11 of the best private dining restaurants in Singapore

Private dining rooms offer much more than discretion for corporate pow-wows and festive gatherings. These hidden spaces often function as a creative outlet for establishments, giving them free rein to flex their aesthetic chops with design elements that are a little more avant-garde, sentimental, or plain irreverent than what is acceptable in the main dining room.

That same creative freedom can be found in the plates and platters wending their way to these discreet havens, in recognition of the fact that private dining rooms are often booked by the discerning and adventurous.

Read on for a list of new private dining spaces, ranging from the gorgeously appointed and classy to the downright cosy.

1. Pan Pacific Orchard’s The Chairman’s Lounge

The nature-first Pan Pacific Orchard hotel follows up on its grand opening last June with The Chairman’s Lounge, an exclusive sanctuary serving fine Cantonese cuisine for convivial gatherings of up to 16.

Expect culinary flairs with premium seasonal ingredients ranging from Australian rock lobster to wild-caught soon hock and bird’s nests anchored on Cantonese cuisine's well-balanced, punchy flavours. Guangdong-born Chinese master chef Leung Wing Cheung leads the kitchen, wielding over 40 years of experience at establishments in Hong Kong and Singapore — including Si Chuan Dou Hua, where he last served as executive chef. 

The comfortable space provides more than a mere private dining experience, as it is sumptuously appointed with artistic savoir-faire in the form of a 20-panel calligraphy oeuvre — aptly celebrating conviviality, feasting, and imbibing — by the late Chua Ek Kay, winner of Singapore’s apex art prize, the Cultural Medallion. 

Find out more here.

2. Revolver

Revolver is no stranger to bringing on the heat when it comes to its contemporary grill-focused Indian plates, both in terms of layering hearty proteins and seafood with the subcontinent’s rich tapestry of spices, as well as the judicious use of fire and flame from its custom woodfire grill, smoker, and tandoor oven.

It’s only natural for the restaurant — now in its third year of operation on Tras Street — to turn up the heat to 11 for its newly opened private dining room with a tasting menu exclusive to the intimate venue.

The Spread, as the restaurant calls it, is said to be a collection of individual plates and large-format platters that best represent Revolver’s cuisine. These range from elevated street snacks like the burrata tokri chaat, featuring the pillowy cheese layered with sun-dried tomatoes, chimichurri, and caviar, to indulgent sharing portions of Japanese king crab, turbot, and a hulking tomahawk kissed by smoke and spices. All this is available in a private room for 14, fully equipped with a bar, wine cellar, and sound system.

Find out more here.

3. Chef Chan’s Private Dine

The latest incarnation of chef Chan’s Private Dine can now be found in a black-and-white bungalow at 35 Scotts Road, just down the road from its previous perch at number 27. Chef Wong Hong Loong, a protege of the eponymous chef Chan Chen Hei, continues to helm the outfit, having worked under the legendary chef at his restaurant in Odeon Towers (set up after Chan left Hai Tien Lo, where he first made his name).

As its name suggests, the restaurant continues to run like an ultra-exclusive dining club, serving only two tables of eight at a time — already an improvement from its previous locale, where a group of ten meant a full dining room. 

Familiar favourites like the chef’s signature crispy roast chicken make an expected return, along with a host of other tempting Cantonese fine dining treats like wok-fried kway teow with an indulgent crab roe gravy, poached Australian cabbage with a double-boiled chicken broth, and freshly steamed spotted grouper with homemade tofu and egg white.

Find out more here.

4. Side Door

Side Door is the brainchild of chef Tryson Quek — previously chef de cuisine at Anti:dote and Stamford Brasserie — and his better half, Bannie Kang, once Anti:dote’s head bartender. The 40-seat restaurant-bar concept culminates the various experiences dotting the couples’ culinary careers.

There are Asian-inflected bar bites like blue-lipped mussels with burnt butter, chilli garlic, and grilled sourdough, along with handcrafted cocktails and spirits in the main dining room, drawing from the years the couple spent in Taipei running their award-winning gastrobar Mu (now-defunct).

There’s also an eight-course menu with beverage pairings exclusive to The Living Room, a cosy private lounge for six to eight — an experience reminiscent of the private home dining outfit the couple ran out of their apartment after returning to Singapore.

Elevated plates on the menu — which changes periodically — include Korean-style slow-cooked Wagyu short ribs paired with garlic rice and oyster tartare with a watermelon salsa. Bookings must be made at least three days in advance via Side Door’s Instagram.

Find out more here.

5. Ammākase

A new take on omakase has emerged with Ammākase, a neo-Indian fine-dining restaurant in One Raffles Place. The menu changes every few weeks, with the chefs given total creative reign over creating multiple versions of the dishes so that the regulars do not get bored. The restaurant, helmed by executive chef Abhijit Saha, features traditional recipes passed down by mothers (ammas), which have roots in cuisines along the coastal cities of India, from Goa to Pondicherry. They are then reinterpreted with a modern lens with worldly influences from Japan, France, Italy and more, and also made with produce sourced from local farms. 

Highlights include Jamnagar pan-seared garam masala duck with smoked aubergine and tomato-date chutney and the tender and smoky Bombay lamb seekh kebab and Hyderabad haleem, accompanied by saffron briyani, dal makhani and raita. To accompany the dishes, the restaurant has a selection of wine, whisky, and handcrafted cocktail pairings. 

This 48-seater restaurant incorporates traditional Indian elements into modern aesthetics. There is also a Chef’s Table for guests to have an intimate view of the culinary process. The restaurant’s private dining room, which can seat up to 22 people, boast a decor that tastefully incorporates Indian cultural elements that include elephant motifs and plush booth seats, perfect for private events and corporate gatherings. 

Find out more here.

6. Hideaway by Nae:um

Nae:um, a contemporary Korean restaurant underpinned by the “nostalgic scents” (as its name roughly translates to) and not-so-distant food memories of its Gangnam-born chef-owner Louis Han, celebrates its third anniversary on Telok Ayer Street with the opening of a brand new private dining space occupying the entirety of its second floor. 

Styled as a “home away from home”, the aptly titled Hideaway features the same charmingly elegant atmosphere of the main dining room, with woodsy touches and rustic elements on a calming backdrop of cream and birch. 

It seats up to 14 at a private table adjoined by a living room and dedicated open kitchen, from which Han and his team will serve Hideaway-exclusive tasting menus that are said to be a “globally diverse extension” of Nae:um’s usual Korea-centric fare. 

Find out more here.

7. Estiatoro Milos

Joining the star-studded line-up of international culinary heavyweights at Marina Bay Sands is the recently opened Estiatorio Milos, the first Asian outing of a buzzy Greek restaurant chain in Canada, New York, London, and Dubai.

While the spirit of the 155-seater restaurant is the Greek concept of philoxenia — making a stranger feel at home — its beating heart is undoubtedly the magnificent open seafood market display. This Milos signature sees diners selecting from a daily catch of seafood flown in from the Mediterranean and displayed on ice in the dining room.

Guests who desire a more intimate setting can enjoy two private dining rooms, with the smaller sitting six and the larger boasting a private entrance and room for up to 22. Bearing European oak and frameworks from founder Costas Spiliadis’ daughter (who is a photography artist), these quiet spaces grant visitors a cosy berth to sample menu highlights like whole fish baked in sea salt and lobster Athenian pasta and a beverage programme with Singapore’s widest variety of Greek wines.

Find out more here.

8. Sushisamba Singapore

Replacing the former China Club on the 52nd storey of Capital Tower is Sushisamba Singapore, an internationally acclaimed hangout spot about Japanese, Brazilian, and Peruvian vibes. 

The sprawling 250-seater restaurant is an electrifying first step into the Asia Pacific arena for its mega-sized parent, the Sunset Hospitality Group, currently operating restaurants in other buzzing cities like London, Dubai, and Las Vegas.

Expect an eclectic mix of cuisine, spirits, and music, borrowing the very best from all three of the above cultures, available in the main dining room and three private venues. There’s a bijou private dining room complete with floor-to-ceiling windows and a dedicated audiovisual system for groups of up to 12, as well as the magnificent Samba Room for larger parties of up to 45 (or 90 if they’re standing) featuring its bar, DJ booth, and private entrance to boot.

Find out more here. 

9. Sospiri by ilLido Group

For a sky-high private dining experience in the heart of the Central Business District (CBD), turn to Sospiri by ilLido Group, the latest venture by the hospitality outfit behind Amo and the now-defunct Braci.

The 128-seat Southern Italian restaurant and bar concept is perched on the seventh floor of the newly constructed IOI Central Boulevard Towers, promising convivial Mediterranean eats and a laid-back atmosphere with a side of panoramic cityscape views. Seasonal produce, fresh seafood, and handmade pasta rule the menu, alongside substantial grilled meat platters and traditional sweet treats from across the South Italian coast.

The adjoining rooftop bar concept is also of an Italian persuasion, featuring the region's wines, beers, and spirit-forward cocktails with a similarly inclined selection of breezy bar snacks. Live DJs will be on the scene to provide groovy tunes, though diners looking for a more intimate setting will find privacy in Sospiri’s gorgeously appointed private dining room, which seats up to 14 at a go.

Find out more here.

10. Yakiniquest

More than two decades ago, Suguru Ishida and his wife Tomoko set out to taste and document the exquisite art form of yakiniku, or Japanese grilled meats, across their home country. They visited more than 2,000 establishments over 15 years before deciding to uproot and turn their Yakiniquest into a full-fledged restaurant in Singapore.

That very restaurant has now passed the 10-year mark, having moved from an initial launch in Boat Quay to snazzy new premises on the fourth level of Mandarin Gallery back in 2022. It seats 64 people across a main dining area and four private dining rooms — ranging in size from intimate two-seaters to a 10-person room for larger gatherings — in a modern, refined space. 

Yakiniku omakase sets informed by the couple’s extensive travels are the name of the game, with hard-to-find and underappreciated cuts finding pride of place alongside the usual exquisitely marbled fare.

Find out more here.

11. Araya

Chilean establishment Araya broke new ground when it became the first South American restaurant to earn the coveted Michelin star in Singapore. For chef-couple Francisco Araya and Fernanda Guerrero, it was an acknowledgement that their direction — authentic South Pacific eats, anchored on seasonal ingredients and elevated with international techniques — was the right course for their fine-dining restaurant.

And nowhere is this culinary odyssey more clearly defined and expressed than Araya's private dining room — a 10-seater refuge within an already intimate space that further highlights the beauty of Chile.

Guests are placed around a solid quartzite stone table in the shadow of a mural depicting the Andes mountains, providing fine conversation fodder while building anticipation for the artfully crafted bounties coming ahead.

Find out more here.