A Few of My Favorites

As I recall the past weekend, I feel compelled to share a few of my favorite finds in Singapore for some of the activities I enjoy most: eating and being pampered.

Saturday evening Brian and I visited Les Bouchons, a French restaurant just across the river from our condo. It's one of my favorite places when I am in the mood for steak so we have been going there every 1-2 months, depending on the cravings. Back in the spring, we made a trip to Morton's for steak, because we were told that's where expats go for beef. I don't remember our exact bill but it's safe to say that it was among our top 2 most expensive dinners in Singapore (Raffles Grill being the other). The difference between it and Raffles is that we weren't all that satisfied with the meal. Enter Les Bouchons. There are other items on the small menu but their signature offering is steak with a "free flow" of french fries. The waiters wear those silly tshirts with the fake tie and buttons silk-screened on the front to look fancy and I would guess they can only seat about 50 people in the entire place (and most of the seating is outdoors). But the steak is delicious. For S$36 I can have a filet with a side salad and all the fries I want. I love that the food is good, the prices are reasonable and we are essentially eating in our backyard. Needless to say, we feel no need to visit Morton's again.

Following dinner, we walked up Mohammad Sultan Road to visit the "Traditional Balinese Massage" place that has quickly become a favorite for us. Like most service-oriented businesses here, they offer packages where you receive discounts for paying in advance. After our first massages, we immediately bought a package and quickly went through our 5 hours of treatments. Even without a discount, a 1-hour massage costs $60 Sing ($43 USD) which is very reasonable and I prefer the firmer touch of a Balinese massage after a week of exercise. I could easily make it a weekly appointment...

Except that I need to rotate with Feetness, the foot reflexology place, because we bought a package there as well! There are probably one hundred places offering foot reflexology around Singapore and I feel like Americans are really missing out. I know some spas at home have it but I never really heard anyone talk about it. The premise of foot reflexology is that every system in your body is connected to some part of your foot. So by massaging those different areas of the feet, it can aid in keeping the entire body healthy. I appreciate having a valid medical reason to lounge in a recliner and read a magazine for 40 minutes while someone rubs my feet. Can I charge it to our flex-spending account? I will take every guest to Feetness so they can experience it for themselves.

These neighborhood spots have certainly added to our Singapore experience. And I especially appreciate that Brian is a willing participant. He's happy to get massages and foot rubs with me so it makes for good date nights for us. I will definitely miss our neighborhood favorites when we leave the island someday.