Decoding Singapore's Orchard Lane: From Shoes To Chouxs

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One of the busiest streets in Singapore, Orchard Lane is home to a myriad of interesting cafes, bars and almost all luxury brands. We bring to you the must visit spots here

Eat

Bake Cheese Tart

You’ll know Bake Cheesecake when you see a caterpillar-esque line across the ground floor of ION Mall. Given all the hype, we couldn’t put a lid on our curiosity and joined the queue. 45 minutes later, we walked out with a packet of the most scrumptious melt-in-the-mouth cheese tarts with an equally delish flaky pastry base.

Awfully Chocolate

If you’re a chocolate addict, there’s no way you’re going past this stall at ION without stopping and staring in awe. We were immediately drawn to the Crepe Millefeuille, a stack of chocolate crepes stuck together with chocolate ganache. The Cold Poached Chocolate is also highly recommended but the star of the show here is the hand-made chocolate: The Cacao Frais. Similar to Royce, it is made of silky dark chocolate and cream dusted with cocoa.

Monster Curry

Curry bowls are huge in Singapore and they just get bigger at Monster Curry – best known for their signature thick rich brown Japanese sauce. We tried the chicken and the prawn versions and were impressed not just with the taste but also the food portions. This place also takes care of your preference in terms of how spicy you like your food, and you can choose from the five level of spice they bring to you. We’d say one bowl is easily shareable by two. You’ll find outlets at both ION and at 313@Somerset.

Garrett Popcorn

Popcorn is the universal go-to snack when you’re watching a movie but we recently realized it’s great to munch on while you’re hopping from one shop to another on a serious retail therapy mission. Garrett introduced us to some great flavors such as Strawberry, Macademia Caramel Crisp and Cheesecorn.

Arteastiq

Arteastiq is a tea café where you can try over 30 different varieties of tea. Situated on the 4th floor of Mandarin Gallery, this café is a much visit on your day out at Orchard Street.

Drop in for lunch or savor their high tea menu. You can also call them and book yourself a spot for painting and unwind with lavender tea on the side.

Read more here.

Wildfire Kitchen & Bar

Located at 313@Somerset, Wildfire has some great meaty burgers and draught beer. It’s worth a pit stop amidst all the shopping. We personally loved the Sriracha Chicken burger and the fried calamari. We also tried their new offering on beer: Harviestoun Old Engine Oil {sounds not too appealing, but was all that it promised to be; viscous, chocolatey and bitter}.

If you are a beer and burger type of person, this place is a must visit, as they keep introducing new beers round the year.

Takashimaya Food Court

Unlike Delhi, most of the food courts we came across at malls in Singapore’s were located in the basement. Takashimaya had a bunch of options ranging from South Indian, Japanese, Italian and Korean. What we loved most was the little stall barbequing meat street-style. The quail eggs are to die for.

This place comes handy when you are looking for a quick bite to keep you energized during your shopping mission

CK Tangs Food Court

If you want to indulge in street food without really going out and about, CK Tangs is your best bet. Highlights include the Chicken Rice, Po Piah {Chinese wrap usually consisting of shrimp}, Man Jiah Kueh {pancakes with a sprinkle of peanuts} and Carrot Cake {don’t be mistaken- it’s actually shredded radish}.

Shop

CK Tangs

This is one gigantic mall spread across a few floors and we were however happy to see that they’re high on local brands. We completely fell in love with the products at Bynd Artisan- a stationery brand. Our favorite were customized leather notebooks in a range of colors and sizes.
CK Tangs also has some great finds for your wardrobe. Shoes by Martina Pink {think popping colors and chunky heels} and Itto Otto {very similar to Charles and Keith} are worth checking out. Leo is another brand which is synonymous with quirk- we loved their shoes and bags embellished with ketchup and French fries. Hit up Yacht 21 for beach wear and Visalerie for lacey, longline bras.

Takashimaya

First stop: Charles and Keith. We are assuming you know this is Singapore’s homegrown brand {a little yay and a jiggle dance!}, because this means, a LOT more choices and styles. We scored two pairs of heels in under $100 {around INR 5,000}. And then there was no stopping us.
The upper floor at Takashimaya is anyone’s shoe heaven! Go here for multiple brands under one roof. What caught our eye was the section with Lady Gaga-like shoes {we kid you not}. The mall is quintessential for leather totes in bright colors, Candylicious for local chocolates packaged beautifully. You’ll find all the high-street brands like Zara, Bath and Body Works, Sephora and Topshop here.
#LBBTip: Takashimaya is one of the few places which does tax returns on the purchases you’ve made.

Far East Plaza

This underrated mall on the other end of Orchard Street {near Goodwood Park Hotel} is where you can make good use of your bargaining skills. We can only explain it as the mall version of Sarojini Nagar. They’ve got everything from chic clothes to boots to trendy slings {we got three for $20, which is around INR 1,000!} to cheap iPhone covers and not so common gadgets {we couldn’t recognize any, so if you’re a gadget freak – go here!} didn’t know you needed. And when you’re done with everything, you can relax with a foot massage on the ground floor.

313@Somerset

313@Somerset has some great options for shoppers. Our favorite destination here is The Editor’s Market – Think well-cut jumpsuits, trousers and formal dresses. The clothes are great quality and well-priced. We got a white linen jumpsuit for $40 {approximately INR 2,000} and a navy blue straight-cut skirt for $30 {INR 1,500}. Also check for starched blouses and wedges.

If you’re looking for something more casual, check out Uniqlo {great fleece jackets} and Cotton On for summery, breezy clothes for both men and women.

Ion Orchard

If you’re a Prada or Gucci kind of person, Ion is your place. One of the biggest malls in Singapore, it boasts of the best brands and the latest collections. What’s more, whilst you search for the shoes or bag of your dreams there’s ton of architecture to marvel at both outside and inside the mall.
Find out more on LBB Singapore.