Category Archives: Everything SG

Indian cuisine is more than just a serving of classic curry and na’an. There are so many delectable Indian food options you can try the next time you visit an Indian restaurant, with a myriad of complementing flavors bursting in your mouth. Spice lovers can always count on Indian food to fire up their taste buds, too. The spicy kick never fails to fuel up one’s appetite for the meal!

If you’re still undecided where to head over for your next food trip with your pals, here are some of the best Indian restaurants in the city state:

1. Tiffin Room
Tiffin Room is considered one of the most sophisticated Indian places in Singapore – located within the revered Raffles Hotel. This establishment has been running for more than a century now, and notably provides guests with the best Anglo-Indian dining experience they can ever hope for. Their lunch and dinner buffets are well-loved by patrons; specializing in North Indian food items such as naan, spicy chutney, and chicken tikka masala.

2. Rang Mahal
Dining at Rang Mahal might be pricey compared to other Indian restaurants; but the broad wine menu, impeccable service, and gorgeous interior is worth it. You can even say there’s nothing like dining at this place after enjoying a meal at Rang Mahal. All factors just add up to make your dining experience one of a kind. They serve classic Indian food with a contemporary flair. One of their best sellers is the: Tandoori Portobello, prepared in a classic Indian tandoori oven.

3. Chat Masala
This cosy Indian place is known for serving great North and South Indian dishes, as well as fusion dishes for over a decade now. Their must-try food items include the Mysore mutton pot and the butter chicken (perfect to pair with their crowd-pleasing garlic na’an). You’re in for an epic gastronomic delight until the dessert part – with classics such as Kulfi being given a brand-new exciting take.

4. Maziga
If you’re particularly keen on Indian street food, then this is the place to be! Maziga is famous among party-goers who love to snack on light bites while enjoying a drink. Their menu features Indian street food dishes – such as the crispy masala pasta, soft shelled crab with tandoor-smoked salad, Amritsar fish and chips, and the Punjab naan pizza.

5. Komala Vilas
There is nothing as good as homecooked food, and Komala Vilas is known to serve authentic and homecooked Indian food. The dining experience at this Indian place is cozy enough to make diners feel like they’re enjoying their meals at home. Their vegetarian fare remains unchanged all throughout its 67-year history.
Their menu highlights hearty Indian cuisine at its best; from parata (flatbread) and idli (steamed rice cake), to 40 different types of dosai (lentil with rice flour pancakes) served with chutney and sambar stew.

Let the light descend upon Marina Bay. You wouldn’t want to miss “I Light Marina Bay” which had been running as one of the most sought-after events in Singapore for the past four years now. Let me give you a quick background what kind of event is this.

It’s officially an exhibition of light and art installations using some materials which can be utilized again or which the exhibitors have already recycled.  Utilizing or re-using materials is encouraged in this event because one of its themes is that it should supposed to be sustainable.

Well, let me tell you why you should list this event as one of your must-see events in Singapore every year. If you were only there to have seen it with your very own two eyes, you would have given this even a two thumbs up.

One of the most stunning light and art installations that graced the event is that of Japan’s exhibition entitled “What a Loving and Beautiful World” and well Japan went over the top and showed off an absolute spectacle by wowing the crowd using ArtScience Museum in Marina Bay Sands as an enormous white screen to project ironically surreal and at the same time realistic images.

This is an interactive light and art installation because everyone can try it by just using their smartphones and swiping a Chinese character to their liking and in turn an image is projected on the outermost part lotus-like building of ArtScience Museum in Marina Bay Sands. It is definitely one of the best light and art installations ever.

What is amazing about it is one, it’s interactive and two, it is sending positive images to the people who were actually there to witness it. Some of them saw vivid 3D images of butterflies flipping their wings in a multi-colored background.

A relaxing and soothing music is also played to enhance the mood and everyone feels like they are in their own happy places. This light art installation does actually literally and figuratively does its job very well. How, if you may asked? Well, it will certainly light or brighten up anyone who had a long and tiring day.

Imagine how well this light and art installation is magnificently set up this year. I couldn’t help wondering that Japan which is only one of the countries who were privileged to display their light and art installation this year would definitely step up their game and leave us wanting for more.

There are many worthwhile exhibits here in Singapore and if it is not enough to feed our artistic mind, there are myriad overseas. We only need to make time and dedicate our attention. This year, there is an extraordinary exhibit that we can marvel to. The exhibit is called Nightscape 2050.

Nightscape 2050 is a travelling exhibit which is set to amaze people from Germany to Singapore. It does not end there because the exhibit will also be showcased in Tokyo and Hong Kong from August of 2015 to June next year. Here, the exhibit already started on October 23.

Here are some things that we need to know about the Nightscape 2050:

• Background: The Nightscape 2050 is an event created to celebrate the International Year of Light. The International Year of Light is United Nation’s initiative to distinguish the value of light and other optical technologies in the world. This project is kind of ambitious for the organizers but it made way its way to the world. The organizers are Lighting Planners Associates (LPA).

• Then and Now: We all know when the first street lights were turned on. The Mackenzie Power Station which was created in 1900s generated lights that give us a whole new experience come night. If we look back fifty years ago, a lot of things changed. We have progressed to OLEDs, LEDs and laser lighting.

• Presentations: The presentations hint the evolution of lighting. It also offers a peek into the future of lighting. What’s exciting is the Light Pavilion which is a timeline exhibition that tackles the evolution of our nightscape way back 1800 up to the future – that is in the year 2050.

The Light Pavilion has five settings that include People, Street, Urban, Home and Park. We should also look forward to the special tree installed at the middle of the atrium which shows the change of light from daytime to night-time and how its shadows look like when casted on the ground.

• Other activities: Aside from Light Pavilion, there are plenty of activities that we can consider when we join the Nightscape 2050. There will be a video installation (Learning From Masters), workshops (Lighting Detectives Jr.) and talks. The highlight is the introduction of the Tide of Architectural Lighting – LPA’s select works from 1990-2015.

For those who haven’t been to the Nightscape 2050 exhibits yet, we can still catch it. We only need to be at the National Design Centre. The exhibits will run for a month so we can still catch it. The good news is that admissions are free so we do not need to spend money to marvel over the sights.