The Singapore Thread

[circumspice]

Imagine a moron who needed to book a trip to burn vacation to not hit his vacation accrual cap.

Imagine if that moron did nearly no research on Singapore CM things worth checking out as he was too busy worrying about his layovers in Seoul and arranging fittings with B&Tailor.

I am that moron, solidly jetlagged after a 16 hour flight to Seoul yesterday, and a 6 hour flight to Singapore this evening morning?, resulting in a hotel check in close to 0200.

What say ye, @gshen @am55 @Noirkw @ZRH1 - anything I should check out?

I also need a bar to be at 11pm tomorrow to watch US-Netherlands

 

[am55]

You should walk around at 2am in any neighbourhood and enjoy that luxury. Maybe try a weekend trip by ferry to Bintan (45min from Tanah Merah ferry terminal). Go eat some durian at a well rated stall - make sure they open it in front of you and maybe try hong xia (red prawn) rather than MSW, it's a bit more approachable, tastes like coffee. You can't get (Malaysian) durian in any other part of the world, not fresh anyway and it spoils fast. The rainforest is very approachable, on weekdays McRitchie is probably doable without crowds (basically go do the HSBC treetop bridge, from the Lornie mushroom cafe, and you'll hit the interesting sections), maybe try spot the Malayan coral snake in Bukit Timah catchment area trail. Cycling up the greenway (former train track to Malaysian, now cycle path with rainforest in the middle of skyscrapers) is also interesting. There's some saltwater crocs you can walk past in Sungei Buloh reserve, and a king cobra has also been sighted recently. Kaya toast at Heap Seng Leong near Lavender. Get a friend to let you in 67 Pall Mall for lunch, the expense account expat community, not much changed since the 1960s, is a tourist sight I guess (and food at the Tanglin is awful). Tanjong Beach Club or Trapizza for a sunset beer, go there by cable car not taxi (can always taxi back).

For your match call up Bamarang in River Valley and ask if they're showing the match (probably). Usually pretty lively and yank friendly.

Oh did you say CM things. I guess you can ponder why the men a city with 11% millionaire residents mostly wear uniqlo shorts and T shirts with a cheap G shock. But your first half hour in the heat should explain nicely. If you visit Vanda go have a swim at nearby(ish) Tampines swimming complex (top floor of the mall, 6 pools, probably a US dollar to get in) for a sample of the Singaporean heartlands life, but make sure it's during office hours unless you like crowds.

 

[am55]

Here's a fun and uniquely local thing... the Thompson line just opened (well, the section that goes through the city) which means nobody is taking it yet. So you can see the latest gen pristine metro system, probably the nicest in the world, and also it takes you to the Marina Barrage. Stop by decathlon first to buy a kite, and go fly it on top of the barrage. There's a long tradition of kite flying including mid-20th-C gangs putting glass shards on the strings and trying to cut other gangs' strings in flight. Of course today it's families and hobbyists. I'm also curious about the ghost station on the way to the terminus - I think it's planned for when they develop the area from reclaimed grassland into skyscrapers, for now it is lit but empty as you pass it slowly.

You can get a long hike with good views of the city by crossing the barrage and walking over to Stadium but that takes quite a while with little shade, better at night. From barrage to east coast park is also nicer than just about any route from the city if you're cycling. Wouldn't go towards the cruise terminal at night as I've had to turn around a few times cos of a pack of stray dogs that is quite aggressive outside hours. There's something special though about an area so deserted and overgrown right next to the highest footfall area of a country made entirely of 40+ storey buildings.

 

[gshen]

Sorry I didn't see this earlier.

Classic menswear things off the top of my head - Dylan & Son, Mason & Smith, Last & Lapel, Seamless Bespoke, Colony Clothing, The Decorum Singapore (apologies to anyone I missed) are all fairly close by in the Chinatown/conservative business dress area and worth a visit. Some are by appointment only - check before visiting.

 

[KarlHungus]

Don't know about CM but ran into this tonight...

 

[circumspice]

Back in S'pore, heading out in < 1 day.

On the CM front:
Made it to Colony Clothing today - super interesting buys, right up the dearly departed @dieworkwear 's alley - Beams+ to United Arrows to Bigi ties to a bunch of unstructured hopsack sport coats in jewel tones to Native American jewelry. Lots of "easy" pants on offer, but none currently in my size, so no dusty pink shorts or cream irregular seersucker for me. Bought a Bigi tie as they are hard to get away from in person. It is really a joy to see a place with such an interesting point of view. They host some trunk shows for some Japanese bespoke makers, and also stock Cleverly RTW shoes. They also have an Alden shop in town elsewhere, I think, but Alden makes my head hurt as I am not sure we are supposed to discuss them when their stockists cannot ship internationally, etc.

Decorum is well worth checking out as well - made me a bit upset honestly that I didn't check out their O.G. spot in Bangkok when I was there a week-ish ago. Stocks C&J (seemingly including as large as UK 11, which is unusual per my experience in East Asia, FWIW, as I need a 10 as a rule and 9.5 is often the ceiling) as well as Edward Green. Stocks Kamakura, Drake's, Shibumi and some Liverano stuff. Hosts trunk shows for Liverano and Assisi. Bought a Shibumi tie in a funky, somewhat retro pattern.

Both of the above had great folks covering the floor - Charles at Decorum, and a lady at Colony whose name I forgot to ask. Just delightful folks.


Food:
Been trying to geek out on Peranakan ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peranakans ) food since getting back from Thailand.
Last night - True Blue ->

Home - True Blue Cuisine

Where Tradition MattersReservationsAuthentic Peranakan DiningMenuFor all things PeranakanReservationsA living heritageMenu Previous slide Next slide Book Now! About us True Blue Cuisine was opened in November 2003 in the heart of the Peranakan enclave - Katong. Since then, it has charmed...

truebluecuisine.com

True Blue Cuisine – Singapore - a MICHELIN Guide Restaurant

True Blue Cuisine – a Bib Gourmand: good quality, good value cooking restaurant in the 2023 MICHELIN Guide Singapore. Free online booking on the MICHELIN Guide's official website. The MICHELIN inspectors’ point of view, information on prices, types of cuisine and opening hours on the MICHELIN...

guide.michelin.com

Tonight:

National Kitchen by Violet Oon at National Gallery Singapore - Violet Oon Singapore

[video width="720" height="576" mp4="https://violetoon.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/VO-NatGalleryfinal.mp4"]

violetoon.com

Both were very nice. If you can get a spot at National Kitchen, you might be able to follow it up, or start early on the roof at Smoke + Mirrors, which has great views of the skyline, and a serious cocktail program. I may or may have not closed it tonight.