Author: Alex Chua
Great food, wonderful drinks with an amazing live band, Rumours is the bar to chill and lay the day’s trouble to rest.
The popular Bali casual bar & restaurant has recently made its debut at the competitive F&B hotspot Holland Village. Renowned for being a favourite spot among locals and tourists, Rumours serves not just wholesome good food created by award-winning Chef Noor Azman, the fun-loving bar also entertains and serenades the customers with its week-round live band performances and live DJ on weekends. If you’re down on mood or want a quality bite to satiate your stomach, just head over to Rumours and all shall be well again!
The fresh menu in Singapore boasts of delectable pasta dishes, sharing platters, grilled specialties and not forgetting Singapore’s favourite bar snacks. One of the must-try signature dishes is the 1.2kg Australian Black Angus Fiorentina Bistecca. Cooked sous vide style and lovingly grilled, the meat is moist, flavour-rich and tender to the bone. The meat is beautifully blush within and its surface and edges nicely charred. Coupled with Rumours’ specialty indulgent drinks, it would be the perfect sharing platter to warm the hearts of the chatterers.
Another carnivore’s favourite, the German Platter is, as the name goes, everything German! Featuring crispy whole pork knuckles combined with homemade Wiener schnitzel and Bratwurst Veal Pork Sausages and sides of German potato salad and sauerkraut. With all the strong, meaty flavours in one plate, can you say ‘Ich bin richtig satt’ (I am very satisfied)?
As a person generally unimpressed by crustaceans, it is a strange love at first sight when the Grilled Lobster Thermidor came to our table. One grilled whole Boston lobster topped with savoury cream cheese sauce and a toss of succulent pasta. The plump lobster is fresh and slight crunchy in texture, and the pasta – lovely!
Exclusive to the restaurant, the Rumours Grilled Cheese Burger is made up of homemade patty lightly grilled, topped with bacon, cheddar cheese and crispy Old Dutch cheese, served with loads of fat chips. The patty is rather soft yet thick and juicy, coupled with a rich circle of Dutch Cheese, making it a sumptuous joy to munch into it.
Putting a spin on the classic aglio olio, Rumours Aglio Olio Pasta is tossed in fragrant virgin olive oil, garlic, chili flakes, sliced mushroom and lightly doused in sake. The resulting taste is exquisite, rich and as all the Rumours dishes goes sinfully delightful.
Of course, nobody could get on to the mood without some alcoholic drinks, and Rumours are one of the few bars that serve potently good drinks in town. With their concoctions skewed more towards tropical flavours, expect fruity delicious and summer of sweetness in their drinks menu.
If you need an uplifting vibe, deliciously rich food and refreshing drinks with a group of party-loving friends, then Rumours is for you!
Rumours Bar & Grill
24A Lor Mambong, Singapore 277683 (Holland Viallage MRT Exit B)
Opening Hours: 5pm – 1am daily
Tel: 6463 5053
drinks
Customise Your Own Bespoke Cocktail at DRINK Cocktail Bar
Author: Alex Chua
Finding the perfect drinking spot that your friends or colleagues will enjoy is easy, now with the opening of DRINK at the historic site of Victoria Theatre & Concert Hall. DRINK the cocktail bar is the brainchild of FOO’D by David Oldani, the latter of which was conceptualised by Italian celebrity Chef Davide Oldani, Chef-owner of the 1 Michelin-starred D’O in Cornaredo, Italy.
This stylish metropolitan bar is helmed by award-winning mixologist Mike Cheong, who had clinched 8 international and regional awards including Asia’s Grand Champion in the 2015 La Maison Cointreau Cocktail Competition. While you might be intimidated by the ‘bourgeois’ façade and think the drinks would be pricey, the reality is further than the truth – the drinks here are in fact more affordable than you could imagine. And guess what, you could create and name your own bespoke cocktail while enjoying free-flow of complimentary canapes too!
Height is the first thing that arrests me when I first walk in. It’s high ceilings and Corinthian columns, coupled with the alcohol and wine bottles gloriously arrayed on tall glass shelves exudes the kind of modern sophistication that makes you feel taller and more confident than normal. The orangey orbs hanging above provide sufficient illumination for a private, cosy conversation without being too much of an obstruction. And you are free to move and sit anywhere you fancy– at the counter, sofa, or go alfresco.
The famed mixologist is known to create exquisite and visually-arresting (note: Instagram-worthy) cocktails. You can savour Mike’s latest exquisite cocktails like Guilty as Charged ($20) which is well balanced with sweetness, acidity and texture, or Court Adjourned! ($18) with its fruity punch and hints of melon and floral notes. Want a taste of Mike’s creativity? Simply spend $100 on alcoholic beverages and he will concoct a complimentary bespoke cocktail named after you!
Ordering your own bespoke cocktail is simple – just fill up the form with the drink name, favourite spirit(s), preferred flavour(s) and texture(s) and slot it on the bar counter. I called mine ‘Kway Lapis’ and had the spirits section left blank for the creative mixologist to surprise me with the blend. The resulting is solid whisky mixed with hints of pomegranate – hitting the desired sweet and savoury taste.
Pairing up with the cocktails and wines are the complimentary canapes, available every day from 6pm to 8pm – a time when pals and loved ones unwind over a glass of wine or light cocktail before dinner. The selection of canapes includes Duck Gelatin, Vol Au Vent Taleggio Cheese, Green Pea in Glass, Pea Shoot, Quail Eggs, Totmato with Crabmeat Zucca & Gambretto,, Mini Zuccotto, Assorted Jelly and more.
Also available are the sharing platters good for 2 to 4 persons. For the self-professed carnivores, The Meat Platter ($48) is the ideal choice. Featuring mini sliders, chicken wings, lamb chops, pork sausages and fries. The Seafood Platter ($68) features a delightful spread of oysters, grilled squid, tiger prawns, battered halibut and fries. If you want you can add a whole lobster ($28) to the platter – fresh, fleshy with meat and de-shelled.
Currently, DRINK is offering Happy Hour from 4pm to 8pm (1-for-1 selected cocktails, wines, spirits and beer) and Complimentary Chef-curated canapes from 6pm to 8pm. No more excuse not to give this new establishment a try!
DRINK Cocktail Bar
Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall
#01-01. 11 Empress Place, Singapore 179558
Operating Hours:
Mon – Sat: 4pm – 12am
Happy Hour: 4pm – 8pm
Closed on Sundays
Tel: 63853424
The Royal Mail
This isn’t my first trip to the royal mail but the last round was to the restaurant. This round, we went upclose and personal with the bar side! Best part is they are introducing new specialty cocktail and British-inspired tapas to its menu!
Apart from the food, we were well-entertained by the interactive duet. In fact, they tried to drag couple of us to sing together with them.
This pic just scream Bliss!
Enjoying one of the their two signature drinks: Timeless English & old fashioned spice. J’s favorite was the latter as he has quite a few glass of it before i convinced him to try something else.
See! The result of having too much Old fashioned Spice.. now he has to share his cocktail with me!
This boy has always been there with me for all my events be it rain or shine! So i just had to reward him for his efforts with the all time favorite forehead kiss when he was super engross with his cocktail drink! *Territory marked* Heh Heh Heh
My personal favorite was this Cubed Beek Steak accompanied by spicy crab tomato and Bearnanise sauces. Totally irresistible! You would never just stop at one serving after you tried the first!
The Bamboo Clam with cubed squid and Ah Char sauce was also great ! It went well with the cocktails we had that night.
Sweet Potato Chips served with Onion and Shallot Salsa. It definitely look as crispy as it tastes. without the sauce, the chips were already tantalizing. Dip it in, the enjoyment just increases manifold!
Me, on the other hand, prefer sweeter drinks. I gave almost all cocktails a try!!!
I can never drink with an empty stomach no matter how much or little the alcohol content is so I ordered my favorite Fish & Chips!
The fish was so fresh. It was crispy on the outside but juicy on the inside.
Pizzas are really good for group gathering!
Chilling at The Royal Mail isn’t as expensive as you think.
The Royal Mail Bar Daily Promotions (6pm to closing)
• Monday: $5 Dirty or Dry Martinis only
• Tuesday: 1 for 1 House Pour and Premium Wine
• Wednesday: 1 for 1 keys by the Glass
• Thursday: Half-Pint Draught Beer for $5
• Friday: $10 Champagne by the Glass
Happy Hour
Happy Hour at The Royal Mail Bar is from 5pm to 8pm, where all specialty cocktails go for $10 each, and 1-for-1 House Pour (Gentlemen’s Pour 45ml) go for $15.
The Royal Mail Restaurant & Bar:
The Ascott Raffles Place Singapore, 2 Finlayson Green, Singapore 049247
Contact: +65 6509 3589
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/TheRoyalMailSG
Opening Hours: Mon – Fri: 3pm to 11pm