Eat & Drink: A decadent evening at The Elephant Bar, Hotel le Royal

On Sunday night The Boy and I decided to treat ourselves to drinks at The Elephant bar at the Hotel Le Royal (Raffles).

I think everyone should visit the Le Royal at least once, the Hotel is an elegant Colonial building.  The drive is lined with Frangiapani trees and red-carpeted stairs lead you to a grand foyer.  I generally like to dress up when we go, just because I can.  If you ever feel like you need to escape the noise, humidity, traffic and chaos, treat yourself to drinks here, it feels like you've stepped into another world.  If you come at the right time you may even be treated to a pianist.

Raffles has prices to match its 5-star rating.  But, thankfully, they also have a long happy hour from 4 pm to 9 pm (5 hours - all happy hours should be that long!), with 50% off  selected cocktails and other drinks.

If you have drinks here, I recommend choosing one of the signature cocktails.  My personal favourite is the Paris Sling, but the Femme Fatale (created in honour of Jacquie O) is also lovely.  If you have kids or non-drinkers the Royal Paradise is a non-alcoholic cocktail, which could almost fool you into thinking you were having the real thing.

In addition to the discount, during happy hour you will also be treated to a selection of complimentary nibbles.  Which means you can leisurely sip your pre-dinner drinks and stave off any hunger.  (Just to confuse you the banana chips are savoury, while the peanuts have sugar on them.  But the taro chips and salsa are very tasty.)

I could while away hours sitting back on one of these sofas, sipping my drink.  If you want a little extra privacy you can even close the curtains.

Whenever we go to the Le Royal, we always stop by the bakery before we leave.  They have their own happy hour after 6 pm, when all these gorgeous cakes, as well as breads and pastries, are 50% off.  

We invariably come home with one of these boxes, filled with goodies.

The perfect end to a lovely evening!