervicemen enjoy 10% and 15% off respectively; more info at safra.sg/promotions/prata-wala & safra.sg/promotions/eat-city-square-mall
‘Atas’ al fresco food courts
If you’re willing to spend a little more to take the style factor up a notch, then consider trendy food truck-inspired or container-style gourmet food courts, where you can dine beneath the stars – and fairy lights – on culinary choices that are practically plated for the ‘gram. Dining is often accompanied by live music performances for extra chillout vibes.
Cosford Container Park in Changi is currently all the buzz, with highlights including mod-Indian cuisine by Michelin-starred chef Manjunath Mural, Taiwanese skewers, and Boon Tat Street’s iconic barbecue seafood. Over in Punggol East, the Artbox-esque Punggol Container Park offers affordable must-tries from Kaizenki Teppanyaki and Seoul Good.
Also hidden within idyllic Kallang Riverside Park is Gourmet Park Kampong Bugis, a pop-up that runs till the end of the year. Don’t miss sharing meals from the likes of The Goodburger, Meatsmith and newcomer, Breakfast by Carnaby.
SAFRA members enjoy up to 20% off the subtotal on their bill at Cosford Container Park; see safra.sg/promotions/cosford-container-park for more details. SAFRA members also enjoy 5% off at Food Paradise at SAFRA Choa Chu Kang and SAFRA Mount Faber; more info at safra.sg/amenities-offerings/food-paradise
Fabulous fast food feasts
With global cult-favourite fast food concepts increasingly making their presence felt on our shores, it’s not unusual to see lovey-dovey couples dining at such casual dining restaurants too. But while we await the highly anticipated entry of America’s Chick-fil-A, South Korea’s viral BHC Chicken and our homegrown HAR HAR Chicken! continue their juicy expansion plans.
As for burger options, you can’t go wrong with Five Guys or Shake Shack, the latter with already 10 outlets islandwide since its first at Jewel Changi Airport in 2019. Don’t miss its collaboration with KEK Seafood (from 17 October) that features burgers, chicken bites and fries inspired by the heritage zi char brand’s signature coffee pork ribs and white pepper crab!
Need more fast-food options? SAFRA members and Servicemen get 10% off at 4FINGERS, and receive a free treat with regular-priced meals at selected Burger King outlets; more info at safra.sg/promotions/4FingersCrispyChicken & safra.sg/promotions/burger-king-free-treat
All-you-can-eat dim sum buffets
Another fantastic option for a casual and fun date are dim sum buffets. It’s a great way to bond over shared food experiences, while the relaxed atmosphere makes chit-chatting a breeze. Plus, with a wide variety of steamed and fried dumplings, buns, and other bite-sized delicacies, you get to try a little bit of everything without breaking the bank.
For example, TungLok Teahouse offers a value-for-money weekend high tea buffet from just $21.80 per adult. Other well-loved choices that come in at under or around the $30 mark include Beng Hiang Restaurant, Peach Garden Chinese Restaurant and Swatow Toa Payoh. For the authentic experience, make a beeline for Yum Cha, which serves steaming hot dim sum via pushcart trolleys!
SAFRA members enjoy 20% off Yum Cha’s high tea/dinner dim sum buffets and more; more info at safra.sg/promotions/yum-cha
Home sweet home cooking
There is nothing more romantic than enjoying a meal cooked just for you by your significant other. Besides, you get to show off your culinary skills and create a cosy atmosphere in a familiar environment, all without the distractions of a restaurant. Whether you’re assembling a simple pasta dish or whipping up a gourmet feast, the thought and effort you put into the meal will be appreciated.
You can also make cooking together a date activity. A heartwarming and intimate experience, it’s a great opportunity to chat, laugh and connect on a deeper level. So roll up your sleeves, put on some music and get cooking. You even get to control the budget from start to finish, with no bill ‘surprises’ at the end of the meal!
Better still, get the ingredients you need delivered to your doorstep. SAFRA members enjoy up to $10 or 15% off at Quan Shui Wet Market, and 10% off at Cold Storage Online; more info at safra.sg/promotions/quan-shui-wet-market-Q4 and safra.sg/promotions/cold-storage-online
Go back to (cooking) class
If neither you nor your beloved have any culinary talents at all, then consider signing up for a cooking class or two. You can learn to prepare simple local dishes, Western grub or Japanese meals, whatever you prefer. It’s a hands-on experience that allows you to bond while creating something tasty. While most cooking classes tend to cost a pretty penny, ABC Cooking Studio offers trial classes from just $35.
Another option is to attend cooking demonstrations at your local community club, which command fees as low as $8 per person. While you won’t get physically involved with any cooking, you’ll get to watch the instructor prepare dishes and ask all your (embarrassing) questions. These usually also end with an opportunity to taste the food.
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