Satay is one of the most loved local delights in Singapore. Hence, it's only fitting that there's a food court in the middle of Gardens by the Bay housing several satay stalls in one place. Satay by the Bay, modeled after the Satay Club of the 80s and 90s, is the latest destination for a casual get-together with your family and friends.
Besides satay, the place has a food court serving up local delicacies such as BBQ seafood, carrot cake and chicken rice. With such a wide array of food stalls, you will definitely be spoilt for choice.
Satay by the Bay gives a perfect view of the iconic Marina Bay Sands
Ambience – Reminiscent of the Old Satay Club
Satay by the Bay gives off a casual vibe for both tourists and locals alike. A cosy destination for family and friends, it is divided into two sections for different dining experiences.
The mini tables and chairs pay homage to the old Satay Club
Diners can choose between the regular seating areas near the food stalls or an outdoor seating by the satay stalls. There, patrons can sit on traditional short stools with wooden tables overlooking the Marina Reservoir.
The satay is grilled on the spot and the smoke envelopes the area surrounding it, so if you choose the hobbit-like tables and chairs which are reminiscent of the Old Satay Club, you can expect to smell like BBQ smoke when leaving the premise.
OpenRice Picks - 5 Satay Stalls
With four halal and three non-halal satay stalls to choose from, we pick 5 stalls to carry out our taste-test on their satay and peanut sauces.
1. Sri Geylang Sate (Halal)
If there’s a Mr. Congeniality award at Satay by the Bay, the stall vendor here will win hands down. He greets his customers with a smile and is more than willing to help them with orders. Thankfully, he’s not all talk, he’s also quite efficient in taking and serving orders. We chose the beef, mutton, and chicken satay. Within 10 minutes, they were served with fresh cucumbers, onions, and peanut sauce.
The beef and mutton were equally tender and sweet. However, the chicken was chewy and tough. The peanut sauce was thick and had traces of spices, complementing the satay really well.
---
Must try: Beef
Rating: 4.5/5
Price: 10 sticks/$7
Opening Hours: 11am – 1am
2. 五棵树 (Non-halal)
There are four kinds of satay available at this stall —beef, chicken, mutton, and pork. Service here was quite fast and our order arrived hot off the grill within five minutes. These sticks were accompanied with rice, cucumbers, and onions.
The pork, beef, and chicken were marinated with spices and proved to be tender and flavoursome. However, the mutton was a little too tough. The peanut sauce had the same consistency as its affiliated stall, Sri Geylang Sate, but tasted sweeter.
---
Must try: Chicken
Rating: 4.5/5
Price: 10 sticks/$7
Opening hours: 10.30am – 11pm (Weekdays); 10.30am – 1am (Weekends)
3. Kampong Satay (Non-halal)
Kampong Satay has pictures of a young boy eating satay decorating their order counter. The owner explained that the pictures are to let parents know that his satay will be a hit with the not only the adults but also the kids. Pork, beef, mutton, and chicken satay are available here. These come with apple and pineapple sauce (a unique and creative addition by the stall owner), cucumbers, onions, and two generous bowls of peanut sauce.
The pork and beef were the most tender, sweet and juicy of the lot. The chicken turned out to be chewy and a little tough while the mutton was not as sweet in comparison to the pork and beef satay. The peanut sauce was thick and sweet, but a tad too oily. You can choose to mix the pineapple/apple sauce in together with the peanut sauce. While the apple sauce is kid-friendly, its disappointingly bland and watery.
---
Must try: Pork and Beef
Rating: 3.5/5
Price: 10 sticks/$7
Opening hours: 11am – 11pm
4. Top One (Halal)
If you are having difficulty deciding on your satay choices here, fret not, you can sample some first! We tried three sticks of beef, mutton, and chicken from this stall.
When the dish was served, we were pleasantly surprised by the generous amount of meat skewered on the sticks. The beef tasted sweet and juicy, despite being a little hard to chew. The chicken had bits of chicken skin on it and was tasty and juicy. However, the cucumbers served were far from fresh and the mutton was unpleasantly tough. The peanut sauce had a comforting sweetness and warmth but was too watery for our liking.
---
Must try: Chicken and Beef
Rating: 3/5
Price: 10 sticks/$7
Opening hours: 3pm – 11pm (Weekdays)
10.30am – 12mn (Weekends)
5. Royal Satay (Halal)
The waiting time for satay here may be longer than usual. We could have overlooked this if the satay were extraordinary, but no, it wasn't up to our expectations. Even though the beef was sweet and tender, it was too chewy. The mutton was sweet but dry and tough. The chicken was perhaps the best of the three for it was tender. However, you can forget about the lacklustre peanut sauce -it was watery and lacked flavour.
---
Must try: Chicken
Rating: 2/5
Price: 10 sticks/$7
Opening hours: 1.30pm – 11pm (Weekdays)
Wait, there’s more! Check out the next page for more food apart from satay.
See Also:
Craving for more satay? Check out here
Check out the eateries at Marina Bay
