Prices at SIN hotel restaurants too high?

[LampStack]

I was curious why the food and drink at some of the medium to higher end hotels is priced so high in Singapore? (I know this somewhat OT)

I have spent time in Hong Kong, and while I did not make a habit of dining at the Intercontinental or other fine hotels, some of the more average hotels seems to be priced affordably, say in the 15-20 USD range for breakfast or lunch buffets.

Please correct me if I am off base here.

[fimo]

I was curious why the food and drink at some of the medium to higher end hotels is priced so high in Singapore? (I know this somewhat OT)

I have spent time in Hong Kong, and while I did not make a habit of dining at the Intercontinental or other fine hotels, some of the more average hotels seems to be priced affordably, say in the 15-20 USD range for breakfast or lunch buffets.

Please correct me if I am off base here.

So what prices are you seeing in Singapore and at which hotels?

[LampStack]

So what prices are you seeing in Singapore and at which hotels?

As I peruse traveler reviews and the like for Singapore a common theme seems to be the complaint, or at least comment about the expensive food, and especially drinks in Singapore.

I was reading through a sampling of traveler reviews for Singapore at Trip Advisor.com.

[HUGE AL]

Trip Advisor.com.

Always a winner if you're looking for negative reviews.

[LampStack]

Okay, so I guess prices are not high then.

Trip advisor has quite a range of opinions.

Kind of like to hear from a Singapore resident on this.

[SQ LPP]

Well, I guess everything is very personal in putting a value in certain things. Yes, breakfast at the hotel is a bit costly. But again, you don't feel it that way if you happen to have the room rates including breakfast. When I used to stay at the Grand Hyatt Singapore, having breakfast at the Club Lounge is part of the perk, and it was enough for me. But for my-ex or my other friends from the US, the breakfast there was not enough because they don't served "fried eggs" (remember it being part of American breakfast).
When I dropped my status to none from Hyatt, I usually skipped breakfast at the hotel. As long as I have coffee in the morning, I will be happy. I can catch up breakfast later on somewhere else.
And yes, the fact that SGD is getting stronger against, it does feel that the breakfast costs would be more expensive. As I mentioned before, the chicken rice at Chatterbox in Meritus Mandarin for me is unattractive anymore. Would rather have the money for hawkers' or food courts' chicken rice.

[fimo]

Okay, so I guess prices are not high then.

Trip advisor has quite a range of opinions.

Kind of like to hear from a Singapore resident on this.

It really depends. My experience in HKG is that the prices are comparable with SIN - but I generally stay at the 4-5* hotels, can't be bothered with a 3* breakfast in either city when the offerings outside are so much better.

For Singapore weekend brunch prices are very high, about USD80-100 (including tax) at high end hotels because most do a luxury/champagne breakfast complete with fresh lobsters, oysters, foie gras and free flow champagne. The sunday brunch at Ritz-Carlton is fantastic for that, you also get free flow cocktails. When I went for this it was an indulgent 4+ hr feast. Can't wait to do it again when I'm back in SIN.

[milehighj]

I was reading through a sampling of traveler reviews for Singapore at Trip Advisor.com.

If your sampling had a large number of reviewers with GBP, AUD, NZD and USD has their home currencies, they are likely finding a lot of countries rather expensive these days...

[MAN Flyer]

As I peruse traveler reviews and the like for Singapore a common theme seems to be the complaint, or at least comment about the expensive food, and especially drinks in Singapore.

I was reading through a sampling of traveler reviews for Singapore at Trip Advisor.com.

Where were these people eating, what were they ordering, what were they drinking ?. Hawker Centre's are cheap, Hotels are expensive. Ho hum, 'twas ever thus..

I think the second paragraph above explains why you have read about complaints.

Am I right in thinking you are due to visit Singapore yourself soon ?. If so, maybe you can judge for yourself and let us know what you think.

[jjpb3]

Not off base with your observation.

The reason for the relatively high price is that many people transiting through SIN seem as though they couldn't be bothered to explore the (much better and reasonable) local options. Elasticity of demand and all that ...

[Kyo]

For Singapore weekend brunch prices are very high, about USD80-100 (including tax) at high end hotels because most do a luxury/champagne breakfast complete with fresh lobsters, oysters, foie gras and free flow champagne. The sunday brunch at Ritz-Carlton is fantastic for that, you also get free flow cocktails. When I went for this it was an indulgent 4+ hr feast. Can't wait to do it again when I'm back in SIN.

You do realise this is really not reflective of the general population in Singapore. Many locals do not even spend USD8 on lunch or dinner!

Also, nothing beats the amazing hotel buffet prices in BKK though..!

[fimo]

You do realise this is really not reflective of the general population in Singapore. Many locals do not even spend USD8 on lunch or dinner!

I didn't say it was, just pointed out that hotel brunches in Singapore are expensive. I lived in Singapore for more than 20 years, and have lunched where $3 gets you a hot meal and drink and change.

[9V-JKL]

Some 'food' for thought......

Using numbers from the Singapore Statistics Board:

There are 95 hotels in Singapore with F&B outlets. Assuming an average of 3 per hotel, it gives you 285 outlets. Now consider there are a total of 10,543 registered cooked food outlets in Singapore, hotel F&B only represents a mere 2.703%.

As a visitor, I highly recommend that you explore the remaining 97% .

I continue to take my stand that some of the best food in Singapore is found in hawker centers and not hotels/restaurants. And it is possible to have breakfast, lunch AND dinner for US$8/day.

[concept|infinit]

If you'd like to try some local food, I'd personally suggest visiting the food courts and hawker centres, they're cheap and they're probably a lot more authentic than the local food you get at hotels.

I had a local buffet lunch at the Straits Kitchen at the Hyatt Singapore recently. It wasn't good and yes it was pricey.

[HUGE AL]

Also, nothing beats the amazing hotel buffet prices in BKK though..!

IIRC (and I was pretty hung over), while one of the best in BKK, the buffet at the SGS was kinda high.