Since 1941, Coach New York has woven a confident thread of quality craftsmanship throughout the highest echelons of luxury fashion. Today, their portfolio runs a wide gamut, offering a vibrant array of immersive experiences that stands proudly at the confluence of fashion, culture and community. With the official launch of the Coach Restaurant in Singapore, the maison adds another notch to its belt of esteemed food and beverage establishments around the world.
Helmed by head chef Kurt Sombero, formerly of Burnt Ends and Meatsmith Little India, the concept is a modern steakhouse suffused with Americana allure—with a distinctly Coach twist. Everything here is fully on-brand for the maison. They have nothing to hide and hold nothing back, confidently injecting a heady dose of the best of the Big Apple in the middle of Jewel Changi Airport. Their signature, careful attention to detail is readily apparent from the onset, from the warm and welcoming glovetanned leather everything—Coach is, after all, the original American house of leather—to the iconic yellow New York taxi cab suspended from the ceiling.
These elements combine in a special way. More than the sum of their parts, the space is elegant, yet manages to boast all the winsome charm and bold swagger of a native New Yorker. To be sure, this is aided by the fact that the Coach retail store is directly linked to the dining space. But even so, when it comes to the ‘restaurant’ part of this affair, Coach sticks the landing where it matters.
The open woodfire kitchen is an intimate invitation to engage with the ritual of food, up close and personal. Complementing this spectacle is a menu that is, tip to tail, everything you might hope for in an American steakhouse—but given a luxury facelift through the glitz and glamour of Coach’s enduring creative vision.
No New York experience would be complete without a bagel and its accoutrements. Coach’s offering kicks the spread of appetisers off with a savoury, slightly tangy umami bomb, by way of its Black and White Bagel. This cute ode to the black and white cookie of Manhattan past is liberally spread with caviar and cream cheese, topped with a nigh imperceptible garnish of lemon zest. The Classic Steak Tartare is a tender, beefy delight, precisely plated in a cleverly Coach-branded ‘C’ shape. Other Northeast American standouts include briny, succulent Washington State Oysters with a piquant mignonette made from blackberries, and a Maryland Crab Cake, heavily spiced with Baltimore-native Old Bay seasoning.
The ‘New York Classics’ part of the menu doubles down on the city’s culinary staples. Coach’s rendition of the textbook NY Slice of cheese pizza strikes a delicate balance between crispy, yet floppy dough. The Chicken Bucket consists of five immaculately breaded, deeply seasoned chicken drumsticks. These are accompanied by a trio of sauces made in-house: hot honey, a classic hot sauce and a rich and herby ranch. And their NY Burger is made with a thick cut wagyu beef patty, cheddar cheese, pickles and a savoury, zesty secret sauce—a true-blue steakhouse burger, through and through.
That live woodfire grill? The flames roar in the background, poised to sear and char mains that leave no room for doubt regarding the culinary expertise of the back-of-house staff. Standouts of this lineup include the wall-to-wall medium rare USDA Prime Ribeye, courtesy of Linz Heritage Angus; and the defiantly succulent Maine Lobster, brimming with a spicy black pepper hollandaise. Of course, it wouldn’t do to have hearty food like these without sides, and Coach provides, with wholly decadent French fries cooked in duck fat and a rich serving of grilled sweet corn and onions.
At this point, if the filling fare hasn’t completely waylaid your appetite, the desserts round out Coach’s gastronomic journey in stunning style. The NY Style Cheesecake resists the trendy turn of its creamier burnt Basque cousin, towering with fruity compote, lavish cream cheese filling and a toothsome, dense biscuit and graham cracker base. And in a cheeky nod to that traditional American household snack, the peanut butter and jelly sandwich, the PB & J Bombe Alaska oozes familiar flavours, covered in dozens of painstakingly piped torched meringue tips.
Make no mistake about it, the spirit of New York City is alive and well in Singapore’s Coach Restaurant. Big on style, and even bigger on substance—the service is relentlessly hospitable and never off-putting—the dining experience is a transportive one. If you close your eyes, the hustle and bustle of wait staff and chefs alike recall the lively action of a homely diner. The moment you open them, though, you are instantly reminded that you are, in fact, eating in elevated style, courtesy of an esteemed luxury fashion house. It’s a strange pairing, but it makes a whole lot of sense—craftsmanship is craftsmanship, whether in fashion or food. With the latter, Coach knocks it out of the park.
