Duxton Reserve hotel review: a sultry boutique stay in Singapore's Chinatown

Times

a day ago

Good things come in small packages, and this 49-room boutique hotel in the Lion City's Tanjong Pagar neighbourhood is no exception. A series of eight early 19th-century baroque Chinese shophouses in the creative enclave Duxton Hill have been brought up to date with moody Anouska Hempel interiors. She is clearly a subscriber to the 'more is more and less is a bore' design ethos — the low-lit lobby, lounge, Chinese restaurant Yellow Pot and convivial bar Anouska's swim in a palette of ebony, canary yellow and gold, with lashings of black lacquer, bamboo screens and oversized fans. Conversely the service here is welcoming, but reserved.
Numerous corridors and staircases lead to dimly lit bedrooms which err on the compact size. Whether channelling a simple monochrome aesthetic, kitted out with a four-poster bed and bright buttercup-coloured calligraphy wallpaper or enveloped by crimson walls, all rooms offer peaceful slumber. The hotel is popular with business folk striking deals over martinis as well as honeymooners after a unique spot to bed down, and the main draw here, rather than heaps of facilities, is design flamboyance in a great location.
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Score 8/10 Duxton Reserve has had several personalities since these former shophouses and their elegant mix of Chinese-Malay-European architecture first became a hotel in the 1990s. Most recently, it had a brief stint as a Six Senses, but the lack of a dedicated wellness space that the brand is known for meant it never really took off. Since 2020 it's been part of Marriott's Autograph Collection, and its owners, behind the design-led Vagabond Club, have retained Hempel's bold, boutique interiors. As is the way with historic buildings, no two of the bedrooms here — reached by a heritage-status diesel lift or a jumble of dark corridors and short curling stairwells — are identical in shape or size.
That said, broadly speaking, there are three colourways to pick from. Small Shophouse Rooms (20-25 sq m) have a monochrome design, while Opium Rooms (23-30 sq m) are in bumblebee yellow or bright red, contrasted with glossy black furniture, four-poster beds and calligraphy wallpaper. Suites offer slightly more space (28-51 sq m) with the two levels of duplex versions joined by whimsical spiral staircases. Serving up style, rather than masses of light or space, all have Naturalmat organic mattresses, Beaumont & Brown linens and Diptyque toiletries. Small but sleek jet-black bathrooms have partially glass-doored showers (floors can get slippery), other than the all-white Pearl suite (a honeymooner favourite), which has a bath tub. While the hotel's not billed as adults-only, it very much feels that way, with cots and extra beds not permitted.
Score 8/10Numerous lemon-coloured ceramic pots line black shelves in ground-level Yellow Pot, and the 50-or-so cover restaurant is cleverly split by screens — some black lacquer and glass, some bamboo — creating spaces conducive to intimate tête-à-têtes. Chinese dishes such as smoky hickory wood-roasted duck, crispy lion's mane mushroom with spicy osmanthus-honey sauce, and udon noodles come served on plates depicting street life in Beijing's hutongs, and are all MSG and additive-free. Desserts — including mango and rockmelon soup with sago pearls and red bean pancakes — are delicate but satisfying.
For breakfast, the set continental (two hot items, such as eggs, as well as granola, pancakes and drinks) is the best value; the price to portion size of dishes on the à la carte — think fruit platters, eggs royale and French toast — feels a little costly. For those after an excuse to get their glad rags on, Anouska's Bar pulls off a sassy art deco look with golden curved tables, glowing wall decorations and parasol-shaped lighting. Cocktails infused with local ingredients, such as the gin and chrysanthemum cordial-based Escape to Kaifeng are served with aplomb.
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Score n/aWhile there are no wellness facilities at Duxton Reserve, guests do have access to a slender 25m outdoor lap pool, and small gym room at sister hotel the Maxwell Reserve on Cook Street, five minutes' walk away.
Score 9/10Bridging Chinatown and the Central Business District, Tanjong Pagar has double appeal in being a creative neighbourhood that's well-connected to the rest of the city (Tanjong Pagar MRT is ten minutes' walk from Duxton Reserve, making travel to most of Singapore's main attractions easy). In Tanjong Pagar, pretty Peranakan shophouses and Korean restaurants line the streets; hip Keong Saik Road's shops, restaurants and cocktail bars, and Maxwell Food Centre — known for its Tian Tian Hainanese chicken rice — are just a five-minute walk away too. Chinatown's market stalls — selling jade jewellery, waving lucky cats and everything in between — food joints and the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple aren't much further. Plus more back-to-back drinking and dining establishments can be found on Ann Siang Hill and Club Street — about a ten-minute stroll away.
Price Room-only doubles from £207Restaurant Mains from £18Family-friendly NAccessible N
Ianthe Butt was a guest of Duxton Reserve (duxtonreserve.com)
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