Share the love: Written by Marshall TooAsking me to choose my favourite bubble tea is like asking me to choose my favourite child. In which case, I pick Koi. NUS Business undergraduate that gets a bit too excited about food.
Stop wasting your money on overpriced buffets that just aren’t worth it. If you have a craving and you want to satisfy it endlessly with just that without thinking about the price tag. You have come to the right place. From Korean BBQs, Shabu Shabu to Dimsum buffets – In the words of Taylor Swift, “I could show you incredible things.” 1. Little Ice Cream Kafe (LICK)
The ice cream buffet here runs only on fridays from 2 – 4pm and 6 – 8pm. You are entitled to as many waffles as you would like with your gelato inclusive of toppings. The buffet procedure is rather simple; queue behind the counter and pick which flavors of ice cream you would like. Help yourself to the waffles at the side. I recommend the Avocado gelato, they capture the natural buttery flavor perfectly without it being too sweet. Something most half-baked ice cream cafes compensate by drowning their ice cream with Gula Melaka. Pffft. Try their Kaya Ice cream here too, something I bet you’ve never seen anywhere else. Address: 258 Tanjong Katong Road | http:// | Opening hours: Sun – Thu: 13:00 – 23:00 Fri – Sat: 11:00 – 00:00 2. KISEKI
$19.80++ for weekday lunches for free flow sashimi, chawamushi and fresh seafood. Kiseki is the Singapore standard to what a good buffet deal should be about. They have an extensive list of Japanese cuisine that includes yakitori, tempura and teppanyaki too. Their dessert bar is pretty good too, hosting a variety of cakes, mochi and gelatos with interesting flavors like yuzu and wasabi – Kiseki never disappoints. As a tip, make a reservation before you come or risk waiting an entire hour to get in. I have tried too many times hoping otherwise and ended up with the dreaded wait. Address: #08-01/02/03, Orchard Central, 181 Orchard Road | http:///index.html | Opening hours: Daily 11:30 – 15:00 and 18:00 – 22:30 3. SUKI-YA
I will be the first to say that SUKIYA does not have an extensive selection. They have the right bases covered for a good Shabu Shabu – enoki, oden, different vegetables like cabbage and carrots to flavor the soup. The prices here though are what really deserves a shoutout. On weekdays from 11am – 3.30pm, the second diner enjoys the buffet menu at only $12.90++ bringing price per person down to only $16 (u.p. $18.90/pax). On weekday nights, groups of 4 or more enjoy a 25% off – bringing the price to $18.90++. They have many outlets strewn across Singapore. East to west, from Bukit Panjang, Plaza Sing, Bugis + to Tampines mall, SUKIYA is the perfect place to arrange a catch up with friends over good old Shabu Shabu. Address: 68 Orchard Road #04-63/67 Plaza Singapura Singapore 238839 | Tel: 6884 5423 | Opening hours: Monday – Thursday: 11:30am – 10:00pm Friday – Sunday: 11:30am – 10:30pm| Refer here for a list of all their other outlets 4. SSIKKEK Korean BBQ
As per most Korean BBQs buffets in Singapore, you have a wide variety of meats with different cuts that range from pork collar, boneless chicken to marinated beef strips. A weekday lunch here is only at $14.90++. Their cooked menu is limited to a few dishes like sweet potato, Topoki and onion pancakes but it doesn’t bother me much though. When it comes down to kBBQ, I am only in it for the meat so the limited cooked menu is fine. They have 4 outlets in Singapore, Junction 10, United Square, Tanjong Pagar and Chinatown. They do not have a main website so you will have to google these individual outlets yourself. Also, check out their April promotion at the United Square outlet where weekend lunches are at $18/pax ++! Address: 101 Thomson Road, Singapore 307591 (United Square Outlet) | 6254 8123 | Opening Hours for Lunch: 11:30am ~ 2:30pm (Daily Except PH) for Dinner: Sun ~ Thur, PH : 5:30pm ~ 12am Fri, Sat, Day Before PH : 5:30pm ~ 2am 5. House of Steamboat
Inside the store, there is a decent selection of YTF to choose from, Taupok, meatballs, fishballs, fish maw etc. It is in my personal opinion that most steamboat food usually tastes the same anyway so I am not too picky about food. There is also an alar carte menu you order simple dishes like fried chicken drumlets, fried fish and mantous from. You can pay an extra $2 to have a grill for your food but I don’t find it necessary. I like to come here for weekend dinners with old friends over steamboat. At only $20nett per pax, you cannot find anything cheaper for a weekend buffet dinner. Don’t dress too nice if you’re paying the place a visit, everyone works up a little sweat during steamboat. Address: 7 Tan Quee Lan St, Singapore 188096 | Tel number: +65 63362875 | Open daily from 12pm – 12am 6. Shabu Sai Shabu Sai has seasonal soup broths from time to time. Like their Yuzu salt beauty ‘collagen’ soup in july last year. I always fall back on the Tonkotsu soup base anyway, it’s a safer option. They serve the usual Shabu Shabu, 3 meats with a healthy array of vegetables, sushi and ice-cream on the side for dessert. With 6 outlets throughout Singapore mainly in central (Clarke Quay, Orchard Central,Suntec City) and the east (Changi City point, Eastpoint) with one outlet in the north (Causeway point), I recommend coming here for lunch on weekdays ($16.50++). The place still hits below the budget at $18.50++ on weekends too though. Address: 181 Orchard Road, 08-09/10/11 Orchard Central, Singapore 238896 | Opening hours: Mon – Fri: 11:00 – 15:00 and 18:00 – 22:00 Sat – Sun: 11:30 – 22:30 | Refer here for a full list of their other outlets mentioned earlier 7. Swensens Dessert Buffet (ION Orchard)Free flow waffles with brownies and cakes to pair with over 50 different ce cream types of your choice. The buffet runs 7 days a week and is exclusive to their Ion Orchard outlet. It does not come cheap though with the extended variety, the buffet is priced at $18.90 per pax. $12.90 if you get a main course separately before that. I recommend this place only for the dessert junkie because only those with a sweet tooth can appreciate what they have here free flow. No where else can you get such an extensive range of gelato and ice cream with 40 types of toppings and a mix-in service too. Forget that silly Marble Slab Groupon deal, Swensen’s dessert buffet is the real deal. Address: (Located inside Orchard Central) 2 Orchard Turn, #B1-31 | Tel: 68845967 | Opening hours: [Weekdays] 10.30am – 10.30pm [Weekends & PH] 8am-10.30pm 8. Kim Korean Zubir
A stone’s throw away from SOTA, the place is ridiculously priced at only $14++ on weekday lunches. Students have it even better with a special price at $12.90. At prices like these, I dare say it is one of the cheapest kBBQs in Singapore. As per most Korean BBQ places, Kim Korean Zubir has the standard meat cuts with a cooked selection a tad bit more than Sikeiski. Dishes like fried chicken, ginseng soup, nuggets as a lead up to the Korean meats. There is only one drawback though, the place lacks smoke chimneys so you will stink a bit after the meal but at these prices I honestly could not care less. Address: School Of The Arts Singapore, 1 Zubir Said Drive #01-04/07 Singapore 227968 (Dhoby Ghaut) | Tel: 6238 7218 | Opening hours: Mon – Fri: 11:30 – 14:30, Mon – Fri: 17:00 – 23:00 and Sat – Sun: 11:30 – 23:00 9. Lao BeijingWhile this buffet might be on the cheaper end ($13.99/pax during weekday High Tea) , the one caveat to it is the awkward eating timing from 3 – 5pm. Have a heavy brunch before coming to Lao Beijing for your high tea. In the restaurant itself, a few simple dishes like fried noodles, custard buns (sadly not the runny type), siumai are laid out on the side. The good stuff like the XLB, guotie, jiaozi are mostly on the paper menu. Its made this way so the dishes will always be served piping hot to customers. One of the cheapest deals in town, the limited variety of food items is very well worth overlooking for – What more can you ask for free flow XLBs at prices like these? Address: Plaza Singapura #03-01 68 Orchard Road Singapore 238839 | Velocity@Novena Square #02-11/12 238 Thomson Road Singapore 307683 | http://www./ | 10. Bang Heng Harborfront centerCompared to Lao Beijing, the variety dim-sum wise is a lot more extensive. Of course, it is priced proportionally more too. At $19.30++ per pax, the buffet runs from 11.30am – 2.30pm everyday. They have the usual dim sum essentials like har-gow, prawn rolls, shrimp dumplings etc but as a disclaimer – no egg tarts. The service here can be rather slow so try to order as many dishes as you can each time you send one order in. Do not make intermittent orders where you may have your order missed out. Sadly, this dim sum buffet is also only exclusive to their Harbourfront outlet. It’s available on weekends too so I wouldn’t mind making my way down for some good old (cheap) dim sum. Address: 1 Maritime Square #04-01 HarbourFront Centre 11. Sakura International Buffet (Yio Chu Kang) |
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