colbar @ whitchurch road

this 58-year old restaurant is unique. tucked away in some quiet corner of singapore, at portsdown road, this non-air-conditioned milk bar has been an all-time favourite of locals and expatriates.

it was replicated after the former premises had to make way for the aye extension. its present and new location is on whitchurch road. for generations, the colbar--allegedly short for "colonial bar"--was on jalan hang jebat, a small street in a part of singapore that once housed british soldiers.

the colbar was threatened with closure because of a planned highway extension that would overrun this sleepy street. thankfully, colbar regulars petitioned the powers that be and not only was a new home found for this quaint eatery, but the building that housed it was declared historically important, taken down and completely rebuilt on its new premises, just 5 minutes from its old home on jalan hang jebat.

nearby is the tanglin trust school and the temasek club. must mention something about tanglin trust school which is not evident in our national schools. they take the terrorist threat very seriously. the security of the place is maintained by armed gurkhas from the singapore police force.

colbar is closed on mondays. on those other days, it is open from 11 a.m. to 8.00 p.m. the two very popular dishes are the chicken curry and the pork chops. i will not consider the place as inexpensive; the last time, eleven of us shared pork chops, egg omelette and chicken curry and the bill came up to more than $150.