LIN Rooftop Bar Singapore: Enjoy Cheap Whiskys and Premium Spirits On a Rooftop

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LIN 林 is short for 树林 which means forest, the all encompassing theme for Lin rooftop bar.

With bamboo silhouettes surrounding the entire bar, spots of shade, sunlight mimicking natural canopy and tables with legs that look like bamboos, it is evident LIN puts a lot of effort into looking the part.

Other than carrying the nature theme, LIN boasts of Asian accents like the terracotta warriors, japanese paintings and oriental porcelain stools.

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Definitely a refreshing change from the usual sleek and minimal concept, LIN’s Asian interior is one to look out for. Sadly, this rooftop bar is does not come with stunning view of the city scape but the semi alfresco setting does compensate by giving an overall casual and relaxed atmosphere.

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You could perch yourself comfortably on the sofas provided and choose your favourite poison to drown in.

LIN offers cheap midweek drinks that aren’t entry standard house pours or diluted cocktails, they know where the real deal is and so serves premium spirits the likes of Macallan 18, Cordon Bleu etc, at only $10 on Wednesdays.

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While their cocktails do have room for improvement, the Wednesday Happy Hour offer coupled with their food makes LIN so damn attractive.

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L to R: Road to Ultra   $18, Shu Lin Slippers  $18, Princess Lotus   $18,

As mentioned earlier, the cocktails are average at best and I’d have preferred if they used fresh fruit juices and home-made syrups; we’ve been spoilt by the high standard of Singapore’s cocktail bars.

Road to Ultra cocktail was the best out of the three, probably because it was mostly a mix of many liquors – Gin, Tequila, Vodka, Rum, Melon Liquor and Pineapple juice.

The Princess Lotus resembles a grapefruit mojito but more sour and thinner.

The Shu Lin Slippers was a tad bit too sweet and the flavours didn’t work that well for me.

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Blur Sotong – Homemade Sotong balls with oozing cheese,  $10.80

Breaded and fried till a delicious brown, the dish was rather underwhelming for me as the sotong didn’t taste the part. The cheesiness factor was definitely present though.

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Empress Har Cheong Wings,  $11.80

Pretty good wings with a generous serving, it is crisp on the outside while soft and juicy inside. I’d have liked it better with a stronger prawn paste essence to it.

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Yin Yang- Homemade fish otah with sauteed prawns and mussels on top, covered with coconut cream sauce,  $11.80 

This is definitely a tapas worth commending and so worthy of the signature title. The Otah Pau with coconut sauce combination was satisfying to devour.

The homemade otah tasted similar to thai fish cakes, just with that slightly charred dark aroma characteristic of otah. The coconut cream sauce was sweet, savoury and tangy, providing sufficient seasoning for the otah while the pillowy pau held all of that together well.

The cream also pairs fantastically with the mussels. I would order this again if I was back here other times.

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Beer Bucket of 5, Tsing Tao Premium,  $38 nett

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Steak & Frites,  $19.80

A thick slab of 200g ribeye steak for less than $2o, say whaaaaaaaat?

Although it arrived more rare than medium rare, it still tasted good. The meat is well seasoned and it is really peppery as well. The fries are powdered with Old Bay seasoning, which tasted a bit like bbq powder mixed with spices and trust me, it was addictive.

Not actually a fan of steak, this was surprisingly good.

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Babe – Marinated Pork Belly with sauteed shiitake mushrooms, mixed herbs served with red wine jam and mixed vegetables, $17.80

The absolute signature that they pride themselves on, and the only one they have very limited quantities of, is their babe. After marination for some time, the babe is cooked using a 2 step process. First, it is baked then grilled on the surface to give it that extra crispness.

2 thick chunks of browned pork belly – briny and charred – sit on a bed of juicy shiitake mushrooms. After using some strength to saw at the meat, one is rewarded by oily juices bursting upon biting into it.

The stir-fried capsicums provided a contrasting fresh raw juiciness balancing out the meaty-ness. Overall, I would say the pork belly was pretty decent, but albeit too tough and heavy in flavour. They could also do with more red wine jam.

LIN is a great place for post-work chill out with premium spirits at a fraction of the usual price. I would come back for their Wednesdays offers, Happy Hour offers and Beer Bucket Promotions but the cocktails would need some improvements.

Expected Damage: $30 – $50 per pax

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LIN Rooftop Bar: 50 Tiong Bahru Rd, Singapore 168733 | Tel:  9487 4290 | Website

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