Bitters & Love

Bitters & Love has been quietly winning awards since 2013 and the Tanjong Pagar neighbourhood has grown up around it. What makes it special is the combination of accessibility and quality that most cocktail bars fail to balance. Walk in without a reservation on a Tuesday night and you will find bartenders who know your name by your second visit, a menu that covers everything from impeccable classics to house originals, and a back bar of over 80 whiskies that rewards exploration.

The Art Deco inspired interior is small and warm — cream tiles, brass fittings, amber light. It feels like a bar that has been here forever even though it opened in the craft cocktail era. The Singapore Daisy is their signature and deservedly so: rum, elderflower, lime and cucumber built with precision and a lightness that makes it dangerously drinkable. The Singapore Cocktail Festival has named it among the city's best bars multiple times. This is the bar you would take someone who thinks they do not like cocktails.