Best New Restaurants Singapore: 15 Places Worth Your Time in 2026
best New Restaurants Singapore

Singapore has a way of making you feel like you missed something. You step away for a few weeks and suddenly there’s a chef from Japan doing twelve-seat counter dining in Scotts Road, a French bistro where everything costs under twenty dollars, and a craft brewery concept backed by the guy behind Burnt Ends. The city just doesn’t stop.

So if you’ve been trying to figure out which of the best new restaurants Singapore has opened lately are actually worth your Saturday night — not just the hype — this is the honest version of that answer. We’ve gone through the recent openings, weeded out the average ones, and put together fifteen spots that genuinely hold up. Indian Restaurant in singapore shows up more than once on this list. You’ll understand why when you get there.

Why Singapore’s Restaurant Scene Keeps Surprising Everyone

Part of it is the food culture here. Singapore diners eat out constantly and they remember everything. A bad experience gets talked about, a mediocre menu gets quietly dropped from the rotation, and the restaurants that stay in conversation are the ones that actually earned their place there. That kind of pressure keeps the quality honest in a way that’s hard to manufacture.

The best new restaurants Singapore has added recently show that range in full. Japanese omakase tracking the micro-seasons. A South American kitchen spanning four entirely different culinary traditions. Traditional Filipino pastries making their international debut. North Indian fine dining that makes you reconsider a whole cuisine’s ceiling. That’s a lot happening at once, and most of it is worth paying attention to.

The 15 Best New Restaurants Singapore Has Opened Recently

1. Akasa – North Indian Fine Dining at Tanjong Pagar

Most Indian restaurants in Singapore fall into one of two lanes: quick casual or standard curry house. Akasa doesn’t belong to either. The kitchen draws from the royal culinary traditions of North India a lineage where cooking was treated as serious craft and recipes were developed over generations, not improvised over a lunch rush. That background shapes everything on the plate.

The tasting menu moves at its own pace. Spices introduced early in a dish build through the middle and resolve at the finish. Slow-cooked preparations here aren’t slow for storytelling purposes they taste genuinely different, and you notice. It’s one of the most considered Indian fine dining experiences in Singapore, and the room reflects that with real elegance rather than just expensive fittings.

The weekday set lunch is worth knowing about separately. Same kitchen, same care, more approachable price. It’s the kind of lunch you’re still thinking about by evening.

Location: 79 Anson Road, #01-01 International Plaza, Tanjong Pagar 

Best For: Celebratory meals, client lunches, serious North Indian food

2. Jiin Omakase – Japanese Micro-Season Dining at Shaw Centre

The Les Amis Group doesn’t open things casually, and Jiin Omakase which launched in May 2026 is no exception. The restaurant is built around omotenashi, a Japanese principle of hospitality that focuses on anticipating what a guest needs before they ask. Everything about the experience, from pacing to plating to how questions get answered, flows from that idea.

What makes the food distinct is the micro-seasonal approach. The menu doesn’t just change quarterly. It shifts with specific moments in Japan’s agricultural calendar, so what you eat in early spring feels different from late spring in a way that’s tangible rather than theoretical. Premium seafood anchors most courses. Lunch runs from $138++ to $388++, dinner from $288++, with a Chef’s Menu at $488++ for those who want the full statement. It’s an unhurried, quietly impressive experience.

Location: 1 Scotts Road, #01-11 Shaw Centre 

Best For: Special occasions, Japanese cuisine enthusiasts

3. ASIN – Progressive Asian Fine Dining at Carpenter Street

Chef Ace Tan opened ASIN at Carpenter Street in early May 2026, and the concept is genuinely ambitious: an eight-course menu guided by the Four Seasons of Asia and Five Elements philosophy, drawing from South-East Asia, Korea, Japan, and China. A menu that reaches that far usually ends up vague. ASIN doesn’t.

Fermentation and preservation run through the courses as consistent threads. Dishes carry evidence of time spent — things pickled, aged, treated in ways that change their character from the inside out. The result tastes layered in a way that quicker cooking never quite reaches. At $188++ per person, the price reflects the depth of preparation, not just the ceremony around it. Dinner only, Wednesday to Sunday.

Location: 38 Carpenter Street 

Best For: Adventurous diners, tasting menu lovers

4. Bouillon Gavroche – Classic French at Mandarin Gallery

Not every great restaurant needs to challenge you. Sometimes what you want is honest food in a room that’s loud in the good way people talking, no reverent quiet, no need to decode the menu. Bouillon Gavroche at Mandarin Gallery is that. Inspired by the communal dining halls of 19th-century Paris, it serves hearty French classics in a walk-in-only setting where the cooking is the point, not the experience design around it.

Boeuf Bourguignon, Saucisse Puree, proper French desserts. Pricing is genuinely accessible. You can turn up on a weeknight without planning around it, which turns out to be a real advantage over most restaurants worth visiting.

Location: 333A Orchard Road, Mandarin Gallery #01-16/17 

Best For: Casual dinners, French food without ceremony

5. People People Brewing Co. – Wood-Fired Food at Resorts World Sentosa

Two names built this: Dave Pynt of Michelin-starred Burnt Ends and Loh Lik Peng of Unlisted Collection. When those two put something together, you pay attention. The result is house-brewed beer paired with open-fire dishes designed for sharing — and it carries the easy confidence that comes from people who’ve already figured out what they’re doing.

Miso Beef Short Rib Pizza, Lemon Thyme Roast Chicken, Salt and Pepper Squid. The food was built to sit next to a pint and work better when there are more of you eating it. Sentosa on a weekend afternoon has a particular unhurried energy that suits the format well. Bring a group. Order more than you think you need.

Location: 26 Sentosa Gateway, #B1-209 to #B1-217 

Best For: Groups, craft beer, relaxed weekend afternoons

6. Tutto by Da Paolo – Italian Diner Vibes at Holland Village

Tutto has a simple proposition: pasta, pizza, nothing over $30, Italian-American diner feel at One Holland Village. That clarity is part of its appeal. Knowing exactly what a place is makes the decision to go easier and the experience more comfortable once you’re there. No techniques you need a paragraph to understand, no menu that requires commitment.

It’s the place you suggest when no one can agree and everyone just wants to eat well without overthinking the choice. Holland Village already has decent options. Tutto earns its spot among them.

Location: 7 Holland Village Way, #01-49/50/51 

Best For: Weeknight meals, casual Italian, families

7. Chimi’s Especial – South American at Collyer Quay

The Customs House building on Collyer Quay is already a strong setting heritage architecture, waterfront position, air that moves. Chimi’s Especial fills it with South American cooking that actually bothers to differentiate between Peru, Argentina, Venezuela, and Puerto Rico rather than collapsing everything into a single loosely Latin category.

The Pollo a la Brasa stands on its own as a dish, not just as an illustration of the concept. Peruvian rotisserie chicken done properly, which turns out to be a harder thing to achieve than it sounds. Lunch here on a clear afternoon, water in sight, is a genuinely pleasant way to spend a couple of hours.

Location: 70 Collyer Quay, #01-01 Customs House 

Best For: Waterfront lunches, South American cuisine

8. Seoul & So – Korean BBQ at National Gallery Singapore

A Korean barbecue restaurant on Level 5 of the National Gallery is not an obvious combination. It works. Seoul & So offers a serious meat selection Hanwoo from Korea, Handon pork, Japanese wagyu, Australian wagyu, USDA Prime, Iberico alongside a proper Korean supporting menu including Kimchi Jjigae and Japchae that makes the meal feel complete rather than just a grilling session.

Weekday lunch sets start from $35 per person, which is fair for the quality and the setting. Worth flagging for anyone in the CBD who wants a lunch that doesn’t feel rushed or generic.

Location: Level 5, National Gallery Singapore, 1 St Andrew’s Road 

Best For: Korean BBQ, CBD lunches, meat-focused dining

9. Mary Grace – Filipino Bakery-Cafe at Tras Street

Mary Grace is a well-known Filipino bakery chain, and this Tras Street location is its first outside the Philippines. What they’ve brought to Singapore is faithful to what made the original work: Ensaymadas, Cheese Rolls, and honest Filipino comfort food, with Singapore-exclusive additions like a Salted Egg Ensaymada and Kaya Pandan Cheese Roll that show some genuine thought rather than just localising for localising’s sake.

Hours are 9am to 6pm, closed Mondays. Breakfast option or a mid-morning stop, not dinner. If you’re in Tanjong Pagar and want something different for the morning, it’s worth the short walk.

Location: 52 Tras Street

 Best For: Breakfast, afternoon breaks, Filipino pastries

10. Park Side – All-Day Cafe at Singapore Botanic Gardens

PS.Gourmet Group, the team behind PS.Cafe, launched Park Side within the Botanic Gardens as an all-day concept. Brunch runs from 8am to 4pm; the full menu starts at 11am. The setting is the obvious draw — open, green, quieter than anything in the CBD — and the food holds up well enough that it’s not just a nice place to sit with average plates.

Tamarind Hot Honey Chicken Burger, Spiced Fish and Chips, a Tikka Paneer Toast that works well for a mid-morning meal. There’s a kids’ menu and vegetarian options that have clearly been considered. For families or anyone who wants to eat well outside concrete walls, this one makes sense on a weekend.

Location: Nassim Gate, Visitor Centre, 1 Cluny Road 

Best For: Family brunch, weekend mornings, outdoor settings

11. Les Canons – Affordable French Bistro at IOI Central Boulevard

The pricing at Les Canons deserves to be said plainly: nothing costs more than $20. Not the Escargots at $12, not the Steak au Poivre at $19, not the Duck Confit at $18. It’s a French bistro inside the CBD that has worked out how to make real food viable at a price point that doesn’t require thought before ordering.

Breakfast and all-day menus run separately, and it’s closed on Sundays. But for weekday lunches near IOI Central Boulevard — no reservation needed, honest French food, a bill that doesn’t sting — Les Canons fills that gap clearly and without pretension.

Location: IOI Central Boulevard Towers, #01-07, 2 Central Boulevard 

Best For: Budget-friendly French food, spontaneous weekday meals

 

12. Jellyfish Sushi – Non-Traditional Omakase at New Bahru

Chef Bjorn Shen has a consistent track record of cooking that doesn’t stay still Artichoke, Small’s, Bread Sushi. Jellyfish Sushi at New Bahru is his most focused project to date. Ten seats. Two seatings nightly. Tuesday to Saturday only. Up to twelve courses at $165 per person, with the menu rotating every few months.

What comes out of that kitchen isn’t conventional sushi. Bread sushi. Risotto sushi. Vietnamese summer roll sushi. Sea urchin with scrambled eggs and parmesan on charred bread. If you read that list and feel genuinely curious, book now because it fills fast. If you read it and feel uncertain, there are nine other restaurants on this list that will suit you better, and there’s no judgement in knowing your own preferences.

Location: 46 Kim Yam Road, #01-02 New Bahru 

Best For: Adventurous eaters, counter dining, creative sushi

13. Medusa Osteria Romana – Roman Italian at South Beach

Medusa has a specific reference point — Rome in the 1960s — and commits to it without hedging into a generic Italian identity. The food is Roman: honest, hearty, built on technique rather than spectacle. The room carries a vintage quality that feels like an actual aesthetic decision rather than decoration put there for photographs.

It works for a long lunch or an evening that stretches naturally past dessert. South Beach has enough around it to make the neighbourhood a destination in itself, and Medusa anchors a meal there well.

Location: 26 Beach Road, #B1-22 South Beach Avenue 

Best For: Roman Italian, intimate dinners, unhurried evenings

14. Elephant Grounds – Specialty Coffee and Bakery at Guoco Midtown

The Hong Kong brand’s Singapore setup at Guoco Midtown is its most complete yet — roastery, bakery, and all-day restaurant in one space. Beans sourced from a Cup of Excellence-winning farm in East Java, roasted on-site. Croissants made using a hybrid French-Japanese lamination technique, baked in batches through the day, available while they last.

Shakshuka, acai yoghurt bowls, pancakes. The brunch menu runs from early morning through the afternoon. The coffee is serious without performing seriousness. For CBD regulars who’ve been settling for convenience, this is an easy upgrade worth building a habit around.

Location: Guoco Midtown I, #01-04, 28 Beach Road Best For: Specialty coffee, morning routines, CBD all-day brunch

15. Akasa – For Indian Vegetarian and Vegan Dining Too

Akasa earns a second mention because most people don’t realise how seriously the kitchen takes plant-based cooking. The Indian vegetarian restaurant side of the menu isn’t a reduced version of the main experience or a few dishes added to appease a segment. Vegan dishes receive the same technique and consideration as everything else — developed flavour, intentional preparation, presentation that doesn’t look like an afterthought.

If you’re eating plant-based or you’re bringing someone who is, you’re not working around a menu built for someone else. The food was designed with you in mind. Their best Indian food in Singapore feature explains the kitchen’s approach in more detail and helps you figure out what to order before you arrive.

What to Look For When Exploring New Restaurants

With this many openings at once, having your own criteria matters more than following the loudest recommendation. A few things worth thinking about:

  • Concept clarity. Restaurants that know exactly what they are tend to execute better than those trying to cover too much ground. If you can’t describe what a place does in one sentence, that’s usually a sign.
  • Sourcing specificity. When a restaurant names where their produce or proteins come from, it usually means they’re paying attention at the beginning rather than just dressing up the end result.
  • Reservation windows. Several of the best new restaurants Singapore has right now book out days or weeks ahead. Checking this before you plan avoids a preventable disappointment.
  • Lunch as an entry point. Fine dining at lunch is almost always better value than the same kitchen at dinner. Same team, same food, lower price. It’s one of the most reliable ways to try somewhere expensive without committing to the full bill.
  • Whether the staff actually know the menu. A server who can describe a dish properly or answer a real question makes a material difference to how the whole meal feels.

Why Akasa Continues to Stand Out Among Singapore’s Best

Some restaurants open loudly and fade within a year. Others build a reputation quietly by doing the same thing well over time, without needing to constantly announce themselves. Akasa is the second kind.

It keeps appearing in conversations about the best new restaurants Singapore has produced not because it follows trends but because the food holds up on repeat visits. The royal Indian kitchen foundation gives the cooking something real to work from. Slow-cooked kebabs where the spicing has had time to develop properly. Curries built with patience rather than shortcuts. Traditional Indian sweets made with actual craft. These aren’t dishes that happen by accident, and you can taste the difference.

The happy hour at Akasa has quietly become one of the better early evening rituals in Tanjong Pagar — good drinks, good small plates, no pressure to rush anywhere. It’s the kind of thing people don’t know about until someone takes them, and then they wonder why it wasn’t on their radar earlier.

For group occasions — corporate dinners, birthdays, family meals that need to actually work for everyone — the team runs things in a way that makes guests feel looked after rather than processed. The best Indian buffet Singapore post gives a clearer picture of what a larger-format meal at Akasa looks like when you’re feeding a group and want to do it properly.

Frequently Asked Questions

The standout openings this year include Jiin Omakase at Shaw Centre, ASIN at Carpenter Street, Bouillon Gavroche at Mandarin Gallery, and People People Brewing Co. at Resorts World Sentosa. For Indian fine dining, Akasa in Tanjong Pagar has maintained its position as one of the most consistently recommended restaurants in the city among people who eat out regularly and have real opinions.

Seoul & So at National Gallery has weekday sets from $35 per person — solid for the quality and location. Les Canons at IOI Central Boulevard gives you proper French bistro food at under $20 a plate. If you’re hosting clients and the atmosphere needs to hold up, Akasa’s weekday set lunch is a strong option. Service and setting both work well in professional contexts.

Park Side at the Botanic Gardens has solid vegetarian choices on the all-day menu in a genuinely pleasant setting. If you want a full dedicated experience, Akasa handles Indian vegetarian and vegan dining with more depth than most — it’s built into the menu rather than attached around the edges as an accommodation.

Jiin Omakase and ASIN both offer tasting menu experiences with unhurried, careful pacing — the right format for an evening that deserves to feel significant. Akasa works well for celebrations that need warmth, flexibility on group size, and food that most people at the table respond to immediately without needing to be convinced.

Food writers with track records, local food communities where people discuss specifics rather than just star ratings, and recommendations from people who eat out often and have clear opinions. A practical filter: if a restaurant has been open six months or more and still requires booking a week in advance, the demand is real, not just initial curiosity.

It’s held its standing as one of the city’s most respected Indian fine dining restaurants since opening, which matters more than early attention. The cooking draws seriously from North Indian royal kitchen traditions and brings it to a format that feels current without losing its roots. That combination keeps Akasa among the best new restaurants Singapore food lovers come back to — not just once, but over time.

Jellyfish Sushi has ten seats and two seatings a night. It fills fast. Jiin Omakase operates on similar constraints. For Indian fine dining, Akasa is worth booking ahead especially for weekend dinners or anything occasion-specific.

Park Side at the Botanic Gardens has a kids’ menu and an outdoor setting that makes meals with children significantly less tense. People People Brewing Co. has enough space and a casual enough format that mixed-age groups settle in well. Akasa works for families who want a proper sit-down Indian meal where the adults eat something genuinely good and the children aren’t uncomfortable.

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