Two of the month's highest-profile openings landed within days of each other — an Italian degustation room on Neil Road and a rooftop bar atop National Gallery Singapore. Here's what each actually offers, and whether it's worth booking.

Assaggi, 77A Neil Road

Opened 10 August 2026. This is Chef Denis Lucchi's second restaurant, following his one-Michelin-starred Buona Terra. Assaggi runs on set menus only: a three-course lunch at $58++, and two dinner tasting menus — The Signature Journey and The Pasta Journey — at $88++ each, with $18 supplements available on both. Open Tuesday to Saturday, 12pm–3pm and 6pm–10.30pm. It's about a four-minute walk from Maxwell MRT, seven minutes from Outram Park. The pitch is flavour over plating — worth the trip for a proper set-menu lunch in the Neil Road stretch, less so if you're after à la carte flexibility.

Opened 1 August 2026. A 7,000 sq ft rooftop from the team behind Center of the Universe (C.O.T.U.), positioned where the Marina Bay Sands skyline meets the heritage-listed Padang — views take in Marina Bay Sands, the Esplanade and the Singapore Flyer. Weekday lunch sets run $38++ (two courses) or $48++ (three courses); cocktails sit around $24 (Mango Hour, Purple Tide, the XAVA Sling). It shifts from a lounge in the afternoon to a full sky bar after sunset, open till 3am, with a rotating LED ceiling installation as the standout design feature. Best for a golden-hour drink or a client meeting with a view — the $24 cocktail price point puts it solidly in special-occasion territory rather than a regular haunt.

Both are new enough that hours, menus and pricing are worth double-checking directly before a visit.

Sources

  • Assaggi — FACT Singapore, Time Out Singapore, MiddleClass.SG restaurant coverage; venue-published menu and hours
  • Xava Skybar — Alvinology, Mini Me Insights, National Gallery Singapore official venue page (nationalgallery.sg)