Want something that is perhaps a little bit more atas than your typical Astons or Crystal Jades, but without the rigidity of fine dining? That’s where Premium Casual dining comes to the fore.
Within the space, diners get to enjoy an elevated experience – both in atmosphere, service, and cuisine – without having to baulk at dress codes or prices. It’s kind of like the best of both worlds! In this guide, we pick some of our favourite Premium Casual dining spots, ranging from omakase flair to eating an upgraded take on Singapore’s iconic dish.
MinSuiZen Raku Omakase Teppanyaki
Most expect an air of elegant class when thinking of omakase, but what happens when you fuse that with the dazzling spectacle of teppanyaki? Well, you get MinSuiZen Raku Omakase Teppanyaki.
Originally from Taiwan, the brand has wowed customers not just within Taipei, Taichung, Kaohsiung, and more, but its expansions in Hong Kong and Japan have also garnered rave reviews! And this year, MinSuiZen Raku has also made its way to our shores in Singapore, right in the heart of the CBD.
MinSuiZen Raku blends the best of Japanese omakase and teppanyaki. Like other omakase offerings, the restaurant provides curated, multi-course menus that utilise the finest ingredients for diners to savour. At the same time, the teppanyaki cooking style gives visitors a sensorial treat – showcasing the chefs’ well-honed skills in a chill and lighthearted immersive experience. Best of all, it comes at an accessible price!
The S$88 Joyous Course retains the hallmarks of a good omakase, with the 12-course menu letting people relish exceptional quality seafood dishes like the Hokkaido Scallop, generously-sized and skillfully grilled over the flat skillet before it is paired with an umami-filled miso butter sauce and edamame. The main highlight goes to the Grilled Chicken Drumstick, with the chef providing an Insta-worthy flambé showpiece for watching diners as he grills it to perfection.
If you want to upgrade your meal further, MinSuiZen Raku also offers the S$138 Premium Course that uses more premium ingredient selections (such as halibut instead of flounder for their seasonal fish). But the one to look forward to is the Japanese A5 Wagyu. It is similarly flambéed to your preferred doneness and served alongside a complement of sweet potatoes and wasabi, salt, and garlic chips – sides that draw out the best of the wagyu.
📍Location: 182 Cecil St, #03-01/02, Singapore 069547
⏰Opening Hours: 12.30 pm – 3 pm (Afternoon), 5.15 pm – 10 pm (Evening)
For more information on MinSuiZen Raku Omakase Teppanyaki, you can visit their official website. Reservations can be made here.
HighHouse
What’s dinner with a view like? That is what HighHouse is here to answer. Occupying levels 61 and 62 of One Raffles Place, the restaurant offers diners a sweeping panoramic view of the cityscape.
But the 10,000 square feet space delivers more than just views. Inside, you can find a host of activities to elevate your dining experience, such as a roving lineup of live performances from dancers, musicians, DJs, and more.
The food is similarly eclectic, offering up a menu of modern Pan-Asian fare that enticingly blends Western and Asian flavours together. Take, for instance, the Not a Butter Chicken, which uses French chicken breast as the main star and adds in feta cheese and pickled Guindilla peppers to bring a surprising tanginess to the dish.
Another unique creation is the Duck Rillettes Pasta, featuring an indulgent Double Mustard Sauce that is finished with a healthy dusting of Parmigiano Reggiano and homemade Bawang Goreng, making for a beautifully rich and creamy main dish.
📍Location: 1 Raffles Place, 048616, Level 61 & 62
⏰Opening Hours:
- 11.30 am – 1 am (Monday, Tuesday and Thursday)
- 11.30 am – 3 am (Wednesday and Friday)
- 5 pm – 3 am (Saturday)
The full menu can be found on HighHouse’s official website. Reservations can be made here.
Bottega di Carna
Should you want a taste of Italy, there’s no need to book flight tickets; all you have to do is travel to Bottega di Carna! Helmed by Dario Cecchini—an eighth-generation butcher that is also known as “the World’s Greatest Butcher”—the restaurant is all about savouring the best of what Italy has to offer in an elegant, yet cosy atmosphere.
The restaurant evokes a glasshouse-like feel, with a centre skylight allowing natural light to stream through and enhance the many green elements featured in the architecture. Visitors also have a view into the open kitchen, giving a peek into how these delicious dishes are being whipped up by the chefs.
The menu at Bottega di Carna is a love letter to Italian cuisine, using ingredients that are premium yet sustainable. Pasta lovers will enjoy the restaurant’s varied selection, each handmade for an authentic feel. One of the highlights is the Basket Tortelli, a dish with a delicious butternut squash pumpkin filling hidden inside that is luxurious but doesn’t feel overly cloying.
Of course, Italian food is meant to be shared, and Bottega di Carna also includes a sumptuous serving of Griglia to indulge with family and friends. The headliner is the Bistecca alla Florentina – 1.2kg of opulent dry-aged Florentina T-bone steak that can be enjoyed with a range of sauces provided.
📍Location: Mondrian Singapore Duxton, 16A Duxton Hill, #03-01, Singapore 089970
⏰Opening Hours: 7 am – 12 am
The full menu for Bottega di Carna can be found here, and reservations can be made on the Mondrian Singapore Duxton website.
Bon Broth
Take your hotpot game up a notch with Bon Broth, a hotpot restaurant that aims to rewrite the rules of what hotpot dining can be. Recently opened early this year, the restaurant is led by Chef André Chiang – the person behind the acclaimed Restaurant André and former head chef of the three Michelin-star Le Jardin des Sens – and offers diners a fresh perspective on hotpot dining.
The restaurant features a sophisticated, modern touch, with minimalist wood materials used throughout its space. It is designed to be communal yet intimate, with the 40-seater space featuring bar counter seating that surrounds a view of enticing broth being cooked. Cosy booth seats are also available to accommodate small groups for dining with friends or family.
Bon Broth keeps it simple with two set menu selections – a S$138 Premium set and the S$110 Deluxe set. Both sets come with fresh seafood and meat ingredients, with the Premium having the likes of South African Abalone and A4 Kagoshima Wagyu among the ingredients, while the Deluxe has Tiger Prawns and Australian Lamb Shoulder in lieu of those.
Rather, you’ll find variance within the broth options! There are seminal favourites like Mala, Herbal, and signature Sichuan Green Pepper broths among the choices, but you can also experience other unique flavours like Hokkaido—which uses a blend of Groupa fish head collagen broth, miso, sake, and Hokkaido milk—and Satay (Sha Cha), featuring a savoury Sha Cha base that is sautéed with butter, shallot, garlic, as well as chilli and os further enriched with bone broth.
📍Location: Bon Broth, Raffles City, 252 North Bridge Rd, ##03-01, Singapore 179103
⏰Opening Hours: 11 am – 10 pm daily
Reservations can be made here.
Chatterbox
If you love your chicken rice, then Chatterbox should be on your list. Found in Hilton Singapore Orchard, the over 50-year-old restaurant is an esteemed name in the scene, being one of the earliest hotel restaurants in Singapore to serve local cuisine.
The restaurant has changed over the years with renovations, but it still brings an air of refined charm – blending nostalgia and modern design while using indoor plants and wooden furnishings to add some homeliness to the overall atmosphere.
The main highlight is, of course, the Mandarin Chicken Rice – the dish which catapulted Chatterbox to fame. Diners are served with a generous serving of chicken meat, which is specially reared for 60 days (15 days longer than usual) and is delivered fresh to the restaurant daily. Alongside it is aged jasmine rice that has been cooked in a fragrant chicken stock with ginger, garlic, and pandan leaves, delivering a clean yet satisfying accompaniment.
But there are also other local delights that have been elevated by the restaurant for visitors to savour. The Mackerel & Crab Otah-Otah includes the addition of hand-picked snow crab to create a thick and extravagant version of the dish we all know and love. Meanwhile, the Lobster Laksa eschews prawns with Boston lobster as the main meat, giving diners an umami bomb that comforts the soul.
📍Location: 333 Orchard Rd, #05-03 Hilton, Singapore 238867
⏰Opening Hours:
- Monday to Thursday, 11.30 am – 4.30 pm and 5.30 pm – 10.30 pm
- Friday to Sunday, 11.30 am – 4.30 pm and 5.30 pm – 11 pm
Reservations for Chatterbox, as well as more information on the restaurant and its full menu, can be found on their official website.
KA-MON
Did you know that there are different types of Japanese grilling techniques? Did you also know that you can experience them all in a single place? That’s where KA-MON comes in. Located in Hotel Michael at Resorts World Sentosa, the newly opened restaurant is the first in Singapore to integrate all three traditional Japanese grilling techniques into its menu.
The inside of the restaurant has an inviting atmosphere, featuring soft lighting and earthy tones throughout the interior. And no matter where you sit, whether it be at the bar counter or the table seating, you’ll be treated to an immersive view of the open kitchen, where you can watch with your own eyes each grilling technique in action!
KA-MON’s menu features a varied selection of dishes made with either the rori, robatayaki, or warayaki technique. For instance, the Jumbo Tiger Prawn is grilled using the fireside charcoal grill of robatayaki, which gives it a more juicy finish. Meanwhile, the Tuna Wara Tatak is cooked with straw fire from the warayaki technique, with the flames providing a satisfying char and smokiness to this bright and citrusy dish.
📍Location: Level 1, Hotel Michael, 8 Sentosa Gateway, Resorts World Sentosa, 098269
⏰Opening Hours:
- Lunch: 12 pm – 3 pm
- Dinner: 6 pm – 11 pm
Reservations for KA-MON can be made at their official website.
Gotti Italiano
Where Bottega di Carna is inspired by Tuscany, Gotti Italiano takes diners to Naples and Sicily with its food selection, emphasising quality ingredients that deliver big on flavour.
Housed in a heritage shophouse on Amoy Street, Gotti Italiano uses dim lighting to create an intimate setting, with plush sofa seating adding to its upscale design. But the atmosphere is more than just for gawking, as diners are encouraged to soak in the vibes by dancing to the burlesque, hip-hop, and Afro Desi beats playing loud and proud.
Expect to experience a vibrant and indulgent menu, with the restaurant’s selection of Neapolitan pizzas crafted from 36-hour proof dough – enhancing favourites like the Margherita pizza, as well as their signature Signor Gotti (featuring wagyu beef cheeks slow-cooked for 12 hours) to a more flavourful level.
Beyond dinner, Gotti Italiano can also be enjoyed in the daytime, where you can experience quality dishes like the Carpaccio Di Capesante—uniquely using Japanese-inspired ingredients such as Orange Pulp, Salmon Roe and Japanese Ponzu with its Hokkaido scallop carpaccio—as part of its affordable lunch set.
📍Location: 78 Amoy St, Singapore 069897
⏰Opening Hours:
- Lunch (Mon- Sat): 1.30 am – 3 pm
- Dinner and Entertainment (Mon- Sun): 6 pm – 12 am
Reservations can be made from Gotti Italiano’s official website.
Brasserie Astoria
Finally, we have Brasserie Astoria, a restaurant that brings Nordic-inspired cuisine to the masses here in Singapore, while still paying homage to Asia with the use of Asian ingredients.
The historic Victoria Theatre & Concert Hall is its home, and the presence of high ceilings and neoclassical architecture within the restaurant interior is evocative of classic brasseries. Food is also served stylishly, with several dishes on the menu presented on serving carts and prepped at tables, which brings a theatrical experience when dining.
Speaking of food, diners can look forward to Brasserie Astoria’s new menu, recently revamped in the latter part of 2024. The Seafood Pepperonata was initially only on the Plat du Jour (dish of the day) menu, but has earned itself a permanent placement due to how popular it is. This comfortable stew comes made with peppers and tomatoes and contains seared Hokkaido scallops, juicy Argentinian prawns, before being drizzled with zesty galangal aioli to create a visually stunning dish that tastes as good as it looks.
As for mains, you can look forward to two standouts. The Seared Cod Fish is presented with an alluring vegetable base cooked in olive oil, lemon, and coriander alongside a selection of seasonings, with a buttery cod slice crowning the meal. Brasserie Astoria’s Astoria Fried Chicken is similarly tempting, with the chicken soaked in homemade buttermilk and Astoria’s signature spice mix to make the breading before it is fried to a perfect fusion of crunch and tenderness—finally served with mac and cheese, house pickles, and fiery Astoria hot sauce.
📍Location: Brasserie Astoria Singapore, 11 Empress Pl, Singapore 179558
⏰Opening Hours:
- Lunch:
- Monday to Sunday: 12 – 2.30 pm
- Dinner:
- Sunday – Thursday: 6 – 10 pm
- Friday & Saturday: 6 – 10:30 pm
- Golden Hour
- Friday & Saturday: 3 – 6 pm
Explore the full menu and book a reservation from Brasserie Astoria’s official website.
That’s been our list of favourite Premium Casual restaurants, each offering an elevated dining experience that you typically won’t find! So be sure to make your reservations when the occasion arises!
But if you have your own recommendations, do slide on over to our DMs on Facebook, Instagram, or TikTok to let us know.
Photos by Russell Loh, Leo Chia, Izzah Ilyana, Pauline Caoile, and Glenton Weng of the DANAMIC Team. Additional visuals of Bon Broth and Brasserie Astoria
