Some time back, Fairmont Hotel released a whole slew of creative packages with pretty awesome inclusions on Klook. Of all the options, the package that caught my eye was the one that came with breakfast, $150 dining credit and a 60-minute aromatherapy relaxation massage for two! Also, my husband was in dire need of a massage so this was a no-brainer.
Check-in
Two days before check-in, I received a call from the room reservations team offering us an early check-in at 11am as they needed to stagger guests’ arrival times. I think I said yes a little too quickly heh, but who wouldn’t?! True enough, there was barely a queue when we arrived. Joan, the front desk staff attending to us, was lovely and made us feel very welcome with her warm and friendly disposition. She also seemed very experienced in addressing our questions and completed our check-in process swiftly.
Room
The room we booked was the Fairmont King Room, thankfully turning out to be more contemporary than what was shown in the photos on the official website. It was quite spacious, except for the entrance walkway that felt a tad small and dark, probably due to the black-coloured wood lining the sides. I love having modern comfy lounge chairs by the window for reading, and this one hit the mark with enough length for me to stretch my legs out. I also got a good night’s sleep with their firm pillow and bed (: Little details around the room made it feel unique, like the Merlion postcard on the pillow, an origami animal (I think?) on the sheets and a care pack in a cute drawstring bag on the desk.
I thought the marble-tiled bathroom felt a little on the small side, but then again, it could be the heavy use of black on an entire wall in there. That definitely made the space feel less bright and open. Nevertheless, there was plenty of room in the shower area, which includes a rainshower and a sitting bench. Generally, the bathroom was clean and well-maintained.
Facilities
As we were early for our reservation at Anti:dote and they hadn’t begun service yet, we stopped by the pool and gym first. The gym is located right next to Willow Stream Spa on level 6, while the pool is located on level 8. It was blazing hot that afternoon and the sun made it hard not to squint, so we settled for a few photos before scurrying back inside.
For lunch, we dined at both Anti:dote and Clove as I wanted to try the fare at both restaurants. At Anti:dote, we ordered a bread and butter pudding from the casual British seasonal pop-up menu by Kirk Westaway, which I thoroughly enjoyed! Some bread and butter pudding dishes I’ve had before were way too sweet, and being drowned in sticky custard didn’t help their case. This was fortunately not one of them. With that said, I would’ve preferred it to have more of a firm, bread-like texture instead of a soft, steamed-egg consistency. As for the ambience, it wasn’t especially memorable but it could’ve been because we were seated in a corner facing the drop-off point.
At Clove, where they serve mainly burgers and shakes, we got a lobster mobster burger and a nutella milkshake to share. Our burger came full-on with a succulent lobster claw and tail, as well as crunchy aquaponic kale grown in-house! One thing I didn’t particularly fancy was the brioche bun as it was too charred for my liking. The milkshake was sprinkled with sugared almond bits coated in gold dust (very interesting) and tasted delicious and creamy. I was worried it would be too milky or overly thick, but it had just the right consistency and level of sweetness. Also, I liked how the restaurant’s space was well-lit and beautifully sun-drenched with light pouring through the glass windows, perfect for chilling out.
After a nice lunch, we went to check out SKAI restaurant as I’ve seen so many beautiful photos of this place. Perched on the 70th floor of Swissotel The Stamford complete with floor-to-ceiling windows, there was tons of natural light streaming in. Not to mention the breathtaking vista of the Marina Bay area, just gorgeous. Sadly, our dining credit couldn’t be utilized here, so we had a quick walkabout before heading back down.
Back in our room, we changed into our swimsuits all ready for our massage at Willow Stream Spa. An email was sent to prompt us to make a reservation almost 2 months prior, and I did so over the phone. The staff making the reservation even mentioned that we were the first ones to book a slot for that date. Alas, when we arrived at the appointed time, they regrettably informed us that our reservation never made it into their system and there were no more slots left for that day (omg). They were extremely apologetic about it though, and the manager, Ophelia, personally saw to it that our issue was rectified. She offered us a return voucher for any date within the next 3 months and even upgraded us to a couple suite (read about that experience here). Now that’s top-notch service recovery right there.
We were still able to use the wet facilities, consisting of steam rooms, saunas, whirlpools, plunge pools and a relaxation lounge. I spent most of my time in the hot plunge pool, and as much as it was comfortable and relaxing, it was nowhere near my experience at the Heavenly Spa by Westin, where the space was lit by natural sunlight and had a towering view! Another drawback was that the facilities looked noticeably aged and outdated, with its brick-coloured tiles and water-damaged corners. The shower and toilet area also had a mild sewage smell that didn’t go away. Maybe it’s time for another refurbishment?
For dinner, we dined at Prego, one of my all-time favourite Italian restaurants (: Jeanne, one of the staff there whom I interacted with earlier in the day, actually remembered me and addressed me by name while inviting us into the restaurant. She had a genuinely helpful demeanour and was all smiles as we spoke. People like her really elevate the experience with their authentic hospitality ❤
On to the food! After placing our order, we were offered a starter of bread with a vinegar and olive oil dip. I know it’s just bread but it was SO GOOD – soft, fragrant and incredibly absorbent in soaking up that dip. I had the roasted cod with pea purée and my husband had the spaghettoni carbonara, both served on warm plates. Wow, the cod had an absolute melt-in-your-mouth texture and was wonderfully seasoned, my only complaint being not having enough pea purée to swirl the rest of my cod in! Upon biting into his spaghettoni, my husband exclaimed that this was definitely fresh pasta (having had his life changed by his Vapiano experience). He then proceeded to wipe his plate clean of every last bit of sauce, which was creamy and full of flavour. What’s not to love here?
Breakfast the next morning was served at Prego. As my husband had to head out very early before breakfast service began, I requested to have my breakfast at Prego and my husband to have his as in-room dining. Jeanne assisted with modifying our reservation to accommodate this request. However, upon arrival at breakfast, another staff informed me first by saying that there was no such option to split our breakfast service, then subsequently went on to say that we should’ve placed the order separately as the in-room dining and Prego kitchens and menus are different. No rationale for this discrepancy was provided. In addition, there was a palpable tone of frustration in her voice. Granted, it may have been an honest mistake on Jeanne’s part, but I thought the interaction could’ve been much more pleasant had that staff been calmer and more forthcoming in her explanation of the situation from the start. The lingering vibes of discomfort were fortunately negated by another staff, Priscilla, who enthusiastically listed the available beverages and recommended me certain juices to try.
On the online pre-order form, it wrote that each guest was limited to one main while the other items could be ordered repeatedly. Thankfully, this wasn’t strictly enforced during our stay. As for the food, it was generally very forgettable. While it wasn’t bad by any standard, nothing really stood out. I also had the impression that the juices were freshly squeezed but that was not the case. I should mention that they came in teeny tiny cups too, which is understandable if the juices were fresh, but… they weren’t. It seems like for all the extravagance that this hotel offers, breakfast service is the part they chose to skimp on.
My overall rating of the experience: 4 out of 5 stars. The inclusions in our package for this stay was incredibly value for money 😀 Just the 60-minute massage alone would’ve set us back $149++ per person, so two of this pretty much covered the entire cost of the stay! We really enjoyed the food and beverages here (thanks to the $150 dining credit), with the exception of breakfast. Our room was also clean and comfortably furnished. Unfortunately, there were a few hiccups that brought the rating down. Firstly, the unexpected inconvenience of having to come back on another day for our massage because the system somehow didn’t register our prior reservation. Secondly, and rather inexcusably, was the lack of forthcomingness and the exasperated tone from one of the staff that almost ruined the mood at breakfast. Having said that, this one sore interaction doesn’t overshadow the tremendous hospitality shown to us by the rest of the staff, who were very willing to go the extra mile to make our stay a pleasant one. Given the opportunity, we would come back here again (hopefully with dining credit included for all restaurants)!
Dania Experiences 