Am I in Singapore, or am I in Japan? This question briefly crosses my mind as I explore 100 AM Mall, home to a multi-level Don Don Donki store, a couple of ramen and sushi shops, and Takagi Coffee, where I fulfil a sudden urge to have fluffy Japanese pancakes for dinner. 100 AM Mall is next door to Amara Singapore, the recently renovated Tanjong Pagar hotel celebrating its 40th year. Amara is an independent, Singaporean-owned brand meaning “everlasting” in Sanskrit. The hotel is in a prime location opposite Tanjong Pagar Plaza Market and Food Centre, a short stroll from Chinatown’s colourful shophouses, parks, and no shortage of Korean and Japanese restaurants nearby. There is every type of hawker food imaginable at the food centre, and some reasonably priced speciality coffee, too. I enjoy what turns out to be the tastiest Hainanese chicken rice of this trip. I’m staying in a club room with a very long desk under the TV, which I use to stack my packing cells. One end of the desk has a single vanity with well-lit mirrors and filtered water. The 32sqm room has calming neutral decor, a comfortable lounge in the window, a separate toilet, and a separate bath and shower room stocked with Appelles toiletries. Much-appreciated and not seen often enough, universal power points are installed alongside USB-A and USB-C. No need for an adaptor here! Australia is an important market for the hotel, and general manager Gordon Aeria has lived and worked Down Under. Singapore is always humid, so that’s my excuse for making a few trips to the tropical pool, and no trips to the adjacent gym. Amara Singapore has a bit of a business hotel vibe but it takes dining seriously, with 11 restaurants and bars. I have breakfast included in the club lounge, and its afternoon snacks are also excellent, including kueh, curry puffs and dumplings. Thai fine diner Thanying has been serving cuisine rooted in royal Thai traditions since 1998, and I struggle through the generous five-course set lunch featuring a refreshingly different prawn salad with pomelo. A plate of satay at Cafe Oriental hits the spot for a quick dinner. While the reception desk for the 389-room hotel is small, the whole lobby positions itself as an area for guests to relax in. At weekends the Lobby Bar has a bubbly high tea for two from $75. The smoked salmon blinis and scones win me over. Arguably Amara’s most famous hospitality tenant is Jigger & Pony, the globally acclaimed bar that opened in buzzing Amoy Street in 2012 before moving to the hotel in 2018. It may sit at No.9 on the list of the world’s 50 best bars, but there’s no snobbery here. I’m a non-drinker but my mocktails are made with the same care and precision as the cocktails. I snack on spicy tapioca chips at the bar while chatting to the friendly young team and perusing the annual full-gloss “menu-zine” of drinks. Team member Lukas Fong did a stint working in Perth bars. Senior bartender Jarryl Goh, who studied communications, says half of the 60-plus-page menu changes with the annual update. “Once recipes are done, we do a recipe test, so everyone knows how to make it,” he says. “It’s a few weeks until muscle memory kicks in and you stop thinking, then all you have to do is taste and remember.” Jarryl says customers are drawn to classic drinks, elevated in the Jigger & Pony style while retaining the essence of the original. Yuzu whisky sour is popular. An American couple ask where to find the best chicken rice. I agree with the bar staff, they can do better than standing in the queue for Tian Tian at nearby Maxwell Food Centre. Jigger & Pony is fun. It has great decor and great drinks, but it’s the staff that make the place. Something else Amara Singapore takes seriously is local culture. Guests can go exploring with a copy of Amara’s colourful, illustrated neighbourhood map, book a Jiak & Jalan walking food tour, or, like me, join former gang member Alvin Chiong to explore Chinatown Unmasked.
+ Sue Yeap was a guest of Amara Singapore and Singapore Airlines. They have not influenced this story, or read it before publication.
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Deluxe rooms at Amara Singapore, a member of Preferred Hotels & Resorts Lifestyle Collection, start from $270 a night, and club rooms from $348, excluding taxes. singapore.amarahotels.com preferredhotels.com jiggerandpony.com chinatown.sg/tanjong-pagar 100am.com.sg