The NCO Club is the quintessential entertainment-lifestyle destination in Singapore, a cultural enclave that is modern yet traditional. The storied establishment houses four eclectic culinary concepts: Cool Cats, Fish Pool, Madame Fan and Stags' Room.
The NCO Club (known previously as the NAAFI Britannia Club) served as a vital social amenity for non-commissioned officers and their families since 1952. Gazetted alongside Blocks 1, 9 and 14 of the Beach Road Camp for conservation by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), it was one of the first modern architectural heritage buildings to be conserved in Singapore.
The NCO Club is a building that has been synonymous with the spirit of patriotism and nascent nationalism in Singapore bearing great historical, social and political significance as a place where generations of military servicemen congregated and interacted in an egalitarian, multi- ethnic setting. This was a significant milestone in Singapore’s colonial history.
Together, the four conservation buildings form a unique enclave that embodies different eras in Singapore’s history, expressed through their varied architecture. Like the conserved pre-war Tiong Bahru estate, Blocks 1, 9 and 14 reflect early Modernism with inflections of the Art Deco style. On the other hand, the NCO Club is characteristic of the more austere post-war Modernism and is one of the rare intact examples of modernist architectural heritage in Singapore. They are also representative of a milestone in Singapore’s conservation history where the buildings are neither part of a historic shop house district, nor individual monuments, but a cluster of historically and functionally-related institutional buildings.
The main building of the former National Aerated Water Factory at 1177 Serangoon Road will be gazetted for conservation by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA).
Recognising the building’s heritage value, its role as a landmark in the area and the social memories it holds for the community, the building owner, Selangor Dredging Berhad (SDB) is supportive of the conservation efforts and is working closely with URA to keep the building as part of our national history.
Completed in 1954, this Art Deco Style building is a well-known local landmark along Serangoon Road. It was the bottling factory that produced popular soft drinks such as Sinalco, Kickapoo Joy Juice and Royal Crown Cola. It is also one of the last few remaining structures along the stretch of Kallang River that reflect the area’s rich industrial past, and contribute to the heritage of the Kallang River.
The two-storey L-shaped main building facing Serangoon Road will be conserved. This includes the signage tower, a representative feature that many will be familiar with. Read more about this conservation effort.
Among the new exhibits visitors can explore is an immersive 3D virtual reality dive experience along the coral reefs at the Sisters’ Islands Marine Park. They can also observe life between the tides through a mangrove mesocosm, likely one of the first of its kind in the region, where mangroves are planted under controlled conditions to mirror the natural environment as closely as possible. Besides providing an opportunity for visitors to learn more about mangrove habitats, the mesocosm will also allow researchers or schools to conduct observations or simple experiments.
Another new exhibit is a viewing pool where visitors can study sea anemones, sea cucumbers, feather stars and other intertidal organisms up close. The Public Gallery will also feature aquariums for visitors to admire coral reef organisms such as sea fans, sponges and reef fish, and learn about NParks’ coral conservation efforts.
Singapore’s first Marine Park spans about 40 hectares, encompassing Sisters’ Islands and the western reefs of both St John’s Island and Pulau Tekukor. The Sisters’ Islands Marine Park serves as a platform for outreach, educational, conservation and research activities related to our native marine biodiversity. The location was chosen due to its variety of habitats including coral reefs, sandy shores and seagrass areas.
The fifth NEWater plant located at Changi has launched yesterday. The plant spans 49,000 sq m, and produces enough water to fill 92 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
NEWater, a pillar of Singapore's water sustainability strategy, is high-grade reclaimed water. Produced from treated used water that is further purified using advanced membrane technologies and ultra-violet disinfection, it is ultra-clean and safe to drink. With the opening of this fifth plant (jointly developed by a foreign and a local company), Singapore's NEWater capacity increased from 30 to 40 per cent of the Republic's water demand of 430 million gallons per day.
From Singapore's first sea turtle hatchery to a floating pontoon with see-through panels, detailed plans to transform Sisters' Islands into the heart of the country's marine life conservation efforts have been revealed.
The 40ha Sisters' Islands Marine Park, first announced in 2014 and about the size of 50 football fields, comprises the two Sisters' Islands - which are a 40-minute boat ride from Marina South Pier - surrounding reefs and the western reefs of nearby St John's Island and Pulau Tekukor. Its ecosystem supports corals, anemones, seahorses, fish and other marine life.
Just as in the case for Gessi Milano, Gessi has long sought for a very special location to open an inspirational place where the Gessi's world beauty, sophistication, wellness, creativity in designing the most intimate spaces of home dwelling could be represented. Charm, uniqueness, splendor, were the qualities Gessi was looking for, in establishing its house in Singapore.
The place is as unique as one of the very few remaining Victorian mansions in the city and even more one of a kind as it sits in the very heart of the city. Perfectly preserved, it dates back to the XIX century and it is a much protected conservation house.
The project involved the restoration of a two-storey Victorian building that sits on land which was once a nutmeg estate owned by Dr. Thomas Oxley, back in the Colonial era.
They called it Casa Gessi, the Gessi home, first because home interiors is what they propose. Indeed the Casa Gessi is the home to the different ideas and concepts Gessi developed for the home, from the minimalistic Rettangolo home concept, to the soothing roundness of the Ovale Home, to the organic enveloping Goccia and iSpa home, the charming Eleganza home, the artsy, verdant and architectural Cono home concept and so on.
The good people of Selfish Gene Café (SGC) are proud to announce the opening of Selfish Gene Patisserie (SGP). Located on level 2 above the café at 40 Craig Road, SGP is a patisserie with a difference – they serve plated desserts focusing on familiar flavours with modern presentation.
During the conceptualisation of SGP, their challenge was to present themselves in a new improved concept, but yet to retain their core culinary philosophy of homemade, quality food that appeals not only to the palate but also to a sense of familiarity. Finally, they decided to develop their core strength in making things from scratch and move their existing pastry preparation upstairs. In doing so, everything seemed to fall into place and SGP was born. SGP will operate independently from SGC as the concept and style of service differs. SGP will offer table service and present more interaction between the patisserie and customer.
After several months of testing and recipe development, SGP is proud to present seven different plated desserts. The desserts menu is ordered in increasing intensity of flavour starting with the light & fruity and leading to the more intense & robust ones. Some of the mentionable desserts include a Japanese inspired Soya which harmonises soya ingredients with tofu cheesecake, red beans, homemade mochi, red miso caramel and green tea ice-iream. There is also the Ginger featuring warm candied ginger pudding topped with a luscious sticky toffee and accompanied caramel ice-cream. All cakes and ice-creams/sorbets are made in-house.
SGP will serve as an event space for private/corporate events, meetings and product launches. In addition, they hope to be able to do pop-up dinners with guest chefs in the near future. And so, selfish Gene continues to evolve.
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