5 Singaporean restaurants that opened this year in New York City
If flying 9,500 miles over 24 hours to get to Singapore isn’t your idea of fun, five restaurants in the city will make you feel like you’ve landed on the tropical island.
From a Union Square bar to an Upper West Side restaurant to a Chelsea dessert shop, these spots feature spicy flavorful eats from the tiny city-state.
Chard — Opened in late February on E. 13th St., Chard’s specialties include roti john, an open-face omelet sandwich with curry seasoned beef, Japanese mayo and sweet chili; the “Ramly” burger, with a smashed beef patty wrapped in egg with black pepper sauce seasoning, chili and mayo. Its best seller is its Api Api burger, which translates from the Malay language to “fire, fire.” Packed with heat, the crispy juicy piece of chicken is nestled in a brioche bun, topped with pickled papaya and carrot, chili and served with shrimp crackers. “Being from Asia, everything is about powerful flavors and powerful spices and actually translating that into our food,” said owner Salil Mehta.
Singlish — Perched atop sister restaurant Chard is the bar Singlish which opened in June. Singlish — an amalgamation of the words “Singapore” and “English” — signifies an English-based creole that is commonly spoken in the island nation. Serving cocktails created in Singapore, the 16-seater bar serves food from its restaurant downstairs. If you’re wondering how much of a cocktail culture is in Singapore, the country had six bars — the most in Asia — on the World’s 50 Best Bars 2021 list. Drinks feature Singlish-styled monikers, like “Die die must have” or “Chio bo” which means “pretty lady” in the Hokkien dialect. “Hopefully when you come up those stairs, we can transport you to Singapore,” Mehta said.
Native Noodles — What started out as a Queens Night Market favorite is now a 600 square-foot counter service restaurant with 12 indoor seats on Amsterdam Ave. in Washington Heights. Owner Amy Pryke counts health care workers from New York Presbyterian hospital and Columbia medical and public health schools as regulars. She’s especially proud of her laksa noodles for $13.
Lady Wong - Opened in late February by couple Seleste Tan and Mogan Anthony, this dessert shop in the East Village sells traditional Southeast Asian desserts called kuih, usually made from rice or glutinous rice. After getting tired of matcha and oat milk tastes, they decided that NYC was ready for pandan and coconut milk and virgin palm sugar — all traditional Asian flavors used in desserts. Most popular are its angku kuih, a starchy bite-sized treat filled with mung bean paste, grated coconut or peanuts, a durian layered steamed cake and a steamed pandan custard cake with sticky rice.
Wau — Pronounced “wow,” this trendy spot along Upper West Side restaurant row on Amsterdam Ave. and W. 81st St. opened early this year. “We weren’t focusing on residential neighborhoods and when the pandemic hit, it was actually residential neighborhoods that were thriving and they were more successful because when people were stuck at home. Becoming a neighborhood restaurant is what was the goal,” said Salil Mehta, who also owns this spot. Chef’s specials include beef rendang, caramelized beef curry, slow cooked and braised in spices and coconut milk and soy sauce braised pork belly.
