• Allow me to paint you a picture: you and your partner are on board the Singapore Flyer. You enjoy a beautiful 360-degree view of the skyline from the comfort of your air-conditioned glass cabin, possibly with a wine in hand. A dedicated butler is at your service, ever ready to serve you a fine 3-course dinner. Does that sound fabulous?
The Singapore Flyer unveiled the world’s first full butler sky dining. We have been invited to partake in this one-of-a-kind dining experience. Perfect!
S$
Package rating:
Dinner timing: 7:30 / 8:30pm daily (book 1 day in advance)
From the start to the end, the service is top-notch. The experience? Simply magical!
Pre-boarding, we wait at the third-storey VIP lounge. As the timing coincides with the National Day Parade rehearsal, we can see the contingents marching by and the copters in the air from the open-air balcony.
Boarding time! A short distance away the regular passengers are queuing for an available cabin. But fret not; diners get priority boarding!
The usher brings us to our glass cabin where dining tables have been installed and a uniformed butler is waiting to serve us for the next one hour.
Each cabin accommodates a maximum of five couples. For full privacy, couples or groups of up to 10 can fork out $1,500 1,800 to book the entire cabin.
The 3-course menu is created by the chefs from Megu and changes monthly.
Wondering how the food is prepared and delivered as we’re soaring 165 metres into the air? Here’s how!
- A welcome drink and entrée are served during the first rotation (half hour).
- The main course is served during the second rotation (another half hour).
- The dessert, plus tea or coffee, is served afterward at the VIP lounge.
Rating:
Upon climbing on board and settling comfortably into our seats, we get our welcome drink of ginger ale with fresh berries, alongside bread and mineral water. It’s a sweet and refreshing concoction that magically puts everyone in a good mood. We love it!
Course: Entrée
Rating:
Then it’s time for the entrée of cured Norwegian salmon. The intriguing combination of spices, dressing and fresh apple teases the taste buds, sending off pulses of pleasure with each bite.
If the chef’s aim was to create a melange of contrasting flavours, he has certainly succeeded. This is one savoury dish that whets our appetite for more!
Apart from the food and the service, what makes this meal truly amazing is the panoramic view of the Singapore skyline at night. The wheel starts from the west, showing the quieter heartlands, before turning to the busy down town and scenic waterfront.
My shoddy video captures the latter portion. On the left you would see the next cabin in a constantly changing multitude of colours. Towards the right is the floating stadium, where the National Day Parade rehearsal is taking place. (Soundtrack: Michael Jackson – Stranger in Moscow)
(At this point the butler takes our orders for the main course – either fish or duck.)
Our cabin approaches the platform at the end of the half-hour rotation. While the regular passengers from the next cabin disembark, having already reached the end of their ride, we remain on board as our dinner package consists of two rotations instead of the usual one. Yeah!
If I remember correctly, the cabin never actually comes to a full stop. Even when it’s already at the platform, it is still rotating, albeit very slowly. You can imagine how the waitstaff must have scrambled to get all our food on board before we spin off into the skies once more!
(During the first rotation, the butler must have already intercom-ed or walkie-talkied our orders to the kitchen. I hadn’t noticed as I was too engrossed in the view!)
Course: Main
Rating:
On our second and final rotation now. We get our main courses here. Not being a fan of duck at all, I have ordered the pan-seared sea bass. The fish is lightly-seasoned, and a tad dry. While the portion surely is generous, I think it can do better in the taste (and looks) department.
Course: Main
Rating:
The alternative main course of roast duck confit is a more flavourful dish. That said, I do find the natural flavour of the duck rather heavy and overpowering. Of course, I don’t like the fatty bits at all, but I know some people really dig that stuff.
While I’ll be frank to confess that I haven’t enjoyed either of the mains, I’ll also be fair to add that the chefs behind the scene are working under an extremely tight schedule. From the time the butler first takes our orders to when the food is served, it must have been under 20 minutes. That surely isn’t much time to perfect the dishes. Across the table people seem to find the food okay, so I guess I must be the picky eater!
The best part of the whole sky dining experience is that we get to see the entire fireworks extravaganza from way up high! No matter how many times you’ve seen fireworks, it never gets old :)
Look out for the star-shaped and heart-shaped fireworks. They are adorable! I have to remind myself that this is just the rehearsal. I’ll bet that the fireworks display on the actual day (August 9) would be even more breathtaking!
For those of you who have been on the Flyer before, have you noticed that just as the ride is coming to an end, it descends to these miniature buildings?
I spot the upcoming Marina Bay Sands in their midst. Can you tell which buildings are really there and which ones are the miniatures?
After the two rotations that have taken slightly longer than an hour (which is a good thing!), we are ushered back to the VIP lounge for desserts.
The waitress takes our order for tea or coffee and serves the chocolate soufflé. This is basically a chocolate lava cake, with molten dark chocolate at its centre.
Course: Dessert
Rating:
The wall of cake is slightly dry, and would have fared better if it’s served warmer. The plating is pretty, but I am kind of missing the scoop of ice cream that is usually served with this dessert.
On the whole, I feel that this package has been priced reasonably. For comparison’s sake, the usual adult ticket costs $29.50 for a half-hour rotation.
Here’s a summary of what the $199 249++ couple package includes:
- 2 rotations for both adults (4 rotations overall, loosely speaking)
- Express boarding (skip the queue and feel awesome!)
- Dedicated service throughout
- 3-course meal
- Coffee and tea in VIP lounge
If you are looking to surprise someone with the most unforgettable dining experience, this sky dinner would be hard to top, literally! The $199++ price tag is an “introductory” one, so I’m not sure if it would stay the same for long.
Better yet, make your reservations for the next two Saturdays. Who knows? You may even get to catch a glimpse of the fireworks!
30 Raffles Avenue #01-07
Singapore 039803
Tel: +65 6854 5200 | Website
Service:
Bus services: 36, 70M, 75, 77, 97, 97E, 106, 111, 133, 162M, 171, 195, 502, 502A, 502B, 700A, 857, 960, 961C
Nearest MRT: City Hall
Jul 29, 2009
7
Wow, 199 for 2.. Imagine the luxury of the experience, it mut have been a feeling that is sipmly out of this world..! Nice..!
Jul 30, 2009
3472
Indeed!
Next to try: Sky dining in cable car!
Aug 3, 2009
1
I always love reading your posts and never have time to post, but this one, I had to respond!!! What a beautiful romantic idea, I mean, aside from thinking it would not be ‘kid’ friendly or feeling any type of moving sickness, I think it is quite romantic and beautiful, brilliant idea, I have never heard of such a thing and this is the longest run-on sentence ever, Love it! If I ever get to visit, this is the first place I would like to dine! I love your review on here, perfect explanation of the food and love the pictures and clips!!! I wonder though if it would be kid friendly, I can not imagine LOL!
Aug 3, 2009
3472
Thank you for finally posting a comment! :D
Yes, this is romantic alright. Just the view alone is probably good enough. But you get to dine on board, too, and for two rotations instead than the usual one! After your “flight”, you end the night with a dessert. How nice!
That said, unless you book the whole cabin, you would be sharing it with 3 or 4 other couples (and the butler). So while it’s still all very romantic, you may not get all the privacy you want. Hehe :)
Actually I think children would be fine on the Flyer, unless they are afraid of heights. (Plus, the child tickets are cheaper, too.)
Aug 11, 2009
6
Nice one.
I might visit here.
$199 for couple packages in such a luxury place is reasonable.
I will visit here when i visit sg next month!
Aug 11, 2009
3472
Excellent! This is perfect for tourists that want a sky-high view of the Singapore scenery at night, with a meal to boot!
When I go travelling to other cities, I make it a point to find a good spot to admire such scenery, too. There’s Baiyoke Sky Hotel and Sirocco rooftop bar in Bangkok, Tokyo Tower and Kyoto Tower in Japan!
Aug 12, 2009
3
have u heard of the resturant that is under water or the one that is basicaly all focused around toleits and things of that nature?
i have also heard of one that have ediable menus.
if you ever get 2 go 2 any of these i would love 2 know about it!
:)
Aug 12, 2009
3472
Looks like you have a taste for novelties! I have heard of that underwater restaurant and even one where diners sit on toilets and eat from toilet-shaped bowls. But this is the first time I’m hearing about the edible menus! It sounds fun though lol!
In Singapore we have a restaurant-bar called The Clinic. The place is hospital-themed, where diners sit on wheelchairs and eat from surgical tables!
Aug 15, 2009
1
Hey Veron,
Got the tickets for night Race at singapore Flyer 688++ Package, gonna call my Girl friend from Vietnam hope it will be exciting.
Did you attend the race lats year, any suggestions.
Regards
tAnDy
Aug 17, 2009
3472
You sure got yourself a luxury ride! I didn’t get any ticket last year but I happened to pass by a spot where I managed to catch part of the action! I think you are definitely getting a far better and clearer view from the Flyer. You can see the entire race from above!
Aug 22, 2009
1
Heeey. came across this post. I hv been desperately searching for ideas for me&my bf’s 1 year anni. Wanted to try the cable car sky dinning but , it’s services will be closed due to renovations. sadly. But this is such a great idea! :) I was want to enquire tho, if there isn’t like 5 couples..will they still continue.. i dont think they are able to get like 5 couples everyday right >< lol
Aug 23, 2009
3472
Yes, this would be perfect for spending a special romantic occasion like an anniversary. Hmm… I haven’t seen any small print stating that the dinner rides would run only if enough couples booked the rides. Anyways to be safe, I would call them up and find out first!
Sep 11, 2009
1
i went for the cable car dining.and the food was good.so was the service and view=).
Sep 11, 2009
3472
I’ve always been curious about cable car dining. And you’ve given me more reasons to go for it. Thanks :)
Feb 9, 2010
1
I was curious about too…..
So that means I can eat front of the flyer or eat inside..
Feb 11, 2010
3472
Inside the glass cabin honey.
Apr 5, 2011
1
So if you were to do the couple dinner for two package from $249++, would you be in a cabin with other people as well? if so, how many?
Apr 5, 2011
3472
The cabin accommodates 5 couples. So unless you book the entire cabin, you would be sharing it with others.