Vegan burger and chicken nuggets you’d easily mistake for Macca’s
A plant-based “butcher” which serves an array of meals you’d never know don’t contain meat is a place meat lovers should not to skip past.
I accidentally stumbled across a burger that tastes just like Macca’s – and it doesn’t even contain any meat.
My delicious discovery happened during a 24 hour jolly in Singapore. I’d been invited to the island country for a jam-packed few days learning about Dyson’s latest cleaning products (in case you missed it, the British tech giant has just released its first robot vacuum in Australia, OMG).
But before heading back home, I lucked out by getting a whole day to myself, which I decided to use wandering the Garden City as I’d never been before.
Starting the day nice and early, I headed to Tiong Bahru Bakery for what I’d been told was the best croissant on the island.
It didn’t disappoint, and while I’ve never been to France, I imagine this is what the butter-heavy delicacy tastes like in its homeland.
Fuelled and ready to go, my next stop was to take in the sights, but as I wanted to use my limited time effectively and get some exercise in at the same time.
The only logical way to do this was by bike of course which I rented from GoCycling, situated at the airport’s Terminal 2. I followed the cycle path all the way out to East Coast Park which was lovely and scenic, I felt like I got to see a lot of Singapore while working up a sweat.
The first part of the cycle route waved around the airport too and also featured an array of dinosaur figures to occupy the kids, called Jurassic Mile.
No visit would be complete without a trip to Gardens by the Bay, the famous tourist attraction that is home to more than 1.5 million different plants.
It was honestly a sight to behold, and being around such lush greenery definitely felt good for the soul.
I was lucky enough to catch the Avatar experience which if you’re a fan of the movies, was unforgettable. The tropical setting of the Cloud Forest, complete with waterfalls and rain droplets, really replicates the mystical land of Pandora from the epic sci-fi flick.
The highlight is definitely the Avatarize Yourself section that allows visitors to scan their face in a pod and discover what they’d look like as a blue Avatar creature.
After spending an hour walking through Pandora, I mean Gardens by the Bay, my tummy was rumbling so I hopped over to Little India.
As a Brit living in Australia, I find curry is one of the things I miss most about the UK – so when I was told by so many people I will love the Indian cuisine in Singapore, I knew I had to check it out.
For such a small country, Singapore has a colourful mix of different cultures, including Malay, Chinese, Indian, and European. While I didn’t have time to try all the different foods in 24 hours, there was no way I was leaving without sampling the local curries.
There were so many restaurants to choose from, but I went for The Banana Leaf Apolo as it had come highly recommended by a local tour guide.
I’ll be honest, it didn’t look that special from the outside, but inside my tastebuds were bowled over with delight.
Served simply on banana leaves as the name suggests, the servings were very generous, but most importantly – utterly delicious.
If I could have packed up my leftover chicken tikka masala and taken it home with me I definitely would have, but I didn’t fancy getting fined at Sydney airport for breaching our agriculture restrictions. I definitely still have regrets over that decision.
After lunch I chose to head back to my hotel, the Oasia Resort Sentosa, for a well-earned rest after all that food and exercise.
The hotel is famous for its spa, which offers a range of treatments using top tier Japanese skincare and luxury essential oils.
I decided to treat myself to the signature massage, which was designed for “city dwellers who need to relax” – aka, me.
The treatment did exactly what it said on the tin, and after 45 minutes of being pummelled in all the right places, I floated back to my room.
There wasn’t much time left, so I rounded out my 24 hour exploration with dinner at a vegan butcher.
Love Handle is a new restaurant with a grocery-style shop at the front serving plant-based foods.
I ordered the burger with a side of “chicken” nuggets – and honestly, you’d never know they weren’t real meat. In fact, I’d go as far as to say the meal was better than a Macca’s, my go-to when I have a hankering for fast-food.
After, it was time to head back to my hotel and get a good night’s sleep before hopping on an 8-hour flight back to Sydney.
While my time in Singapore was short and sweet, it was enough time to fall for the country. I’ll definitely be back.