The dining scene along Upper Thomson Road is buzzing with life, with a myriad of old and new restaurants coexisting along the long food stretch. Some of these places have been around for decades while others are only a few months old.
From the famous 24-hours Meng’s Kitchen to Pacamara Boutique Coffee Roasters, we present to you the guide to top eateries, cafes and restaurants in Upper Thomson.
#1 BADOQUE CAFE
Halal-certified Badoque Cafe has a comprehensive menu extending from Singaporean cuisine, Greek, Mediterranean to Middle Eastern. Best-selling dishes include their massive fork-tender signature Badoque Ribs ($36) and burst-in-your-mouth Jalapeno Cheese Poppers (S$12.50). It is also worth mentioning that the staff is incredibly friendly and helpful – an unfortunate rarity in Singapore’s hospitality.
246 Upper Thomson Road
Singapore 574370
Tel: +65 6552 1646
Mon to Thu: 12pm – 10pm
Fri: 2.30pm – 10pm
Sat and Sun: 12pm – 10pm
Nearest Station: Marymount
#2 BISCUIT KING
A visit to Biscuit King will have you instantly teleported to the past. Endless silver tins containing traditional biscuits are piled atop of each other and the vast variety is pretty damn impressive. We were thrilled to see our all-time childhood favourite ais gem biscuits, chocolate wafer sticks, pineapple jam filled biscuits and whatnot. How nostalgic.
130 Casuarina Road
Singapore 579518
Tel: +65 6458 0925
Mon: Closed
Tue to Sun: 11am – 10pm
Nearest Station: Marymount / Ang Mo Kio
#3 BAN LEONG WAH HOE SEAFOOD
Ban Leong Wah Hoe Seafood is packed with hungry diners daily despite the lack of visibility from the main streets. Its slight inaccessibility is clearly not a deterrent as foodies would travel all the way to Casuarina to satisfy their fresh seafood cravings.
Besides their famous chilli crabs and black pepper crabs, Ban Leong Wah Hoe is also renowned for their mouthwatering authentic tze char. Must-order dishes include fragrant Har Cheong Gai (prawn paste chicken wings); crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside. Opened till 1.30AM daily, you now know where you can visit when the hunger pangs strike at midnight.
122 Casuarina Road
Tel: +65 6452 2824
Daily: 5pm – 1.30am
Nearest Station: Ang Mo Kio/Yio Chu Kang
#4 BLACK SHEEP CAFÉ
Tucked away in the basement of Thomson V Two, Black Sheep Café’s secluded location renders an unlikely accidental visit. Instead, the French restaurant solely relies on its regular patrons and word-of-mouth recommendations. Do treat yourself to their popular Duck Confit (S$26.50++) served on Apple Roesti and Tangy Mango Relish.
#B1-30, Thomson V Two
11 Sin Ming Road
Singapore 575629
Tel: +65 6459 5373
Mon: Closed
Tue to Thu: 11.30am – 3pm, 6pm – 11pm
Fri to Sun: 11.30am – 11pm
Nearest Station: Marymount
#5 CASUARINA CURRY RESTAURANT
Award-winning Casuarina Curry Restaurant is a prata paradise with over 45 different variations! This popular restaurant has been around for decades and its menu remains inexpensive albeit its roaring success in the food and beverage industry. Pratas start from S$1 each.
Here is a good news for all prata lovers – you can now even attend Casuarina Curry’s Prata Making Workshop at only S$15 per pax. The workshop is 2 hours long and you are entitled to a free drink and unlimited prata.
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138 Casuarina Road
Tel: +65 6455 9093
Daily: 7am – 12midnight
Nearest Station: Ang Mo Kio/Yio Chu Kang
#6 E-SARN THAI CORNER
E-Sarn Thai Corner is a family restaurant that serves authentic North-Eastern Thai Cuisine at very affordable prices. We were instantly sold after digging into the aromatic plate of Seafood Pad Thai (small – S$8.50, large – S$14.50) and fresh coconut (S$4.50). E-Sarn Thai Corner first opened in 2010 but its history dates back to 1994, where its founder started up her first humble shop in a hawker.
9 Thomson Ridge
Tel: +65 6554 4174
Wed to Mon (closed on Tue): 11.30am – 10pm
Nearest Station: Ang Mo Kio/Marymount
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#7 FAT BOY’S THE BURGER BAR
At Fat Boy’s, it’s go fat or go home. The massiveness of the burgers is what makes it most attractive. Indulge in the sinful Fat Bastard (S$19.80); double beef patties, extra thick bacon, cheesy cheddar and a fried egg in between the fluffy sesame buns, or challenge the chef’s creation with your imagination.
Fat Boy’s launch of build-your-burger allows patrons to experiment with a long list of patties, sauces, bun and add-ons. Fat Boy’s also serve a large variety of American dishes such as mac and cheese (S$13), hot dog (S$13) and spaghetti meatballs (S$14).
187 Upper Thomson Road
Tel: +65 6252 8780
Mon to Thu: 4pm – 12midnight
Fri to Sun: 12pm – 12midnight
Nearest Station: Ang Mo Kio/Marymount
The same people behind the now-defunct November 8 has opened a brand new cafe & bar concept in the same Thomson V One Building and it is called Five by Five (5 x 5).
The casual establishment is decked in an all-white interior with minimalistic wooden furnishings. Five by Five is one of the rare few cafes in Singapore that opens till midnight daily (except for Tuesdays).
9 Sin Min Road
#01-03, Thomson V One
Singapore 575630
Mon: 11am – 12am
Tue: Closed
Wed to Fri: 11am – 12am
Sat to Sun: 10am – 12am
Nearest Station: Marymount
Habitat Coffee needs no further introduction. Packed to the brim on weekends and even weekdays, this café is indeed causing quite a commotion in Upper Thomson and on Instagram.
While Habitat’s food remains subjective to those with discerning palates, it certainly serves one of the better coffees in Singapore. They are passionate in bringing different coffee blends of varying origins and each dine-in coffee is complemented with the tastiest caramel biscuit.
223 Upper Thomson Road
Tel: +65 6456 2567
Tue to Sun: 10am – 10pm
Nearest Station: Ang Mo Kio/Marymount
#10 HWA NAM RESTAURANT
Hwa Nam is an old-school Cantonese restaurant serving dim sums till late. It is one of the few restaurants that still exudes the vibes of old Singapore. This coffee shop house has an enticing entrance – bamboo steam baskets containing the delicate dim sums stacked on top of each other.
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Upon order, the dim sums would be heated up and served to your table (or in takeout boxes). The homely dim sums served are quite limited in terms of variety but one can also order roasted meat or tze char from the same restaurant for a heavier meal.
Thomson Garden Estate
244F Upper Thomson Road
Tel: +65 6453 3645
Daily: 7am – 12midnight
Nearest Station: Ang Mo Kio/Marymount
#11 KAMPUNG CHICKEN RICE
As its shop name suggests, Kampung Chicken Rice is renowned for their Kampung Chicken Rice. We were blown away by how delicate and moist the fragrantly poached chicken were. The free-range chicken meat way were significantly leaner and tasted a lot healthier.
255 Upper Thomson Road
Singapore 574382
Tel: +65 6456 0698
Daily: 10.30am – 9.30pm
Nearest Station: Marymount
#12 MENG’S KITCHEN
Meng’s Kitchen is opened 24 hours daily and although it sells a large selection of Chinese food, 99% of its customers are there for their heavenly bak chor mee (minced pork noodles). Competition in Upper Thomson’s food stretch makes it tough to thrive but everyone knows that Meng’s remains unaffected by threats.
While service and cleanliness are from subpar, the piping hot bowl of goodness will make you overlook the sticky tables and rowdy staff. Despite having hundreds of bowls, our love for Meng’s Bak Chor Mee remains loyal and sturdy.
Thomson Garden Estate
246B Upper Thomson Road
Tel: +65 6455 4890
Daily: 24 hours
Nearest Station: Ang Mo Kio/Marymount
#13 MENYA MUSASHI
Menya Musashi made its very first debut in Tokyo around two decades ago and has successfully stood out from its competitors with its comprehensive variety of ramen. You can choose to dip their signature ramen Tsukemen (from S$14.90) in white, black, spicy or tomato tonkotsu broth or sample other choices such as Yakibuta Sword Ramen (S$19.90) and Tokyo Akiba Curry Ramen (S$14.90).
301 Upper Thomson Road
#01-112, Thomson Plaza
Singapore 574408
Tel: +65 6554 7120
Daily: 11.30am – 10pm
Nearest Station: Marymount
#14 MOO KA TA HUAY HWANG THAI
Such is the popularity of Moo Ka Ta Huay Kwang Thai @ Thomson, that the Thai Charcoal Steamboat restaurant is almost full house every day. The dome shaped cooking appliance acts as a grill and a BBQ grill.
Pork lard is placed above the bulging top sphere to accelerate the cooking process while soup fills the hollow trough for the boiling of food. Set meals start from S$39.90 (for two people) and offers a variety of meats, seafood and vegetables.
244R Upper Thomson Road
Red House Coffee Shop
Tel: +65 8588 9990
Sun to Thu: 5pm – 11pm
Fri & Sat: 5pm – 2am
Nearest Station: Ang Mo Kio/Marymount
Being hidden is trending right now and One Man Coffee is doing an excellent job. One Man Coffee shares the same venue as Crust Pizza and you will not see its signboard until you near the entrance of Crust Pizza.
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Espresso blends are being rotated from time to time but consistency of coffee remains satisfying. Its most popular blend would be The Axil’s Seasonal, directly imported from Melbourne, Australia but sourced from Brazil and Colombia. Other than the coffee, must-order would definitely be their signature brioche French toast (S$10).
215R Upper Thomson Road
Daily: 9am – 5pm
Nearest Station: Ang Mo Kio/Marymount
#16 PACAMARA BOUTIQUE COFFEE ROASTERS
Pacamara Boutique Coffee Roasters is one of the new kids on the block, but not that new if you are familiar with OZ Specialty Coffee. Formerly located at the other part of Upper Thomson, the brand has undergone a major revamp and repositioning and now sits proudly as Pacamara at the edge of the busy stretch of Upper Thomson. It is a much bigger scale, with a proper dine-in space because they serve more than coffee and desserts now.
185 Upper Thomson Road
Tue to Sun: 9am – 11pm
Nearest Station: Ang Mo Kio/Marymount
Salted Caramel is a popular ice cream parlour that boasts dozens of unique flavours. Besides the best seller salted caramel, other popular flavours include earl grey and horlick tim tam. Salted Caramel offers good ice cream and waffles at reasonable prices.
If you are on a strict diet, you may be comforted by the fact that the ice cream served in Salted Caramel uses only natural ingredients where no artificial sweeteners and no preservatives are added.
246F Upper Thomson Road
Sun to Thu: 12pm – 11pm
Fri, Sat & Eve of PH: 12pm – 2am
Nearest Station: Ang Mo Kio/Marymount
#18 THAI IN TOWN
Fusion Bistro Thai In Town is the go-to place when you are craving for Thai cuisine yet unwilling to compromise on the AC facilities. With its cafe-like decors, diners might find themselves confused initially. Whilst the highly raved about Thai Wanton Mee was a tad disappointing, we actually did enjoy their Green Curry Chicken with Roti / Rice (S$12.90) and Prawn Sticks (S$10.90).
244P Upper Thomson Road
Singapore 574369
Tel: +65 8687 9990
Daily: 11.30am – 11pm
Nearest Station: Marymount
#19 THE FAMOUS ICE CREAM ROLLS
Granted, it requires a certain amount of courage to proclaim oneself as The Famous Ice Cream Rolls Shop and that further sparked our curiosity to check them out. This newest addition to Thomson V Two is a cosy Halal establishment selling mainly Ice Cream Rolls with a humble cafe seating.
At S$3.90 a cup, you can select from 6 yummy flavours and it comes with 2 toppings. For additional toppings, you can get it at S$0.50 each. So is it really so good that they deserve their name? We say it is definitely worth a try!
The Famous Ice Cream Rolls Shop is also listed in our guide to the 5 Fried Ice Cream Rolls You Must Try in Singapore.
Thomson V Two
11 Sin Ming Road, #01-12
Singapore 575629
Tue to Sun: 1pm – 10pm
Closed on Monday
Nearest Station: Marymount
#20 THE GOOD TRIO
Located on the ground level of Thomson Plaza is an underrated oriental restaurant called The Good Trio. The unassuming casual eatery offers delicious traditional Chinese cuisine at reasonable prices and is a perfect dining venue for families. Premium set menus start at S$24++ per pax, where diners get to savour steamed pork dumplings, deep-fried fish, spinach, double-boiled pork rib / chicken soup, a main course and a complimentary dessert.
301 Upper Thomson Road
Thomson Plaza, #01-111
Singapore 574408
Tel: +65 6457 1379
Daily: 11.30am – 3pm (last order 2.30pm), 5.30pm – 10pm (last order 9.30pm)
Nearest Station: Marymount
#21 THE ROTI PRATA HOUSE
The best crispy roti prata according to The New Paper is found right in The Roti Prata House. The pratas achieve their insanely crispy texture after being deep-fried in a deep pool of vegetable oil, making it a sinful yet satisfying dish.
Sweet pratas such as kaya pratas and strawberry pratas are also available to those who are looking for something less conventional. Other mains include nasi briyani and mee goreng in endless variations. The Roti Prata house opens 24 hours on Friday and Saturday, which makes it an ideal supper place.
246M Upper Thomson Road
Tel: +65 6459 5260
Fri & Sat: 24 hours
Sun to Thu: 7am – 2am
Nearest Station: Ang Mo Kio/Marymount
#22 YI JIA BAKERY HOUSE CAFE
Finding budget snacks in a café along Upper Thomson Road did not seem quite possible but Yi Jia Bakery House Café successfully proved us wrong. It is an Asian bakery-cum-cafe selling mainly local breads and pastries.
One can expect all-day traditional kaya butter toast sets and other local sweet delights such as the soft pillowy coffee buns. Durian lovers would be pleased to hear that Bakery House Café’s tasty durian puffs are at only S$0.50 each. What a steal!
Thomson Ridge Estate
229 Upper Thomson Road
Tel: +65 6456 1677
Daily: 7am – 9pm
#23 WINDOWSILL PIES
A whimsical cafe tucked between a row of shophouses, Windowsill Pies serves artisanal pies together with a range of coffee and other savoury food. Their pies are a must-try and the top-selling favourites are the Grasshopper Pie (S$7.50), a mint pie with chocolate brownie within and Strawberry Lemon (S$7).
95 Soo Chow Walk
Singapore 575382
Tel: +65 9004 7827
Tue to Thu: 11am – 11pm
Fri: 11am – 12midnight
Sat: 10am – 12midnight
Sun: 10am – 10pm
Nearest Station: Marymount
About the writer:
Hui Jun Ng is a staff writer for ladyironchef. She previously worked in the food and marketing industry. She loves traveling and enjoys exploring underrated destinations. In her free time, you will find her indulging in coffee and her all time favourite local dish – bak chor mee.
Hi Brad,
I believe that you’ve left out Black Sheep Cafe at Thomson V Two under the guide to where to eat at upper thomson road. It has since moved from Mayo Street.
Cheers,
Tim
black sheep cafe you likely can give it a miss food portions are small ~prices have gone up like rocket.
nothing is worth mention
Hi – Which restaurant provides the dish that is featured in your cover page? The hot pan with eggs – a little like Tunisian Bfast?
@Tim Hello Tim, haven’t had the chance to check out Black Sheep Cafe since their shift from Mayo Street. Will check it out soon.
@Hungry: The eggs are from Habitat Cafe.
black sheep cafe serves good duck confit.
for oz cafe, its really a tiny cafe with almost no indoor seating and you actually sit outside with people and dogs walking past you. No privacy.
Yahava KoffeeWorks does great coffee too, just off Upper Thomson Road.
Hi, which is the cafe tt serves the 2 eggs shown on the over photo ? Tks!
Hi, Yahava koffeeworks has great coffee and a chill vibe!
Hello just wanted to say the nearest MRT to some places are actually Bishan/Marymount MRT not AMK as there aren’t as many direct buses that brings you to most of the places along Upper Thomson. AMK only applies to the area nearer to Casuarina or Sembawang Hill Food Centre. YCK has a direct bus to Upper Thomson if you take bus 162/162M but it wouldn’t go to Casuarina or SHFC. #justsayin
Two corner tsze char, the one with the aston cafe is more tasty. Sharksfin $4 sms bowl.
The famous silky tofu.
#17 RIDA LA CUISINE is closed! A new korean dessert stall has opened! Quite nice.
Dim sum at hwa nam is a great disappointmemt, food is not fresh and very basic tasting despite a huge selection. I would strike that off the recommended list.