Why you should eat out in Singapore this November

Before you get too daunted about all the Christmas feasting you’ll have to do in a few short weeks, you still have November to get through, and there’s plenty exciting happening, from chef collabs to lots of unagi. Don’t worry—at least the dessert is low-calorie. Here are some excellent reasons to go out eating in Singapore in November.

There are tons of healthy dessert options

, Why you should eat out in Singapore this November
Popbar

The city has seen a slew of new and healthy dessert spots lately that are low on s ugar, and in some cases, gluten. Check out Popbar, hailing from the Big Apple, and the coconut-based soft serve, Husk. If you’re feeling a little adventurous, head East to Katong where the creative Birds of Paradise are doing peculiar flavors like white chrysanthemum with cacao nibs, spiced pear and strawberry basil, but if you’re a conservative at heart, the new scoop shop along Neil Road, Apiary, will be right up your alley, serving up traditional flavors, alongside a nice cup of hot chocolate.

There’s biryani for a good cause

What’s not to love about saffron-tinged basmati rice and tender, spicy mutton? Now there’s one more reason to get excited. Ramiza’s Briyani is teaming up with a non-profit initiative Free Food For All (FFA) for the “A Meal For A Meal” fundraiser, which, for every plate of biryai bought, will serve another to someone in need through FFA’s feeding programs. All proceeds will go to charity too.

There are some exciting restaurant collabs

, Why you should eat out in Singapore this November
Moosehead’s supper series

Start the month with a cultural bang as The Embassy of Ukraine is bringing Ukrainian chef Kovryzhenko Iurii to cook up a traditional feast on Nov 1-4, highlighting the distinct East European flavors. On Nov 4Moosehead is debuting its supper series by teaming up with the hipster noodle stall, A Noodle Story, and will be cooking up modern versions of the traditional wonton noodles. Get a taste of Nordic cuisine at Maggie Joan’s on Nov 10 with Finland’s Chef of the Year 2015, chef Ismo Sipelainen aka the Finnish Devil. With Finnish ingredients taking center stage, tuck into is his version of cured salmon and his renowned mushroom porridge.

MasterChef is getting a pop-up

The ever-popular MasterChef Dining & Bar pop-up will be making its debut in Asia at the InterContinental Singapore’s Ash & Elm restaurant. Expect MasterChef personalities from Asia, America and Australia—including chef Marco Pierre who has appeared as a judge in the Australia series and trained the ruthless Gordon Ramsay, as well as Reynold Poernomo who’s known for his artistic desserts—to whip up a special menu. MasterChef Asia finalist, Jasbir Kaur, will be helming the kitchen at Bin 38, on the second floor of Tippling Club for two nights (Nov 3-4). She will be bringing the rich flavors of Sarawak with a twist, such as her deconstructed Sarawak Laksa and her modern interpretation of the traditional Cendol.

Bincho turns three

It only feels like yesterday when Bincho opened up at Tiong Bahru, dishing out delicious grilled Japanese goodness (yakitori) and now, they are celebrating their third birthday on Nov 13. Chef Asai Masashi will be celebrating his love for Japanese food by coming up with a special birthday menu which includes yaki ika (grilled squid) and mentai wings. There will also be a live mochi-making station, so expect some sweet pounding.

Dishes and beers are just $1 at Timbre+ this month

, Why you should eat out in Singapore this November

We love the food at Timbre+ so much that we don’t need any special reasons to make the trip out West. The bellychon at Iskina Cebu to the lovely charcuterie platters at Garcon. Well there’s one more, very big reason: from Nov 1-30, you can enjoy the following dishes for $1—as long as you pay with UOB Cards using Apple Pay, UOB Mighty Pay or Android Pay. So head down with friends, family or your colleagues to make the most of this.

A rare unagi-only restaurant opens in Singapore

, Why you should eat out in Singapore this November

Teppei Yamashita is known around town for his affordable and solid Japanese concepts, starting with Teppei at Orchid Hotel. This time, he has opened a rare unagi-only eatery that’s seeing some serious lines. Working with a respected unagi farm in Aichi prefecture, Yamashita flies in live unagi, to be dramatically cut up behind the glass front kitchen of this otherwise all-wood, cozy 37-seater restaurant—an experience that is increasingly rare even in Tokyo.

Bird Bird moves to Frankel Avenue and overhauls its concept

We were thrilled when Bjorn Shen opened his temple of Thai chicken, Bird Bird, with its trashy-chic decos and his Thai-inspired menu, but sadly, not as many people shared our enthusiasm as we would have liked Running for about a year, they have closed shop and moved to Frankel Avenue with a whole new (and simple) concept with fried chicken still being the theme (they’ll be serving up American-style fried chicken served with waffles). But with Bjorn Shen, we believe there will be a twist, if his invasion at Loof is any indication.