Po

Po is a modern Peranakan restaurant inside The Warehouse Hotel, a restored riverside godown on Havelock Road at Robertson Quay. Its name comes from "Popo", a Chinese word for grandmother. The menu builds on family recipes handed down through the generations.

Head chef Fredric Goh has cooked in several well-known Singapore kitchens. The kitchen uses Southeast Asian and local produce and traditional methods. The aim is to keep heritage flavours while suiting modern tastes.

What to order

Popiah is the dish Po is best known for. You get very thin wheat skins, slow-cooked vegetables and savoury toppings, and roll your own at the table.

The restaurant names three more dishes as must-tries:

• Crab and pork ngoh hiang: fried beancurd skin rolls stuffed with crab, five-spice pork belly and crunchy water chestnut.
• Buah keluak pork jowl: slow-cooked Iberico pork cheek in a dark paste of keluak nut and spices, with fried dough sticks for dipping.
• Chargrilled prawn Hokkien mee: noodles simmered in a rich seafood and pork stock, with prawns, roast pork and a house chilli paste on the side.

Larger dishes are made for sharing. Look for sotong masak hitam, squid cooked in a black ink sauce and served with a fried tentacle. Ayam pongteh is a chicken leg stewed with bean paste and mushrooms. Beef rendang uses wagyu beef cheek, and itek sio is duck leg grilled after a long soak in tamarind, shallot and coriander. Pair them with nasi telang, rice tinted blue with butterfly pea flower, or nasi ulam, a blue coconut rice mixed with herbs and fish.

Desserts give local sweets a modern spin. Try the chempedak crème brûlée, made with a sweet fruit related to jackfruit. The kueh salat ice cream sandwich uses coconut love letter wafers.

Set lunch

At lunch, look out for the Tok Panjang set, named after the Peranakan long-table feast. It brings an appetiser, a choice of main sets and dessert, for a minimum of two people. It runs on weekday lunchtimes, but check the website before you go.

The setting

Po sits inside a restored warehouse building by the Singapore River, and the room pairs that old shell with a modern look. It suits a relaxed lunch, a date or a family meal.

Good to know before you go

• Booking: reserve through OpenTable on the Po website, or call the restaurant.
• Breakfast: Po serves breakfast as well as lunch and dinner.
• Takeaway: Po offers takeaway.
• Dietary needs: pork, prawns and shrimp paste appear in many dishes. A jackfruit rendang lists no meat, but ask staff about the spice paste.
• Events: for private dining, contact the hotel's reservations team.

Getting there and nearby

The hotel names Havelock MRT station (Exit 4) as the nearest. Parking at the hotel is limited and given out first come, first served.

If you want to stay in the building, see our page on The Warehouse Hotel. Tiong Bahru is close by, so walk the Art Deco flats of Tiong Bahru Estate before or after your meal. Our Clarke Quay and Robertson Quay guide covers the riverside.

New to this cuisine? Read our guide to Peranakan food, see more Peranakan restaurants, or browse restaurants in Tiong Bahru and Alexandra.