Craving some off-the-beaten-track dining experiences? Then add these restaurants to your travel itinerary!
Being ardent foodies, Singaporeans, unsurprisingly, like to combine travel with culinary excursions. If you are looking to chalk up more unusual dining experiences, you may wish to check out these unconventional F&B concepts that also serve amazing food.
LABASIN WATERFALLS RESTAURANT, SAN PABLO CITY, PHILIPPINES
The Labasin Waterfalls Restaurant in San Pablo City is, as its name suggests, located near a waterfall. So near, in fact, that there’s a chance you may get drenched while having your meal. Situated amidst the Villa Escudero Plantations and Resort, this one-of-a-kind restaurant specialises in scrumptious Filipino-style seafood dishes served on bamboo tables. Guests can enjoy the cool breeze of the surrounding forest and sounds from the gushing waterfall while tucking into their meal. In case you’re wondering, the waterfall is not natural — it’s a runoff from the Labassin Dam, the Philippines’ first hydroelectric plant.
HAJIME RESTAURANT, BANGKOK, THAILAND
You may have read about robot hotels, but did you know that there’s also a Japanese restaurant run by robots a short plane ride away from Singapore. It works this way: You send your order via the restaurant’s tablet system, the kitchen prepares your food, then hands it over to the four robot waiters to serve. The restaurant has tables for shabu-shabu, sukiyaki and yakiniku. The robots use sensors to detect any used plates to clean up, and will stay out of the way if they detect hands or objects in their zone. When not rushed off their tracks, the robot waiters can even dance to K-pop tunes, thus entertaining guests as well as serving them.
ITHAA RESTAURANT, MALDIVES
You can literally dine under the ocean at Ithaa, the world’s first all-glass underwater restaurant. Rated the ‘most beautiful restaurant in the world’ by the New York Daily News in 2014, Ithaa is submerged 5m below sea level at the Conrad Maldives Rangali Island in the Alif Dhaal Atoll. It offers diners a 180-degree panoramic view of colourful corals and marine life. Ithaa — which means ‘mother of pearl’ in the Maldivian language of Dhivehi — showcases local cuisine blended with Western influences in its set lunch and dinner menus. Look forward to indulgences such as caviar for dinner. Also open for mid-morning cocktails, the restaurant can be booked privately for breakfast, weddings or other special occasions.
SNOW RESTAURANT, KEMI, FINLAND
Ensconced in a stunning castle made entirely of snow, the aptly named Snow Restaurant is located right on the Arctic Circle. It usually opens towards the end of January, when customers can savour a menu created from seasonal ingredients at temperatures -5 degree Celsius or below. Inside, guests sit on fur-topped tree stumps and at a table made of ice. The ice theme doesn’t stop there, as even the drinks — made from pressed local berries — are served in cups made of solid ice. For those craving something warmer, mulled wine and hot chocolate are also available. For the three-course dinner, you can expect delicacies such as fillet of reindeer with loganberry sauce. Lunch includes bread, a main course and apple pie.