Escape Singapore: Enter cave-like eateries, an OTT Peranakan restaurant and a train to ‘Osaka’

SINGAPORE – When design takes centre stage at a restaurant, the camera eats first, right at the entrance.

Two-month-old Japanese restaurant Tonkatsu Daiki at Ngee Ann City has been gaining traction, not just for its juicy tonkatsu, but also for its train-inspired facade that diners have to walk through. 

Phones are whipped out as the door slides open to reveal a brightly lit JR train “cabin” that includes plush seats and an LED screen showing a typical town scene in Osaka. 

Music chimes through the sound system, with an automated female voice saying: “Next station, Osaka.” 

Arriving at the 26-seat restaurant feels like entering a cosy Japanese izakaya, with a view of the city’s famed Dotonbori area displayed on a screen, complete with the iconic Glico Man. 

On creating this unique entrance, Tonkatsu Daiki Singapore’s co-founder Vivien Han says: “In Japan, trains are deeply connected to daily life and food culture. Many memorable meals happen after work, after a train ride home or while exploring small alleyways near train stations. 

“We wanted to recreate that emotional transition – the feeling of leaving Singapore briefly and entering a small corner of Osaka.”

The restaurant is part of a growing number of eateries that are going beyond offering a pleasant ambience with good food and drinks. 

They also transport diners to another world, offering brief respite, even if just for the duration of a meal. 

Over at Orchard Towers, which is still undergoing a transformation, one restaurant has been immersing diners in rich Peranakan history and culture for the past three months.

The Peranakan Club is an explosion of vibrant colours split into six zones, with the main spectacle at the 80-seat dining hall covered in peony wallpaper, framed kebayas and chandeliers. 

From maximalist to minimalist, cave chic is the latest aesthetic at a growing number of Korean restaurants that sport cave-like entrances with textured stone walls, a shift from using just wood or brick. 

These include three restaurants under the Initia Group: Drim Gold at Resorts World Sentosa, Gochu at Orchid Country Club and Whuchu, its latest concept at UE Square. The three follow Cavern Restaurant, a cavernous limestone cave-inspired eatery which opened in 2025 at Rainforest Wild Asia. 

And with old-school cool being a trending aesthetic as well, the two-month-old Food Republic foodcourt at Mandai Wildlife East takes nostalgia to another level, styled as Singapore in the 1970s. 

It pays homage to the old Mandai Kampong with three-storey shophouse facades, movie posters and, of course, animals to spot among the stalls. 

Here is where to go for a visual and culinary feast. 

The Peranakan Club 

Where: 02-01 Orchard Towers (Carpark Block), 1 Claymore Drive
Open: 11am to 10pm daily
Info: Call 8988-0201 or go to theperanakanclub.com 

You will need multiple visits to The Peranakan Club to fully admire all the vintage collectibles and clothing that have gone into embellishing every inch of the 5,000 sq ft space.

About 70 per cent of the showcase comes from the personal collection of its chef-founder Raymond Khoo, 62. He also runs The Peranakan restaurant in Lengkok Bahru, and is the founder and chairman of The Saturday Movement charity.

Dressed in a batik shirt with intricate kerosang – a brooch typically used to fasten Peranakan outfits – and maroon leather pants and purple mules, Mr Khoo is a walking exhibit for his restaurant, which also pulls double duty as a social enterprise and a Peranakan museum. 

This is his most extravagant venture to date, where the main dining hall features a canopy of plastic pink frangipanis and peonies stuck on an undulating netting that took three weeks to make. 

Peony motifs are also on the wallpaper, which mirror those on the plates set on tablecloths with Peranakan print.

Follow the peonies through the corridor to the 20-seat Peranakan Gallery, which showcases heirloom wedding outfits, more kerosang and traditional kueh-making tools. 

The 20-seat Grand Peranakan private room, with a canopy of green leaves, is dedicated to tok panjang (meaning “long table”, and priced at $168 to $198 a person). It is no less colourful, with peacocks on the walls and frames holding certificates of various chefs with whom Mr Khoo has worked. 

Over at the 10-seat Kerosang Tea Room, fake roses adorn the ceiling and wallpaper. 

What stands out, quite literally, is the collection of beautiful kerosang in various butterfly and dragonfly designs, attached to the walls. Several are displayed in frames as well. 

Attention to detail extends to the dishes too. 

Yusheng (from $88 with smoked salmon) is served all year round. The festive dish is rolled out on a trolley and the large platter is topped with a peacock-topped condiment saucer. 

The classic ayam buah keluak ($26) comes with the perfect teaspoons, with a crook for easy digging of the “black gold” tucked into each nut. A vegetarian version, using lion’s mane mushrooms ($28), is also available. 

Fried salmon “wings” ($18) are served with a paintbrush, a fun way to dab on the tangy sambal belimbing on each piece. 

The Kebaya Bar, adorned with antique bed frames, is a collaboration with the home-grown Brass Lion Distillery. It features Peranakan-inspired cocktails like the Kueh Salat ($21) and Bok Kwa Pisang Flip ($27), inspired by the Apom Bok Kwa dessert with a housemade banana sauce and Brass Lion’s Barrel Aged Gin. 

For the full experience, The Peranakan Club will be launching SG Culture Pass-eligible culture tours priced at $100 each, to be listed on Klook soon. Two of them will include the making of Apom Bok Kwa or Nasi Ulam. 

Tonkatsu Daiki 

Where: 05-33 Ngee Ann City, 391 Orchard Road
Open: 11.30am to 2.30pm, 5.30 to 9pm daily
Info: www.instagram.com/tonkatsudaikisg

Lest you think the original Tonkatsu Daiki in Osaka looks like the one here, well, it does not. 

The train-inspired entrance was specially designed for Singapore, says Ms Han, who decided to bring the brand here after trying it in 2024. Here, it operates as an independent business entity, in collaboration with the original owners in Osaka. 

Founded in 2010, the tonkatsu specialist was recognised on the Michelin Guide from 2021 to 2024. It is located in a small alley off the main Dotonbori street. 

The warm lighting, lanterns, wood finish and Japanese-style signage all add to the atmosphere that takes inspiration from Osaka’s street food culture. 

Its cosy eight-seat private section, illuminated with three round lamps, is fashioned like a home. 

The menu is straightforward, highlighting its Classic Rosu Tonkatsu Set (from $29 for 150g) and the leaner Classic Hire Tonkatsu Set (from $29 for 120g). For a non-pork option, there is the Premium Ebi Katsu Set ($32 for four pieces of prawn). 

Each set comes with Japanese rice, cabbage, miso soup and pickles. 

The accompanying condiments are also crafted for the best way to enjoy the juicy pork cutlets: first with a touch of salt, then housemade mustard, followed by the slightly sweet and tangy tonkatsu sauce. 

Add $5 for its housemade Japanese curry sauce, which is spicier than the usual ones out there.  

Ms Han does not rule out expansion in Singapore, and believes that the “immersive storytelling” element can evolve for future locations. She also runs Synthesis at Suntec City, a restaurant and bar where the food, drinks and space are inspired by traditional Chinese medicine.  

Food Republic 

Where: 01-01/02 Mandai Wildlife East, 80 Mandai Lake Road
Open: 8am to 9pm daily
Info: str.sg/phcJ

You know this is no ordinary Food Republic foodcourt when life-size models of a tiger, tortoise, iguanas and monkeys welcome you at the entrance. 

Spot more monkeys, birds and a wild boar within the 15,800 sq ft space – split into 400 indoor seats and 200 outdoors – that channels 1970s Singapore. Some animals are hidden within the stalls, while others are perched amid the three-storey shophouse facade and fake trees. 

Another key design feature is the series of vintage posters placed along the pillars and walls, reminiscent of how advertisements and notices were casually pasted around Singapore’s streets back then, says Food Republic’s general manager Andy Kiu, 52.  

Some of these posters spotlight animals closely associated with the Singapore Zoo’s history, including Ah Meng the Sumatran orang utan, Inuka the polar bear and Anusha the Asian elephant. 

There are larger movie posters specially created for the space, which offer a fun, food-centric take on movies from that era. 

“Star Woks” is a cheeky nod to the release of Star Wars in 1977, while “Kang Kong”, instead of King Kong, depicts a gorilla clutching a bunch of vegetables, in reference to the 1976 remake. 

Staff uniforms were designed with retro-inspired palettes, alongside subtle touches like bell-bottom silhouettes and chequered prints that were popular during that period. 

The styling, says Mr Kiu, was partly inspired by the local TV series Growing Up (1996 to 2001), which showcased Singapore from the 1960s to the 1980s. 

There are several photo spots: a bird’s nest drink cart, a wooden red clog section, and tray return areas in the style of a taxi-service phone booth and provision shop selling magazines. 

The stalls have unique designs too, from Peranakan-style tiles to plastic ingredients used as decoration. There are more than 20 stalls, including Nya Nya Nonya Laksa, Boon Tat Seafood, Old Amoy Chendol and Aarthy Banana Leaf Indian Cuisine.

Mr Kiu says Food Republic Mandai is part of the foodcourt brand’s evolution into a “fully immersive experiential dining destination”. 

It will also refresh two of its existing outlets. Food Republic at Jewel Changi Airport reopens in July, followed by Food Opera at Ion Orchard in September. 

Cave-themed restaurants 

Kott-Don 360

Where: 02-123/124 VivoCity, 1 HarbourFront Walk, opens June 15
Info: www.instagram.com/kottdon360 

Whuchu Korean Dining Restaurant

Where: 01-18 UE Square, 81 Clemenceau Avenue
Open: 11.30am to 10pm (Sundays), 11.30am to 3pm, 5 to 10pm (Mondays to Thursdays), 11.30am to 3pm, 5 to 11pm (Fridays), 11.30am to 11pm (Saturdays) 
Info: www.whuchu.sg 

Drim Gold

Where: B1-204-206 Resorts World Sentosa, 26 Sentosa Gateway
Open: 11am to 10pm daily
Info: www.drimgold.sg

Gochu 

Where: Orchid Country Club, 1 Orchid Club Road, Golf Driving Range
Open: 11am to 3pm, 5 to 10pm (weekdays), 11am to 10pm (weekends and public holidays) 
Info: www.gochu.sg 

With no fewer than four new Korean barbecue restaurants channelling cave and hanok chic, it looks set to be the current It design trend for eateries. A hanok is a traditional Korean house built with natural materials such as wood, stone and clay. 

The latest one to enter the fray will be Kott-Don 360, which opens a second outlet at VivoCity on June 15. 

Its first outlet is at PLQ Mall, and it is the sister brand of Flower Pig 360 in Tanjong Pagar. Aesthetic-wise, the upcoming VivoCity eatery will be a stark contrast to its two sister Korean barbecue outlets that are awash in green.

Kott-Don 360’s cave-inspired entrance will transport diners to a cosier space inside, inspired by traditional Korean hanok elements.

While the stones used at the shopfront are made of artificial material to mimic natural rocks, the interiors use real stone, wood elements and soft lighting to create a warm atmosphere, says Kott-Don 360’s co-founder Frank Jin, 40.

Also banking on the cave-inspired setting is the home-grown Initia Group, known for its trendy Korean concepts. 

It started with Gochu at Orchid Country Club in September 2025, Drim Gold at Resorts World Sentosa in January and, most recently, Whuchu, which launched in May at UE Square.

Whuchu’s menu focuses on ssambap (Korean rice lettuce wraps) for lunch ($36 a person, minimum two to dine) and barbecued Jeju pork and wagyu for dinner. Its sister concept Tofu G is located next to it. 

Billed as a cave-inspired retreat, Gochu’s location takes one out of the city, offering views of the lush natural surroundings at the club.

Drim Gold, on the other hand, features a more dramatic cave entrance and passageway to transport diners to cave-like private rooms or a solo feast at the counter.