One Ninety

C says:

We’d read many reviews that One Ninety, the coffeehouse within the Four Season Hotel, does a really good burger, and we finally decided to make our way here for lunch on Saturday.

I wasn’t too impressed by the service when we arrived. A had called a week earlier to make the reservation, and called 15 minutes before we arrived just to confirm our reservation, and yet when we got there, we were made to stand around while they made a big show of searching through their books for our reservation. Quite unnecessarily, I might add, given that the restaurant was empty except for about 3 small tables. In the end, after much clarifying of our names, they eventually found the reservation under a very strange permutation of A's name, with nary an apology.


A ordered the regular premium beef burger with Emmenthal cheese, and didn’t opt for wagyu or the extra foie gras and black truffle. This lived up to its reputation. The medium rare patty was perfectly pink, juicy, yet not too greasy. At $27, it was a bit steep for a burger, but it was a damn good one anyway.


I went for the 3 mini burgers, and choose 3 (out of 5) fillings – black truffle, blue cheese and foie gras. This was an absolute rip-off. $42 for 3 miniscule burgers is absolutely ridiculous, even if it’s supposedly topped with premium ingredients, which they were terribly stingy with anyway. And if the beef patties were supposed to be wagyu to justify the price, I can honestly say that A’s patty was much much better. At least his had the taste and texture of beef. Mine were overcooked, and tasted almost like meatballs. Only one out of the three was cooked slightly more rare, and that one tasted very good.

The profit margin on the coffees here, though, must really go through the roof. Our tiny cups of latte and cappuccino were $11 each, which I guess is par for the course in hotel coffeehouses.

We’re prepared to give this place one more try, though, because they’ve got a Smaller Bites concept that sounds quite interesting. They’ve got an a la carte buffet dinner for $52, where the dishes are small, one-bite tasting portions. We sneaked a peek at the items on offer, and I must say the menu was very comprehensive, and A and I could eat practically everything on the menu. So watch this space, we’ll definitely write about it after.

A says:

The burgers are great, but definitely not worth the price tag. And the coffee is a real rip-off. AND parking for our 1-hour meal was $7.

This place is only an option if you’ve got lots of money to blow. But then again, their target market usually does.

One Ninety
190 Orchard Boulevard
Ground floor Four Seasons Hotel
Tel: 6734 1110 / 6831 7250