10 Best Peranakan (Nyonya) Restaurants in Singapore 2026: Two Michelin Stars, Two Bib Gourmands, and What Ayam Buah Keluak Costs at Every One

The one to book when the meal has to mean something, though not the way every roundup describes it. Chef Malcolm Lee's Candlenut sits inside COMO Dempsey at 17A Dempsey Road (S249676) and holds One MICHELIN Star in the 2026 MICHELIN Guide Singapore. What has changed is the superlative: it is the world's FIRST Michelin-starred Peranakan restaurant, not the only one. Lee's second kitchen, Pangium, holds a star of its own (item 2 below), and COMO's own site has quietly switched Candlenut's wording from 'only' to 'first'. The house format is Ah-Ma-Kase, 'ah ma' being grandmother: a chef-directed tasting menu served family style at $108++ per person for lunch and $138++ for dinner, running 10-plus courses that change roughly every three months. Add 10% service charge and prevailing government taxes and that is about $129.55 and $165.55 a head. Open daily, lunch 12pm to 3pm, dinner 6pm to 10pm including the eve of public holidays. THE CHEAPER WAY IN, which no roundup mentions: the a la carte menu is published and it is a great deal less than the tasting menu. Bakwan Kepiting soup is $16, Ngoh Hiang $22, Chap Chye $28, Chef's Mum's Chicken Curry $34, Ikan Assam Pedas $34, Candlenut's Buah Keluak Fried Rice $28, and rice is $2.50 a bowl. Two people can eat a soup, a vegetable, a curry and rice for about $83 before service, roughly $99 paid, against $216++ for two tasting menus. The showpiece dishes stay dear: Aunt Caroline's Babi Buah Keluak, the Westholme Wagyu Beef Rib Rendang and the Blue Swimmer Crab Curry are $48 each. THE OFFER: HSBC Premier credit or debit cardholders get 1-for-1 on the PALATE set lunch and set dinner. It is valid for dine-in on weekdays from 6 April to 31 December 2026, excluding public holidays, the eves of Christmas and New Year, and other blackout dates. Book at least 24 hours ahead, order at least one paying set menu, and note the cap of two complimentary menus per table per bill, so a table of four gets two free rather than four. One term we previously understated: the 1-for-1 housepour wine is not simply thrown in. HSBC's terms require at least one PAYING drinks pairing before the complimentary glasses apply, and the free pour is capped at 3 glasses per diner. Full payment must be made on the HSBC Premier card with the cardholder present. BEST FOR: an anniversary or a visiting guest, and, if you go a la carte, the cheapest table in a Michelin-starred Peranakan dining room anywhere.

The entry that rewrites this category, and the reason the headline on every rival guide is wrong. Pangium is Malcolm Lee's second restaurant and it holds One MICHELIN Star in the 2026 MICHELIN Guide Singapore in its own right. It is named after the tree that produces the buah keluak seed, and Lee, a fourth-generation Peranakan, built it to go deeper into the origins of Peranakan cooking across its Malay, Chinese, Indian and Eurasian influences. It is not in a mall or a shophouse but inside the Singapore Botanic Gardens, at 11 Gallop Road, Gallop Entrance (S259015), in a building designed as a viewing deck with 180-degree views over the greenery, reached by a personalised buggy ride from the gate. THE FORMAT: Tok Panjang, the Peranakan long-table feast, introduced for the restaurant's fourth anniversary. It is priced at S$188++ per person for both lunch and dinner, which works out to roughly $225 a head paid, and it is served as an individually portioned progression with the main courses shared, running through dishes such as Kerabu Siput with local snails, Pong Tauhu soup, Oyster Wagyu Beef Rendang, Tau Yu Bak with sea cucumber, and a spread of kueh including ondeh ondeh made with Kabocha pumpkin and a canele-style kueh bingka. A shorter lunch menu, Tok Panjang Kecil, now carries a price too: S$138++ per person, lunch only. That is the cheaper way into this room, about $165 a head paid against roughly $225 for the full Tok Panjang, and it runs the same Kerabu Siput and Oyster Wagyu Beef Rendang while adding a crispy fried egg with kari Kapitan and a Tau Yu Bak made with South African sea cucumber. THE CATCH: the opening hours are arrival windows, not service hours. Lunch runs Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 12pm to 1pm, and dinner Wednesday to Saturday from 6.30pm to 7.30pm. There is no Sunday, Monday or Tuesday service at all, and you cannot turn up at 8.30pm. Enquiries on +65 8938 3891. WHAT CHANGED SINCE AUGUST: the Tok Panjang Kecil price, which the site did not publish then, is now printed on the menu at S$138++. BEST FOR: anyone who thought they had already eaten the best Peranakan food in Singapore, and for a long lunch that doubles as a garden walk.

The most 'museum-adjacent' meal in Singapore, with one scheduling trap that catches almost everybody. Chef-owner Benjamin Seck opened True Blue in November 2003 and moved it to 47/49 Armenian Street (S179937) in 2008, next door to the Peranakan Museum. Its Michelin record is stronger than we previously credited: True Blue is one of only 17 establishments to have held a Bib Gourmand in every one of the ten editions of the MICHELIN Guide Singapore, and it is in the 2026 selection. THE TRAP: it is open Monday to Saturday only, 11.30am to 2.30pm and 5.30pm to 9.30pm, and CLOSED on Sundays and public holidays. That is published on its own contact page, and it means the obvious plan, a Sunday at the Peranakan Museum with lunch next door, does not work. Our previous note that True Blue publishes neither hours nor prices was wrong on both counts: the hours are on the contact page and a full priced menu PDF sits behind the Menu tab. THE PRICES: Ayam Buah Keluak is $36, Ayam Pongteh $30, Rendang Sapi $30, Itek Sio $30, Ayam Goreng $28, Bakwan Kepiting $12, Kueh Pie Tee $25, Otak Otak $15, prawns and squid $30 to $35, and the whole fish head curry is $100. All are subject to 10% service charge and GST, so the ayam buah keluak lands at about $43.16. WHAT THE MENU PRICE HIDES: the menu states plainly that savouries and tea are chargeable, so the sambal belachan ($2.50), prawn crackers ($6) and achar ($6) that arrive at the table are billed, and jasmine rice is $3.50 per adult or $1.50 per child under 8, in both cases free flow. Corkage is $40 to $50 a bottle. ON THE NO-PORK QUESTION: the menu confirms the kitchen uses no pork or lard and states that all meat and groceries come from halal suppliers, which makes it an unusually easy group booking. It is not halal-certified, however, and it serves beer and a house gin cocktail. Three private rooms, Manek, Intan and Sulam, seat 6 to 24. Reservations on 6440 0449 or 6440 3358. BEST FOR: pairing lunch with the Peranakan Museum on any day except Sunday, and for tables that need a no-pork kitchen.

The safest recommendation on this list, with two numbers worth knowing before you sit down. The Blue Ginger opened in 1995 as one of the first dedicated Peranakan restaurants in the modern Singapore dining scene, and it still operates from a restored three-storey shophouse at 97 Tanjong Pagar Road (S088518), the only address it publishes. It is a Bib Gourmand holder in the 2026 MICHELIN Guide Singapore. Hours are daily, lunch 12pm to 3pm with last order at 2.15pm, and dinner 6.30pm to 10.30pm with last order 9.45pm. Those last-order times are strict and the 2.15pm lunch cut-off catches people out. THE PRICES, from its own dine-in menu dated 2 February 2026, which corrects our earlier note that it publishes none: Ayam Buah Keluak is $38, with additional buah keluak nuts at $3.50 each, Ayam Panggang $28, Babi Pong Tay $25, Satay Babi $26, Pork Ribs Assam $26, Beef Rendang $38, Babi Hong $38, Chap Chye Masak Titek $22, Buah Keluak Fried Rice $22, Nyonya Fish Head Curry $42 and the Durian Chendol $10. All are subject to 10% service charge and 9% GST, so that ayam buah keluak is about $45.54 paid, the dearest on this page outside the two starred kitchens. THE CHARGE NOBODY PRINTS: the menu states that all patrons will be levied $3.00 for rice, pickles and sambal belachan. That is a compulsory per-head cover, not an order, and for a table of four it adds $12 plus service before anyone eats. Corkage is $50 a bottle. THE ARBITRAGE: The Blue Ginger runs its own takeaway store, and the prices there are flat, with no service charge and no cover. Ayam Buah Keluak is $40 on it against about $45.54 paid to eat in, and the same $1 to $2 uplift runs across the menu, so ordering home is genuinely cheaper than the dining room. Reservations on 6222 3928; the upper floors take private events and weddings. BEST FOR: a first Peranakan meal or an out-of-town guest, and for takeaway if the room is not the point.

The oldest kitchen on this page by decades, and, it turns out, the cheapest way to eat its signature dish. Guan Hoe Soon has served Peranakan food in Joo Chiat since 1953 and now sits at 200 Joo Chiat Road, #01-01 (S427471). The dish people come for is ayam buah keluak: the black nut is cleaned, soaked and scrubbed over several days before the flesh is dug out, pounded with spices and stuffed back into the shell, which is why so few kitchens still make it from scratch. TWO CORRECTIONS TO WHAT WE PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED, and to what most listings say. First, the hours are published, on the contact page of the restaurant's own ordering site: 10am to 3pm and 6pm to 9.30pm Monday to Friday, and 10am to 3pm and 5.30pm to 9.30pm Saturday and Sunday. It trades all seven days, so the standard warning that old Joo Chiat kitchens close one weekday does not apply here. Second, the prices are published too, across 78 items. THE PRICES: Ayam Buah Keluak runs from $18.80 for the small portion to $38.80 for the large, which makes the 1953 benchmark version the cheapest ayam buah keluak in this guide by a wide margin, and buah keluak nuts on their own are $3.00 each. Babi Pong Tay is $16.80 to $30.80, Nonya Chap Chye $15.80 to $25.80, Nonya Mee $16.80 to $35.80, Bakwan Kepiting soup $20.80 to $38.80, Itek Team $20.80 to $38.80, and the whole-fish dishes such as Ikan Assam Nanas Pedas run $58.00 to $88.00. Kueh pie tee is sold by the batch, $48 for 25 cups and $98 for 50. Beyond dine-in, the restaurant does online ordering with self-collection or delivery, mini-buffet packages, and catering menus for parties of 20 or more, with a current 2026 catering PDF on the site. Contact on 6344 2761 or WhatsApp 9633 2833. BEST FOR: buah keluak on a budget, and for feeding a large family at home.

The most 'occasion' of the group, and the surprise of this audit on price. Violet Oon Singapore runs three restaurants, and all three publish full addresses, hours and priced menus, which corrects our earlier note that they do not. Violet Oon Singapore at Dempsey Hill is at 7 Dempsey Road, #01-05 (S249671), open daily 12pm to 3pm and 6pm to 11pm, in a restored colonial building with an edible garden and three private dining rooms. Violet Oon Singapore at ION Orchard is at #04-12, 2 Orchard Turn (S238801), a 102-seat room with three private dining rooms and a garden-inspired indoor veranda, open daily for all-day dining 12pm to 10pm with last order at 9.30pm, plus a gift shop on the same hours. National Kitchen by Violet Oon is at 1 St. Andrew's Road, #02-01, National Gallery Singapore, City Hall Wing (S178957), entered via Coleman Street, open daily for lunch 12pm to 3pm with last order 2.30pm and dinner 6pm to 10.30pm with last order 9.30pm. THE HIGH-TEA TRAP: high tea runs 3pm to 5pm with last order at 4pm at both, but at National Kitchen it is FRIDAY TO SUNDAY ONLY, while ION serves it daily. The Singapore High Tea Set is $66++ and that is for two people, not one, so about $39.55 a head paid, with a premium tea upgrade at $8++. THE PRICES, from the National Kitchen menu dated 29 September 2025: Ayam Buah Keluak is $28++, which is the surprise, because it undercuts both Bib Gourmand holders and works out at roughly $33.57 paid against $43.16 at True Blue and $45.54 at The Blue Ginger. Beef Rendang is $28, Ayam Pongteh $27, VO Curry Chicken $27, Daging Chabek Beef Cheek $45, Chap Chye $19, Dry Laksa $29, Hainanese Chicken Rice $26, Kuay Pie Tee $15, Chicken Satay $18, white rice $2 and roti prata $2. The Fish Head Curry is $88 and needs 2 days' notice. Everything is subject to service charge and prevailing GST. Kueh pie tee and dry laksa are the dishes most people photograph. Takeaways are available in opening hours with at least 45 minutes' notice on +65 9834 9935; the group also sells celebration cakes, gourmet delicacies and party trays. BEST FOR: birthdays and visitors, a Padang view, and, unexpectedly, better value on the benchmark dish than either Bib Gourmand.

The correction that changes this entry, and probably your plan. Baba Chews Bar and Eating House occupies the old Joo Chiat Police Station building at 86 East Coast Road, Katong Square (S428788), inside Hotel Indigo Singapore Katong, open daily 6.30am to 10.30pm, and it is marking ten years in 2026. But the Baba's Set Lunch at $15++ that this guide and every rival led with is no longer offered. It is absent from the promotions page, and it is absent from all nine promotions Baba Chews currently publishes. We have removed the claim rather than repeat it. WHAT IS ACTUALLY RUNNING, all from its own promotions page: 1-for-1 mains redeemed through The Entertainer app, dine-in only, one offer per table per bill, not combinable with other promotions, discounts, vouchers or IHG dining privileges, and subject to service charge and GST. IHG One Rewards members get up to 20% off, with free sign-up at the restaurant. The breakfast buffet, daily 6.30am to 10.30am, is $35++ per adult and $17.50++ per child aged 7 to 12, with children under 6 free. Free-flow wine for 2 hours is $46++ per person Sunday to Thursday and $56++ Friday and Saturday, daily 4.30pm to 10pm. GONE SINCE AUGUST: the any-2-cocktails-or-beers deal at $22.90++ has been withdrawn, along with the Pandan Negroni and Nyonya Margarita list it was drawn from. In its place is a Neighbourhood Cocktails menu at $18++ a la carte, or $14++ with a food pairing, running the Katong Leaf Gimlet (laksa leaf, lime, coconut water), the Koon Seng Sapphire (butterfly pea, jasmine, lemon) and the East Coast Bloom (Shiraz gin, passion fruit, pineapple, lime, prosecco). 1-for-1 Generous Gin and Tonic is 2 for $16++ daily, but only from 10 July to 30 September 2026. 1-for-1 Aperol Spritz is $16++ daily 12pm to 9pm. NEW THIS MONTH: Mid Autumn Treasures 2026, a halal-certified baked mooncake series in reusable Peranakan-inspired keepsake tins, four mooncakes to a box, at $92 for the Signature white lotus boxes and $98 for the Premium ones (red dates with longan, black sesame with peanut butter). Pre-orders are 35% off to 11 September 2026, which takes them to $59.80 and $63.70 nett, self-collection runs 25 August to 25 September from 11am to 9pm, and the single-yolk Signature B box is already sold out. THE 2026 MENU, now priced: Ayam Buah Keluak Fried Rice $22++, Nasi Lemak Risotto with King Prawn $24++, Baba's Laksa $25++, Charred Tom Yum Salmon $22++, Char Siew Pork Ribs $24++, Singapore Chilli Crab Bao $14++, Crispy Pork Belly $10++, Black Pepper Squid and Octopus $10++, and desserts including the Gula Melaka Coconut Burnt Cheesecake and Pandan Creme Brulee at $14++. THE CHEAP ROUTE NOW: two people sharing one Entertainer 1-for-1 on the $22++ buah keluak fried rice pay $22++ between them, about $13.20 each, which is the closest thing left to the old set lunch. Reservations on 6723 2025. BEST FOR: a Katong walk with breakfast attached, and for drinkers, who are much better served here than eaters on a budget.

The easy weekday one, and its whole price list is public, which corrects the note we ran previously. Godmama has two outlets: Funan at #04-07, 107 North Bridge Road (6970 0828), and Parkway Parade at #01-69A, 80 Marine Parade Road (6320 3994). THE EXECUTIVE SET LUNCH, weekdays 11am to 3.30pm, is the value pick and it is properly cheap: Sayur Lodeh $15.90, Babi Pongteh and Babi Assam $16.50, Sambal Udang, Sambal Sotong and Beef Rendang $17.90, and Ayam Buah Keluak and Ikan Gerang Assam $18.50. The arithmetic that matters: the same ayam buah keluak is $24.90 on the a la carte menu, so the set lunch saves $6.40 on an identical dish. A LA CARTE: Ayam Buah Keluak $24.90 and it comes with three buah keluak nuts, with extra nuts at $4 each, Tulang Babi Buah Keluak $23.90, Babi Pongteh, Babi Assam and Tau Yu Bak $21.50 each, Beef Rendang and Eurasian Curry Devil $23.90, Lamb Shank Rendang $33.90, Sambal Udang $24.90, Nyonya Chap Chye and Sayur Lodeh $15.90, Sambal Buah Keluak Fried Rice $22.90, and the Sticky Red Date Pudding regulars order without looking, $11.90. Nasi Ulam is $13.50 and good for two, but it is dinner only and weekdays only. CORRECTION ON THE HOURS: we previously said dinner closes at 9pm Monday to Thursday. Godmama's own menu page now gives dinner as 6pm to 10pm daily, run as two seatings at 6pm and 8pm, so book the seating you want rather than drifting in. Weekday lunch is 11am to 3.30pm Monday to Friday, and weekend and public holiday brunch is 10am to 3pm. HAPPY HOUR, 3pm to 7pm, is genuinely cheap: $15 for 2 Tiger or Heineken, $20 for 2 house pour wines, $40 for a house pour bottle, $20 for 2 Young Master beers, $20 for 2 Suntory Kakubin highballs and $30 for 2 Bunga Kantan Martinis or Baba Tea Cocktails. THE OUTLET SPLIT: the two branches are not interchangeable. The All-Star Egg Skin Popiah at $7.50 is Funan only, and the Nyonya Mee with Red Leg Prawns at $23.90 is Parkway Parade only, and both are dinner only. WHAT WE COULD NOT VERIFY: Godmama's menu states no service charge or GST basis, so treat the printed figures as the printed figures and expect the bill to differ. BEST FOR: a weekday set lunch, and a mall dinner with parents.

The cheapest sit-down Peranakan meal in this guide, and the one entry where reading both menus really matters. PeraMakan was founded in 2004 by Executive Chef Kathryn Ho and built its reputation over many years at Keppel Club, which is where a lot of listings still send people. As of our September 2026 check it still operates two outlets: City PeraMakan at 41 Hong Kong Street (S059680) on 8977 1500, nearest Clarke Quay MRT Exit A, with parking at The Riverwalk or The Central; and Restaurant PeraMakan at 119 Owen Road (S218924) on 6392 3474, nearest Farrer Park MRT Exit D, with parking at Block 10 Gloucester Road. WhatsApp 9099 4141, email enquiry@peramakan.com. THE THING NOBODY CARRIES: the two outlets do not share a menu, and PeraMakan says so itself. They also do not share a price basis. The Owen Road menu states that all prices are subject to 10% service charge and 9% GST, while the City PeraMakan menu states on every page that all prices are inclusive of GST. So a $18 dish at Owen Road is about $21.58 paid while an $18 dish at Hong Kong Street is $18. Compare the right list. THE CHEAP ROUTES, both at City PeraMakan: lunch bowls are served daily 11.30am to 2.30pm and start at $10.00 including GST. You pick a protein, tau hu tempeh or nyonya otak at $10.00, ayam kleo $11.50, babi assam $13.00 or beef rendang $15.50, then a base at no extra charge, sauced noodles, a grain bowl, a rice bowl or a salad, with only the sandwich adding $2, and the bowl comes with romaine, carrot, cucumber, onion, coriander, half an egg, scallion, bell pepper and broccoli. The Nonya Sampler Set is one main plus two sides plus free blue-pea rice, at $17.00 for babi assam, $18.00 for beef rendang and $18.00 for ayam buah keluak, and at City PeraMakan it runs all day every day while at Owen Road it is weekdays only. City also does breakfast from 7.30am to 11am: toast and eggs $4.50, french toast $6, a ham and egg sandwich $5, fried mee siam, wok-tossed laksa or bakwan noodle soup at $5 each, kopi from $2. A LA CARTE at City, GST included: Ayam Buah Keluak $18.50 medium and $37 large with additional nuts at $2 each, Babi Pongteh and Ayam Kleo $16.50/$33, Babi Assam $18.50/$37, Ikan Panggang $31/$48, Fish Head $40, Premium Chap Chye $13/$26, and Kueh Pie Tee Set $13.50. Steamed rice is free flow with any main course, which the menu points out in as many words. WHAT WE COULD NOT VERIFY: the outlets' opening hours, which are still not published, so call before heading down. BEST FOR: eating this food cheaply and without ceremony, and for catering a reunion.

The halal option, and a deadline correction that changes what you should do about it. Permata is a MUIS halal-certified Nusantara buffet inside the historic yellow mansion, Gedung Kuning, at 73 Sultan Gate (S198497) in Kampong Glam. CONFIRMED THIS MONTH: the changeover we predicted has happened. Flavours of the East Coast opened on 1 September and runs to 31 October 2026 at exactly the same prices, and we have now read its full menu PDF, a journey through Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang curated by chef Mel Dean. Nor is this a National Day promotion, which is what we and everyone else called it: the May 2026 edition, Flavours of East Java, ran the identical 1-for-1 at the identical $88++ and $108++. The 1-for-1 is simply how Permata prices its buffet, with a new regional theme every month or two, so there is no name to quote at the door and no cliff to beat. THE PRICES: lunch is $88++ for two adults, Monday to Sunday 12pm to 2.30pm. Dinner is $108++ for two adults, Sunday to Friday 6pm to 9.30pm, and on Saturday in two fixed seatings, 5pm to 7pm and 7.30pm to 9.30pm. The $20 gap buys the grill station, which opens for dinner service only and is not available at lunch. THE BETTER DEAL FOR SENIORS, which is not a 1-for-1 at all: diners over 60 pay $38++ each at lunch and $44++ each at dinner, any day of the week. Since the 1-for-1 works out at $44++ and $54++ a head, a senior pays less alone than they would sharing, and does not need to bring anyone. CHILDREN: under 5 eat free, 5 to 6 are $10++, 7 to 12 are $20++ at lunch and $24++ at dinner, and 13 to 17 are $28++ at lunch and $34++ at dinner. THE HONEST CAVEAT, and it matters if you are coming for Peranakan food specifically: the ayam buah keluak, Nyonya laksa and Nyonya chang that the Flavours of the Lion City menu carried left with it on 31 August. The spread now on the table is nasi dagang, nasi kerabu goreng, ayam percik, keropok lekor, daging masak hitam and ayam tempoyak daun kesum, and of the Peranakan dishes only the kueh pie tee DIY station survives. Book it as a halal buffet at a heritage address, not as a Nyonya meal. Book through the restaurant's reservation system; weekend slots go early. BEST FOR: a halal group feast at a heritage address, and, if you are over 60, the cheapest buffet seat here by some distance.