Team Condé Nast Traveler just got back from Singapore and the World Savers Congress but some of us managed to get out and explore the city in the off-hours surrounding the event. Along for the ride? The latest edition of Luxe Singapore, the pocket-sized guide that skips a city map to pack in copious listings for bars, restaurants, shopping, spas, and sundry other must-sees. So just how good were the listings? Here's the breakdown:
Filed under "Blah, Blah," the need-to-know section: "Hawker centres might look drab and lack air-con, but they can't be beat for delish local fare. Be brave." Advice we wholeheartedly agree with! Verdict: +1.
Filed under "Luxe Loathes" were two items: "The weather: this is a four shirt per day city," which is absolutely true, and "Lah: on the end of everything, lah," which we found interesting, inasmuch as it's an integral part of the local dialect. Certainly that's not loathsome! Verdict: +1 and -1.
Filed under "Restaurants: Relaxed" was this exceedingly accurate description of one of Singapore's best chilli crab spots: "Dress down and prepare to get messy. Get a blast of black pepper crab at popular Long Beach @ Depsey." Verdict: +2 for precision.
Filed under "Restaurants: Hawker Food" was further encouragement to try the city's trademark food centers: "While some may call the stark strip lights and plastic plates 'atmosphere,' others say [they suck]. You be the judge. Lau Pa Sat is a Victorian cast iron carousel and the 'prettiest' of hawker centres. ... The Chinatown Complex is good, but very basic. Take a moist towellette as there are never any damn napkins." Verdict: +1, but know that you can almost always buy napkins from roving vendors.
Not filed under "Bars" was Bar 84 at the Gallery Hotel, rightly famous for its Japanese magician and superlative cocktails. Minus 2 for the oversight!
Lastly, under "Activities," a shout-out for the Peranakan Museum. "A beginner's course on nonya life, culture and identity, filled with intriguing artefacts." So, so true, so plus 1 here.
Final tally? Plus three, and our endorsement of Luxe Singapore. And we didn't even consider the millions of shopping listings...
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