Despite our tiny stature, Singapore certainly punches above its weight when it comes to food. The city is buzzing with drool-worthy hawker fare and affordable finds for a cheap, fuss-free meal. Yet, for a country this small, we have one of the highest concentrations of Michelin-starred restaurants, sometimes even packed back to back along our busy streets.
It’s no surprise that our to-eat list is inundated with restaurants that we long to try one day. But which are the ones that are truly bucket-list-worthy? Apart from deferring to guides like Michelin and Asia’s 50 Best to help us make a choice, there’s also La Liste – a global gastronomy guide that originated from Martillac in France. Each year, the guide picks out 1000 of the best restaurants in the world after a rigorous six-step assessment process, giving each venue a score out of 100. There are also special award categories like Talent of the Year, Game Changer, Opening of the Year and more.
In Singapore alone, 14 restaurants are named among La Liste’s 1000 picks for 2025. Taking the top three spots are Odette with a score of 98, followed by Les Amis and Zén with scores of 97.5 each. These are also the only three restaurants on the island to currently hold three Michelin stars.
Earlier this week, modern French restaurant Odette’s chef-owner Julien Royer bagged another prize – the Best Food Art award at The Best Chef Awards 2024 in Dubai. Meanwhile, Les Amis has proved itself as Singapore’s French fine-dining stalwart for three decades now, amassing a troupe of loyalists who swear by Chef Sébastien Lepinoy’s genius. We know Zén, on the other hand, as Chef Björn Frantzén’s first international outpost, where he displays his creative approach to Nordic cuisine and his knack for bringing in some of the rarest ingredients in the world.
Another pleasant surprise for Singapore: one restaurant at Dempsey Hill also wins La Liste’s Opening of the Year award. It’s none other than Air, headed by ex-Noma and Room4Desserts legends Matthew Orlando and Will Goldfarb. The sprawling 40,000-square-foot campus is a world of its own, with an edible garden, a picnic lawn, a culinary research space, a fermentation room, and more.
Here are the venues in Singapore on La Liste’s Top 1000 Restaurants 2025 list, and their scores:
- Odette (98)
- Les Amis (97.5)
- Zén (97.5)
- Saint Pierre (94.5)
- Burnt Ends (94)
- Jaan by Kirk Westaway (92.5)
- Waku Ghin (90)
- Meta (83)
- Cut by Wolfgang Puck (80.5)
- Iggy’s (80)
- Shoukouwa (78)
- Shisen Hanten (77)
- Cloudstreet (75.5)
- Thevar (75.5)
Curious to see how the rest of Asia fared? Find out more here, and check out the full list of 1000 restaurants here.