Raffles Hotel’s famous Singapore Sling makes crazy amount a day
This alcoholic beverage will set you back about $43, but there’s reason the drink is so famous — and why tourists are willing to spend up.
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If you’ve been to Singapore chances are you have heard of the iconic drink — the Singapore Sling.
It was invented in the historic Long Bar inside the stunning Raffles Hotel in 1915 by bartender Ngiam Tong Boon.
And since then it has become widely known as the national drink.
I’m told the bar sells roughly 1000 Singapore Slings a day during peak holiday times and at $SGD39 a glass — which is about $A43, according to today’s exchange rate — that’s a whopping $A43,000 a day.
And that doesn’t include taxes and services fees. When that’s added you’re looking at about $46 Singapore dollars a pop — $A50.
So, why are tourists so obsessed and willing to fork out so much for a gin-based cocktail?
It all comes down to the history.
Following a recent trip to Singapore where I was lucky enough to stay at Raffles, a historian told me following the turn of the century in colonial Singapore, Raffles was the gathering place for the community – and Long Bar was the watering hole.
And while you would often see gentlemen nursing glasses of gin or whisky, it wasn’t the case for women as drinking alcohol in public places was often frowned upon.
Instead, they would drink teas and fruit juices “for the sake of modesty”.
But it was in this moment Raffles bartender Ngiam had a light-bulb moment. He decided to create a cocktail that looked like a like plain fruit juice, but is actually infused with gin, grenadine and cherry liqueur.
He cleverly gave the cocktail a rosy colour to give it a “feminine flair” which, together with the use of clear alcohol, led people to think it was a socially acceptable drink for women.
And with that the Singapore Sling was born, a drink that has continued to attract tourists from all over the world.
Though recipes today vary the pink drink traditionally contains a sling of gin, a hit of cherry brandy and dashes of lime and pineapple juice as well as Cointreau and the herbal liqueur Benedictine.
Visitors know they’re paying for the historical appeal as well as the experience which includes the rare act of littering.
“There’s always a huge queue [at Long Bar] and we waited for 20 minutes,” one TikTok user said in a clip about the drink.
“Equally cult as the Singapore Sling are the peanuts on the table and it’s normal to throw the shells on the floor.
“The drink itself is not worth $39 but the whole experience with the historic background is.”
Customers are encouraged throw their peanut shells on the ground of the infamous 1920s themed Long Bar.
One may think why such a fancy two-storey bar would engage in such an act, particularly as Singapore is notorious for being litter-free.
But it’s a tradition that dates back to the 1900s, when the hotel was surrounded by nut plantations.
Nuts were in such plentiful supply that they were offered to drinkers for free — and still are.
The moment you plonk yourself at the bar, a waiter will come around and dump a bag of peanuts on your table.
So when plantation owners were on their plantations, they’d just sweep the nutshells onto the floor — and the tradition has stuck to this day.
TikTok has unsurprisingly become awash with clips of tourists sipping on a Singapore Sling and engaging in the somewhat “liberating” act of tossing peanut carcasses on the ground.
Raffles is all the rave
Raffles Singapore is one of the few remaining great 19th century hotels in the world.
The British colonial-style luxury hotel was established by Armenian hoteliers, the Sarkies Brothers. The proprietors of the Eastern & Oriental in Penang named it after Singapore’s founder Sir Stamford Raffles.
It officially opened its doors to the public in December 1887 as a 10-room hotel. It was a bungalow-style building that once overlooked sandy beaches and azure skies.
The Raffles Hotel we see today is the result of two multimillion-dollar restoration efforts: the first between 1989 and 1991, which restored it to its elegant splendour of the 1920s.
The other was between 2017 and 2019, taking the level of luxury and elegance to even greater heights.
It now boasts 115 rooms with 12 out of 103 of the suites named after famous actors and writers who have stayed at the hotel over the last century.
Guests can pick from John Wayne, Charlie Chaplin, Ava Garder, Noel Coward, Rudyard Kipling or Somerset Maugham suites, each filled with memorabilia, biographies and mementos.
Another notable Raffles resident was Doris Geddes, an Australian who had a couture shop named Little Shop in the hotel for 30 years from 1947 — she reportedly once dressed Elizabeth Taylor in 1957 although apparently the garment was deemed too tight by the actress.
Given all the famous people who stayed at the hotel over the decades, Raffles’ reputation grew. But perhaps the most famous story comes from 1902 when a tiger apparently infiltrated the billiard room of the hotel.
According to the hotel it was the last tiger to be killed in Singapore. A man was dispatched to shoot the animal as it cowered under the Bar & Billiard Room.
The rooms
The presidential suite (the most expensive of the nine suites at about $A20,000 Singapore dollars a night) has welcomed celebrities from Michael Jackson who famously waved from the window, to the late Queen.
Queen Elizabeth II stayed at the hotel for the first time in 2006. It was her third visit to Singapore, after two royal visits in 1972 and 1989.
News.com.au was given a rare glimpse inside one of the two the 260sqm rooms that can comfortably host up to six people.
The Sarkies and Sir Stamford Raffles (presidential) suites are located in the Main Building, overlooking the Palm Court and famous porte-cochère.
Each comes with its own private veranda. The vast spaces – from the living room to the dining room and the bedrooms – are bedecked with carefully curated antiques and artworks.
There’s also a massive walk-in wardrobe and your own personal pantry. And like some of the other suites, you also have access to your own butler.
Both feature all-marble double vanity bathrooms, a separate bathtub and walk-in shower.
If you don’t have a spare $20k laying around but you’re keen to stay at the historic hotel, you’re looking at a minimum of $A1300 a night.
To be fair, the rooms at Raffles are unlike any other with a great balance of luxury, class and sophistication.
Each suite retains the colonial-era splendour she’s known for, transporting you back in time through its stunning Victorian architecture.
The State Room Suite (67sqm) in the historic Bras Basah Wing, or the Courtyard Suite (58sqm) Clustered around the heart of the hotel would be my top picks.
Both suite types come with a three-part layout – a parlour for living and dining; a huge, airy bedroom with ceiling fan, teak wood flooring and a dressing table.
And if bathrooms are your thing, both are also fit with a spacious Bianco Dolomite marble-clad double vanity bathroom with a tub and separate stalls for a shower and toilet.
Most importantly, a butler is attached to each suite and they’re on-call 24/7 to help guests pack or unpack, serve coffee, tea or cocktails and make spa reservations.
It’s all very fancy, as is the gym and stunning outdoor pool.
It’s also got 10 dining and bar concepts to choose from with my favourite being the laid back Butcher’s Block. It’s an impressive steakhouse focusing on the world’s finest cuts of singled sourced meats.
If you want to continue the luxurious experience head to La Dame De Pic — the food is by Anne-Sophie's who is one of the world’s top female chefs with three Michelin stars.
Obviously Long Bar if you want to indulge in a Singapore Sling or Writer’s Bar for the also famous Million Dollar Cocktail created by bartender Nguianm Tong Boon.
Again, if you’re looking for the ultimate luxurious experience on your next Singapore trip, I’d say Raffles is your best bet.
This writer stayed at Raffles Hotel as a guest of Singapore Airlines
Originally published as Raffles Hotel’s famous Singapore Sling makes crazy amount a day
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