Bar Hopping in Singapore on a Budget

The Black Swan has the best happy hour in the central business district and on top of that the decor will make you feel as if you’ve stepped into the 1920s. Every weekday from 5pm-9pm, enjoy house pours, house wines and selected beers for just $9 and $2 oysters. Be sure to check out the gorgeous courtyard space out back.

Cuscaden Patio, located behind the Forum Shopping Mall and across the road from the famous Orchard Towers, is perfect when you’re in the mood to hang out in a dive bar. Here you can play pool and eat some of the best chicken wings on the island. If you fancy a midweek drink, drop by on a Tuesday night when a 1.5-litre jug of San Miguel goes for just $13, but at $20 the rest of the week, Cuscaden is more wallet-friendly than most places.

After a day spent shopping on Orchard Road, relax with your friends at this no frills, outdoor bar where three bottles of Heineken will cost $13. Al Capone’s is the epitome of a casual watering hole more closely resembling a hawker, in that it is completely outdoor and you have to use the washrooms in the mall next door. They also serve up pizza and pasta all night long, so there is no reason to be drinking all those beers on an empty stomach!

Loof runs a “Beat the Clock” promo on weekdays from 5-8pm with house spirits and wines going for $5 from 5pm-6pm, $6 from 6pm-7pm and $7 from 7pm-8pm. Located on the rooftop of Odeon Towers near Bugis, patrons can enjoy rooftop vibes in a relaxed atmosphere.

Brewerkz sells pints of their microbrew beers between noon and 3pm on weekdays for $7, with further discounts on their beer of the week running until 7pm, meaning you can get a pint of good quality beer for $10 all afternoon. With four locations across the island, three of which are next to the water, you’re spoiled for choice for great beers with a view.

Tanuki Raw’s happy hour runs daily from 5-7pm at Kapok in the National Design Centre and 5-8pm at Orchard Central. The offer is $10 martinis and cocktails and $12 pints. They’ve also embraced Singapore’s recent trend for oyster happy hours, with each drink you can order freshly-shucked oysters for $2/shell.

Located just across the road from Club Street on Cross Street, happy hour at Meatballs runs from 4pm-8pm on weekdays and all day Saturday. Get a mixed drink for $7, a bottle of beer for $8 or if you’re having a big night, you can get 20 beers for $100. On Saturdays, Club Meatballs hosts a Roast Lamb Brunch with freeflow beer and wines for $88.

At Five Oriental, you don’t have to watch the clock because their drinks are $5 all the time. On top of that, they serve a surprisingly good tapas menu that ranges from $5-10 with everything from sauteed garlic cockles to stuffed mushrooms at the Cuppage Terrace location and noodle bowls and dim sum at Collyer Quay.