Milli, an all-star Singapore dining and nightlife concept, to open at National Gallery Singapore on May 31

An all-star Singaporean concept looks set to liven up the National Gallery Singapore at its prime rooftop spot in the civic district. Slated to open on May 31, Milli: Sky Dining & Bar and Milli Lounge, hopes to capture the zeitgeist of growing up in the 2000s through a distinctively Singaporean lens with food, mixology, music and entertainment.

The multi-concept destination will occupy a 6,000 sq ft space across the upper two levels of the iconic building. On the rooftop level is Milli Sky Dining & Bar, a 100-seat rooftop restaurant and bar, which takes over the spot vacated by cocktail bar Smoke & Mirrors late last year. Located below is Milli Lounge, a high-energy club that will spin DJ sets till 4am.

Milli is a partnership between Leong Sheen Jet, co-founder of homegrown hospitality group, Proper Concepts, Dharma Wang, managing partner of Bae’s Cocktail Club, renowned mixologist Vijay Mudaliar, most known for his award-winning sustainability-forward bar, Native and Han Li uang, chef-owner of one-Michelin-starred contemporary Singapore restaurant, Labyrinth.

Leong quips that “The Avengers of Singapore’s F&B and entertainment scene” were assembled for this project, combining a wealth of experience in their respective fields.

Nostalgia meets novelty

Leong sums up the concept of Milli as “nostalgia coupled with novelty that draws on the sounds and flavours that Singaporeans have loved over the decades”. The intention is to tap into “collective memory”, while presenting it in refreshing and contemporary ways - whether it is dishes like chicken rice or pandan waffles, and sounds like the once-ubiquitous Nokia ringtone.

As the first nightlife entertainment concept in the National Gallery, special considerations like sound-proofing of the premises and the use of specialised speakers. Leong shared that Proper Concepts was invited by the Gallery to put in a bid for the space last October. It costs $3 million to set up both concepts.

Faced with setting up the mammoth project, the team decided that banking on a dual-concept space would be more ideal, especially in today’s challenging business climate for the F&B industry. An all-day affair that transits from lunch, afternoon tea into dinner and late-night drinks and bites, catering to both locals and tourists, was drawn up.

From collaborators to business partners

Setting up Milli was built upon years of collaborations and friendship between Leong, Wang, Han and Mudaliar. Leong, Wang and Mudaliar are business partners at Bae’s Cocktail Club, while Han has held collaborations with Proper Concepts, which runs restaurants like Rappu and The Feather Blade, through pop-ups and anniversary events.

What began as informal, creative exchanges evolved organically into something more substantial. “We were just having fun collaborating,” the team shares, noting that their complementary strengths—Han in modern Singaporean cuisine, Vijay in cocktails, and Leong and Wang in nightlife and entertainment—made the idea of building a concept together a natural progression. With each already running established businesses, the dynamic is underpinned by mutual respect and a shared clarity of direction for Milli.

Mudaliar shares: “Having been in business in our respective fields for so long, we can agree to disagree or come up with a solution very quickly, and drive towards the final goal. It has been a cohesive relationship.”

Big on Singapore flavours

At Milli: Sky Dining & Bar, the food programme, led by Han, offers a forward-looking interpretation of Singaporean cuisine. The food menu includes chicken rice paella finished off with crispy scorched rice with roast chicken; oyster omelette souffle, and lobster cheong fun with laksa sauce. Late-night bar bites include items like laksa carbonara ramyun, prata pizzas and skewered goreng pisang.

He says: “The approach is not to replicate traditional dishes, but to reinterpret them using premium ingredients, while keeping the experience accessible. It will be food I want to eat with friends and loved ones on a daily basis.” Set lunches will be priced from $38.

On the cocktail front, Mudaliar draws from references that evoke nostalgia. Cocktails include Peranakan Spritz, which is concocted with blue pea flower, coconut soda, ginger flower, and served with kueh on the side, as well as a revived “Million Dollar” cocktail—a lesser-known classic created by Ngiam Tong Boon, the bartender behind Raffles Hotel’s Singapore Sling. The forgotten cocktail is updated with gin, pineapple juice, sherry and mandarin grenadine. The focus is on flavours that are approachable, with deeper layers of storytelling.

Party like it is the 2000s

For party animals at Milli Lounge, the entertainment programme centres on open-format music spanning the past 20 years. From pop, house, to disco, funk, R&B to more recent hits, the playlists are designed around what Singaporeans recognise and enjoy.

Wang shares: “There will be a lot of throwback music, mixed in with popular commercial sounds and music, including tracks by boybands of the 2000s and radio-friendly hits.”

He adds: “We are creating an intimate, cosy space that brings people together through the songs we all carry with us. It pulls at something familiar, but what happens in the room feels entirely new. It is that shared energy, that moment where everyone feels it at the same time, that people leave talking about long after the night ends.”

Spotlight on Singapore culture

Leong adds: “Nostalgia plays a huge role in tapping into the shared memories and cultural touchpoints of our consumers. We want to anchor that around what flavors and sounds that Singaporeans love but also make it novel and refreshing.” There are also plans to hold F&B and entertainment pop-ups and guest shifts.

Design-wise, the lounge will sport mirrored ceilings decked out in disco balls with a 20-metre-long LED screen that mimics the Marina Bay skyline throughout the day. For the restaurant-bar, most of its seating will be outdoors, where diners can soak up panoramic views of the city.

In a city where rooftop venues often compete on view alone, Milli looks inwards, leaning towards memories and cultural resonance and offering a space where Singaporeans might recognise not just the skyline, but something of themselves within it.