Four Seasons, Singapore

[Keith009]

Four Seasons, Singapore
190 Orchard Blvd

(Pictures were a joint effort between my partner and myself)

I was to redeem some SPG points and stay at the St Regis (hey, the alternative is the Sheraton...) when the boyf and I visited Singapore as part of our Easter trip, but ended up here after being arm twisted by a friend whom I used to go to school with. I've not been in contact with said friend for a while - ahh, the wonders of facebook. We had a jolly good time catching up via facebook and she mentioned that she's recently found work in Singapore at the Four Seasons hotel. A cut price rate with room upgrades and brekky thrown in later, not to mention the chance to try out a hotel I’d otherwise never think of trying - I was convinced and duly canceled my St Regis booking (and instead used the points I saved on the W Hong Kong) and moved my stay in Singapore to the Four Seasons.

Initially I was rather apprehensive as the taxi made its way up the drive way. I've seen pictures of the room on the website, looks v nice especially as the rooms were refurbished fairly recently - but the website doesn't advise whether the service was going to be over the top and stuffy like most traditional luxury hotels, and the Four Seasons seems a rather traditional one.

On arrival, a rather chirpy porter came out to the taxi to welcome us to the hotel and ferry our bags away. Managed to banter with him a little. Good first impression - the service is subtle and was a breath of fresh air from the stiff automatons or the synthetically affable staff at many so called luxury hotels. They might not immediately chum up to you you but then again FS has a rather different target demographic from hotels like the New Majestic or the W.

Lobby decor was pretty standard and conventional 5 stars. Nothing too exciting there.

Upon check in was told I've been upgraded even further to a Premier Room (we were assigned a Deluxe Room before, but paying a rate that's below even the cheapest room category on their website). At which point my friend popped out from nowhere to say hi. I think it's 'contacts' like these that makes a difference to the hotel stay, as she was so eager for us to enjoy the hotel that she made certain arrangements that wouldn't otherwise be possible. For instance, I suspect the multiple category upgrades didn't come by magic, not for a first time guest anyway.

We were shown to our room. It was a corner room, as big as some 'junior suites' i have been upgraded to at Starwood properties. The design is contemporary and stylish, with a subtle Asian accent and some classic elements in the mix. The bed had to be one of the most comfy I've ever slept on, on par with W's Wonderful Bed and even better than Westin's Heavenly Bed (latter of which lacks consistency between property anyway); we were told that Four Seasons is famous for its beds and I could see why. The mattress (Sealy IIRC) was one of those v nice pillowtop variety and was as soft as can be, with many extra layers piled on.

welcome yummies - not sure whether this is standard but it did come with a v nice note from my friend

 

[Keith009]

The very spacious and functional bathroom came with nice lemon-flavoured L’Occitaine amenities. It had enough room to rival our guest room at home.

Where this hotel truly excels is its bar. On the surface this might seem like a typical, staid luxury hotel bar. But it makes some mean coughtails. The mojito is a must-try – very uniquely, calamansi rather than key lime is used which did a lot to enhance this favourite coughtail of mine. And the huge frozen margaritas and daiquiris have to be sampled to be believed. And where’s the most delicious Singapore Sling to be found? Forget the pre-mixed Slings at the Raffles Hotel. The Four Seasons’ Slings have got to be a contender!

The service was of a rather high standard throughout our stay. The staff were very helpful, especially the porters and the concierge desk yet also with that light and personable touch. The porters all remembered our names without prompting which was pretty impressive.

We tried the restaurant One Ninety on our second night there. Even though it was dinner time, my friend was eager for us to try the newly launched lunch menu by the restaurant’s new executive chef, and gained permission from the kitchen for us to eat from the lunch menu. We were told that in a departure from the previous menus, the imcumbent chef was focussed on simple, traditional yet gourmet meals that allow the diner to experience the freshness of ingredients used and do away with the 101 sauces, foams etc that he deems overpowering. I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves but suffice to say – the food tastes as good as it looks! And even better with the 50% staff discount for my friend was dining with us. Wine list was a bit limited but we were able to enjoy a wine we'd brought over with us, meant as a prezzie for my friend - with the corkage waived.

pea soup with truffles - simply delicious, truffles are my favourite and the portions here are generous

braised ox cheek - i had this one, defo a must try!

Milanese style pork

Chicken - of some description, i can't remember

We made it to breakfast on one morning - quite a standard spread like other Asian hotels with a mix of continental and hot choices, along with the all important egg station.

The location of this hotel is right around the corner from Orchard Rd, which can be accessed by either going down Orchard Blvd or through the Hilton shopping gallery which is connected to the Four Seasons via a linked indoor walkway. Orchard MRT station is also in close proximity, so very handy for getting to other parts of Singapore if you yearn for more than shopping.

Highly recommended, if you don’t mind the lack of loyalty program affiliation. At the moment it’s a hard pick for me between this and the New Majestic, latter of which I absolutely adore primarily for its edgy decor and great location amongst interesting bars and cafes.