Les Amis
“Three stars and a cellar few rooms in Asia can match. Book Singapore's grande dame to close the deal.”
About Les Amis
Les Amis opened in 1994 as Singapore's first serious independent fine dining room, and it has spent three decades refusing to become a museum. Sebastien Lepinoy took the kitchen in 2013 and drove it to three Michelin stars in 2019, a rank it has held in every guide since. The premise is unapologetic: French haute cuisine with most of the produce flown in from France, cooked and served with a formality Singapore's newer rooms have abandoned.
The two menus set the terms: the classic at S$365 and the degustation at S$565, both generous with caviar, both built around impeccable sauce work. The cold angel hair pasta crowned with oscietra caviar and truffle is the dish regulars refuse to let the kitchen retire. Around it come langoustine, line caught fish from French waters and sauces mounted with the confidence of a kitchen that clarifies rather than decorates.
The cellar is the other argument: one of the deepest wine collections in Asia, with Burgundy strength that draws collectors who plan dinner around a bottle rather than the reverse. Service runs formal without frost, and Shaw Centre's location makes it the natural Orchard power room. For hosts the practical point is simple: of Singapore's three star tables, Les Amis is the one built for business at lunch and grand gestures at night, and it books like a restaurant rather than a lottery.
The Room
A hushed, formal room dressed in soft neutrals with generous spacing, heavy linen and a service brigade that still crumbs tables between courses. It is the most classically French dining experience in Singapore, and it makes no apology for the ceremony. Jackets are the safe call; the room dresses up.
Why book it, occasion by occasion
The reservation is the easy part to explain. The occasion is the part that decides the memory.
For the deal that deserves the old school
Some agreements want energy; the biggest ones want gravity. Les Amis supplies it: a hushed room, service that never interrupts a sentence, and a cellar that can produce a bottle equal to any signature moment. The classic menu keeps lunch inside two hours for working agendas, while dinner stretches for the celebratory close. Give the sommelier the budget quietly beforehand; the theatre of the bottle arriving does half your speech for you.
For a marker year in the grand manner
Three decades of couples have marked anniversaries here, and the room knows the choreography: the corner table, the unhurried pacing, the dessert timed to the moment. French haute cuisine remains the reference language of romance for a reason, and Les Amis speaks it natively. State the occasion when booking, order the degustation, and let the sommelier pick the anniversary bottle by year if the cellar allows; it often can.
For the guest who measures restaurants in stars
With three stars held since 2019 and a pedigree running back to 1994, Les Amis is proof against any guest's scepticism: no explanation, no gamble, no discovery risk. That certainty is the product. The caviar heavy menus photograph less than they satisfy, the formality reads as respect for the guest, and Shaw Centre sits minutes from every Orchard hotel your visitor is staying in. Book lunch for schedules, dinner for statements.
What to order
Two menus and a great cellar mean the decisions are format, bottle and timing. These are the calls.
- The cold angel hair pasta
Chilled pasta, oscietra caviar, truffle: the signature that survived every menu rewrite. If it is offered, it opens your meal.
- The degustation over the classic
The S$200 difference buys the kitchen's full range, particularly the sauce work mid menu. First visits should hear the whole argument.
- The sommelier, unleashed
The cellar is among Asia's deepest. Name a budget and a mood and let the team hunt; this list rewards trust over recognition.
- Lunch for business
The same kitchen, a calmer room and a schedule that respects the afternoon. The professional's format.
Practical
- Address
- Shaw Centre, 1 Scotts Road, Orchard, Singapore
- Reservations
- Direct through the restaurant's website
- Menus
- Classic S$365 · degustation S$565
- Wine
- One of Asia's deepest cellars · pairings by tier
- Dress
- Jackets recommended
- Rooms
- Main dining room and private rooms
- Dietary
- Vegetarian menus on request with notice
- Getting there
- Orchard MRT, five minutes on foot
Questions diners ask
Is Les Amis worth it?
For the right occasion, absolutely. Three Michelin stars held since 2019, a cellar few restaurants in Asia rival and the most polished formal service in Singapore justify the S$365 to S$565 menus. It is not adventurous cooking and does not try to be; it is the city's definitive statement of classic French luxury.
How much does Les Amis cost?
The classic menu is S$365 and the degustation S$565 before drinks, service and tax. With modest wine, two diners should plan around S$1,200 to S$1,600 all in; the cellar can multiply that as far as ambition allows. Lunch on the classic menu is the gentler entry point.
What is the dress code at Les Amis?
Jackets are the safe answer. The room is formal by Singapore standards and guests dress accordingly; shorts and sportswear will feel wrong even if tolerated. Treat it as the city's equivalent of a Paris three star and dress with intent.
How hard is it to book Les Amis?
Manageable with planning. Book direct through the restaurant's site a few weeks ahead for dinner; lunch is meaningfully easier and suits business schedules. Weekends and festive dates fill first. State occasions and wine intentions at booking so the team can prepare the table and the cellar.