Yahoo Finance The Best 1-for-1 Hotel Buffet Dining Promotions in Singapore (July 2020)
Nothing gets Singaporeans going like a hotel buffet, but the problem is that most of them are pretty expensive at full price. Luckily, with the current spate of excellent credit card promotions in Singapore, you can get half-price hotel buffets with practically any card.
In compiling this list, I focused only on the biggest discounts, i.e. 1-for-1 buffet and 50% off food bill. There are plenty of smaller discounts but we ignored those because obviously everyone wants the most bang for your buck. The deals are sorted by expiry date, then by price.
Always check the terms and conditions for credit card buffet promotions first. Typically you have to call to reserve, quote your bank name to secure the discount (because it may be limited to X number of patrons a day) and pay using that card. Usually both credit or debit cards are accepted as long as it’s from the partner bank.
Contents
Disclaimer: We referred to published prices and called the restaurants to compile this list, stating all the caveats (e.g. valid only on certain days, timings, etc) we could find. However, we are human.
We recommend you give the hotel/restaurant a call to confirm the prices and validity before heading down — just in case we missed anything, or if any terms and conditions have been amended since the time of writing.
In addition, because of the COVID-19 situation, many hotels and restaurants have suspended their buffet lines until further notice. So always call them ahead of time to avoid a wasted trip. Many of these promotions are valid until the end of the year so you can call and plan ahead.
DBS/POSB 1-for-1 buffet dining promotions 2020
Restaurant | Promotion | Buffet price (before discount) | Expiry |
1-for-1 lunch buffet (restaurant closed until further notice) | $68++ | 30 Sep 2020 | |
1-for-1 dinner buffet (restaurant closed until further notice) | $78++ (Sun to Thu) $80++ to $85++ (Fri and Sat) | 30 Sep 2020 | |
1-for-1 lunch buffet (restaurant closed until further notice) | $60++ (Mon to Fri) $70++ (Sat and Sun) | 30 Sep 2020 | |
1-for-1 dinner buffet (restaurant closed until further notice) | $68++ (Mon to Thu) $95++ (Fri and Sat) $55++ (Sun) | 30 Sep 2020 | |
1-for-1 lunch buffet | $64++ (Sat and Sun) | 30 Dec 2020 | |
1-for-1 dinner buffet | $76++ (Sat and Sun) | 30 Dec 2020 | |
1-for-1 lunch buffet (buffet closed until further notice) | Currently unavailable | 30 Dec 2020 | |
1-for-1 dinner buffet (buffet closed until further notice) | Currently unavailable | 30 Dec 2020 | |
1-for-1 dinner buffet (restaurant closed until further notice) | $88++ (Sun to Thu), $98++ (Fri and Sat) | 31 Dec 2020 | |
50% off lunch buffet | $58++ | 31 Dec 2020 | |
50% off dinner buffet | $78++ (Mon to Thu), $98++ (Fri to Sun) | 31 Dec 2020 | |
1-for-1 Peranakan lunch buffet | $38++ (Mon to Thu), $40++ (Fri to Sun) | 31 Dec 2020 | |
1-for-1 Peranakan dinner buffet | $45++ (Mon to Thu), $47++ (Fri to Sun) | 31 Dec 2020 | |
1-for-lunch buffet | $78++ (Mon to Sat), $118++ (Sun) | 31 Dec 2020 | |
50% off dinner buffet for every second diner | $88++ (Sun to Thu), $108++ (Fri to Sat) | 31 Dec 2020 | |
1-for-1 lunch buffet (buffet closed until further notice) | Currently unavailable | 31 Dec 2020 | |
50% off dinner buffet for every second diner (buffet closed until further notice) | Currently unavailable | 31 Dec 2020 |
Practically every person in Singapore has a DBS/POSB credit card, so it shouldn’t be a problem for most of us to enjoy these 1-for-1 buffet promotions. Make sure to book in advance, though.
As you can see, DBS/POSB has the most generous selection of deals, however many of the restaurants have suspended their buffets for the moment. Most of the deals only expire at the end of the year, though, so keep your fingers crossed that the buffets will reopen while there’s still time.
The most noteworthy deals are for 1-for-1 offers at premium hotel buffets such as the ones at Triple Three (Mandarin Orchard) and Seasonal Tastes (The Westin).
Don’t have a DBS/POSB credit card? Find one here.
DBS Live Fresh Card
More Details
Key Features
Earn 5% cashback on Online & Visa contactless spend with a minimum spend of S$600 per calendar month
Earn 0.3% cashback on all other spend
All-in-one card: Use the same card for your bus and train rides, and ATM withdrawals
Enjoy 1-year annual fee waiver
Citibank 1-for-1 buffet dining promotions 2020
Citibank has a dedicated microsite for credit card promotions, featuring their extensive list of dining deals. Cardholders will be glad to know that there are a LOT of dining deals, some of which are really quite impressive. However, only a handful of are 1-for-1 buffets.
Restaurant | Promotion | Buffet price (before discount) | Expiry |
50% off dim sum weekend brunch buffet for second diner | $58++ (Sat, Sun and public holidays) | 31 Oct 2020 | |
1-for-1 lunch buffet (buffet closed until further notice) | Currently unavailable | 30 Dec 2020 | |
1-for-1 dinner buffet (buffet closed until further notice) | Currently unavailable | 30 Dec 2020 |
Sadly, most of the 1-for-1 hotel dining promotions from this year were for seasonal, Chinese New Year menus. Those expired in February. Of what remains, the lunch and dinner buffets at Atrium Restaurant Holiday Inn are currently suspended due to COVID-19, so there isn’t much to choose from.
You can sign up for a Citibank credit card here.
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8% cash back on Dining, Groceries & Petrol
Cash back is capped at S$25/month per category with min. spend of S$888/month
Up to 20.88% savings at Esso and Shell, and 8% cash back at other petrol stations
For retail spend less than S$888, 0.25% cash back is awarded for all categories of spend, no cap on cash back earned
UOB 1-for-1 buffet dining promotions 2020
UOB has moved their dining promotions to the UOB Dining Advisor website, and you can easily view all the 1-for-1 buffet promotions there.
Although there are currently no buffet promotions, there are still some dining offers such as:
1-for-1 main course at Escape Restaurant & Lounge, One Farrer Hotel
15% off the total bill at The Dining Room, Sheraton Towers Singapore
15% off the total food bill at Melt Cafe, Mandarin Oriental, Singapore or 1 person dines free with 3 paying adults
It’s just that most of them are in the 15% to 25% off range, and not quite as lucrative as 50% off or 1-for-1.This (very short) list looks woefully pathetic, but to be fair, UOB does have quite a few dining deals for cardholders.
Don’t have a UOB credit card yet? Find one here.
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Receive S$150 cash credit when you apply. Valid till 31 Aug. T&Cs apply.
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Up to 5% cash rebate on all spend for spend above S$2,000/month per quarter (up to 3.33% cash rebate for spend of $500 or $1,000 monthly)
Up to 24% savings on fuel purchases at SPC and 20.8% at Shell Stations
Up to 10% additional SMART$ rebate with UOB SMART$ Rebate Programme at over 400 participating merchants
OCBC 1-for-1 buffet dining promotions 2020
OCBC is a little slow to catch up with their dining promotions, and since a ton of the promos expired last year, there are only a few left:
Restaurant | Promotion | Buffet price | Expiry |
1-for-1 Peranakan lunch buffet | $38++ (Mon to Thu), $40++ (Fri to Sun) | 30 Dec 2020 | |
1-for-1 Peranakan dinner buffet | $45++ (Mon to Thu), $47++ (Fri to Sun) | 30 Dec 2020 | |
1-for-1 lunch buffet (buffet closed until further notice) | Currently unavailable | 31 Jan 2021 | |
1-for-1 dinner buffet (buffet closed until further notice) | Currently unavailable | 31 Jan 2021 | |
1-for-1 Main Course (Sun-Thurs) | Currently unavailable | 30 Dec 2020 | |
1-for-1 BBQ Buffet (Fri-Sat) | Currently unavailable | 30 Dec 2020 |
OCBC cards used to offer 1-for-1 deals at the swanky Fairmont and Swissotel the Stamford hotels in 2019, which was not too shabby. It’s a bummer these weren’t renewed for the new year.
Don’t have an OCBC credit card? Find one through MoneySmart.
OCBC 365 Credit Card
More Details
Dining Features
6% cashback on local and overseas dining, everyday
6% cashback on online food delivery e.g. Deliveroo and Foodpanda
Min. spend of $800/month, cap S$80/month
HSBC 1-for-1 buffet dining promotions 2020
Here are the 1-for-1 buffet promotions I found on HSBC’s website. There is a “Hotel Dining” filter for you narrow down your options, but most of these 1-for-1 deals are listed under “Entertainer with HSBC” instead.
Restaurant | Promotion | Buffet price | Expiry |
1-for-1 Cantonese à la minute dinner buffet (Tue to Sun) | $68++ | 31 Jul 2020 | |
1-for-1 dinner buffet (closed until further notice) | Currently unavailable | 30 Dec 2020 | |
1-for-1 buffet lunch | $65++ | 28 Feb 2021 | |
1-for-1 buffet dinner | $78++ (Mon to Thu) $96++ (Fri to Sun) | 28 Feb 2021 |
Note: While all cardholders are entitled to the standard HSBC Entertainer deals, only HSBC Premier Mastercard and Visa Infinite cardholders can “unlock” the HSBC Entertainer Premium deals (marked with an *).
There seem to only be three 1-for-1 hotel dining promotions at the moment. However, when I checked in February, there were quite a few that supposedly extended till the end of the year. These are no longer listed on the site, but if you want, you can try your luck anyway:
Restaurant | Promotion | Buffet price | Expiry |
1-for-1 lunch buffet | $40++ (Mon to Fri), $50++ (Sat and Sun) | 30 Dec 2020 | |
1-for-1 dinner buffet | $60++ (Sat and Sun) | 30 Dec 2020 | |
1-for-1 lunch buffet | $42++ daily | 30 Dec 2020 | |
1-for-1 dinner buffet | $60++ (Fri and Sat) | 30 Dec 2020 | |
1-for-1 lunch buffet | Currently unavailable | 30 Dec 2020 | |
1-for-1 dinner buffet | Currently unavailable | 30 Dec 2020 |
Want an HSBC credit card? Apply for one here.
HSBC Revolution Credit Card
More Details
Key Features
5X Rewards points (or 2 air miles) per $1 spent on Online, Local Dining and Entertainment transactions
1 Reward point for all other transactions. No minimum spend and earn as many Rewards points as you like
2 years fee waiver, subsequent years waived with min. spend of $12,500 p.a.
Standard Chartered “1-for-1” buffet dining promotions — discounts at Fullerton Hotel and Le Amis restaurants
Good news for all Standard Chartered cardholders — the bank has a tie-up with Fullerton Hotel and the Fullerton Bay Hotels restaurants, which offers up to 50% off buffets from Town Restaurant and The Courtyard. The bad news is that Town Restaurant is currently closed due to COVID-19.
Restaurant | Promotion | Buffet price | Expiry |
1-for-1 buffet lunch (weekdays) (restaurant closed until further notice) | Currently unavailable | 30 Dec 2020 | |
1-for-1 buffet dinner (restaurant closed under further notice) | Currently unavailable | 30 Dec 2020 | |
1-for-1 afternoon tea buffet | $50++ (Mon to Fri), $55++ (Sat and Sun) | 30 Dec 2020 |
The structure is a little like AMEX’s Love Dining programme (see below), whereby you can get the highest 50% discount when you + 1 guest dine together. If you bring more guests, the discount is reduced (15% to 33% off).
Although not quite as attractive as 1-for-1 buffets, another one that may appeal to the “atas” gourmet types is Standard Chartered’s collaboration with Les Amis group of restaurants, which includes loads of fancy places such as Bistro Du Vin, LINO, and (obviously) Les Amis.
Depending on which restaurant you pick, you can get $5 to $100 off (minimum spend applies). You can check out the rest of the Standard Chartered dining promotions here.
Want a Standard Chartered credit card? Sign up here.
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American Express “1-for-1” buffet dining promotions 2020 — Love Dining programme
Unlike its competitors, American Express doesn’t offer 1-for-1 buffets to anyone with a credit card. Instead, you need to sign up for the Amex Platinum Card in order to get decent buffet discounts.
The Platinum card lets you take part in Amex’s dining programme, Love Dining, which gives you up to 50% off at atas restaurants and hotel buffets in Singapore. To get the maximum 50% discount, you need to dine with one friend/date. Otherwise, your discount ranges from only 15% to 35%.
Bear in mind that there’s a hefty annual fee of $321 attached to the card, and you can only get it waived if you’re a really big spender. Still, if you’re a real foodie, you would probably get quite a bit of utility from this card.
Restaurant | Promotion | Buffet price |
50% off high tea buffet (weekends and PH) (buffet closed until further notice) | $42++ | |
50% off high tea buffet (buffet closed until further notice) | Currently unavailable | |
50% off buffet lunch (buffet closed until further notice) | $50++ | |
50% off buffet lunch (buffet closed until further notice) | $54++ | |
50% off buffet lunch & high tea (buffet closed until further notice) | Currently unavailable | |
50% off buffet lunch | $60++ (Mon to Fri), $70++ (Sat and Sun) | |
50% off buffet lunch | Currently unavailable | |
50% off buffet lunch (buffet closed until further notice) | Currently unavailable | |
50% off buffet dinner (buffet closed until further notice) | Currently unavailable | |
50% off buffet dinner | $68++ (Mon to Thu), $95++ (Fri and Sat), $55++ (Sun) | |
50% off buffet lunch | $68++ | |
50% off buffet dinner (buffet closed until further notice) | $72++ | |
50% off buffet dinner (buffet closed until further notice) | Currently unavailable | |
50% off buffet dinner | $78++ (Sun to Thu), $80 to $85++ (Fri and Sat) | |
50% off buffet dinner | Currently unavailable | |
50% off “Fun to Table” buffet (buffet closed until further notice) | $78++ to $88++ | |
50% off buffet dinner (buffet closed until further notice) | Currently unavailable | |
50% off “Seafood from The Heart” buffet (buffet closed until further notice) | $98++ | |
50% off “Sunday Remix Brunch” buffet (buffet closed until further notice) | $138++ to $178++ |
Want the Amex Platinum Credit Card? You can apply here.
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More Details
Key Features
Enjoy Love Dining @ Restaurants privileges which offers up to 50% savings on food orders at a handpicked selection of popular restaurants.
Love Dining @ Hotels offers you exceptional year-round privileges and savings of up to 50% on food bills at selected restaurants in some of the best luxury hotels around Singapore.
Charge S$4,500 to your card at Platinum EXTRA Partners to earn enough points for an Economy Class return ticket to Bali
Eligible for use with Apple Pay, Google Pay, Samsung Pay
Maybank “1-for-1” buffet dining promotions 2020 — none for now
Last year, Maybank had quite a few dining campaigns and offered 1-for-1 buffets at Holiday Inn, Park Hotel Clarke Quay and more. However, these were not renewed for 2020 and there are currently no 1-for-1 hotel buffet deals.
I wouldn’t hold my breath, but if you’re hopeful, you can check the Maybank card privilege site for updates.
Don’t have a Maybank credit card? Get one here.
Maybank Family & Friends Card
Online Promo: Get S$100 Cash Credit with Maybank Credit Cards and CreditAble! Valid till 31 Dec 2020.
More Details
Key Features
*NEW* Up to 8% cash rebate on all resturant spends in Singapore and Malaysia
*NEW* Up to 8% cash rebate on and data communication & online TV streaming
Up to 8% cash rebate on petrol and groceries including online gorcery stores spend in Singapore and Malaysia
Up to 8% cash rebate on selected shopping stores, contactless bus and train rides, taxi and all passenger transportation servcies such as Grab and GOJEK
8% or 5% cash rebate with lowered minimum spend of S$800/S$500 per month respectively. Cash rebate cap at S$80 per month
0.3% cash rebate on all other spend with no cap on cash rebates
3 years annual fee waived; spend min. S$12,000 per year to get subsequent waiver
Is your favourite 1-for-1 buffet restaurant fully booked? Try The Entertainer, Eatigo, Chope & Fave
Aside from the promotional validity dates, many of these promotions are limited to a certain number of diners per day or promotional period. If for whatever reason you’re not able to get a seat, don’t panic – there are other dining apps to help you save on that buffet feast.
The Entertainer
The Entertainer is a paid subscription that focuses on 1-for-1 deals, which is our absolute favourite kind of discount. Currently, you can get 1-for-buffet deals at Shin Minori, Katong Kitchen, Straits Cafe and more. As an added bonus, the partner merchants aren’t restricted to restaurants and cafes, too – so you can expect beauty, fashion and fitness deals as well.
At $95, the subscription fee for Entertainer 2020 is kind of steep, but it also includes Cheers, its sister app for bars and pubs, and The Entertainer JB and Bali for 1-for-1 deals at hip restaurants and cafes overseas.
Eatigo
Eatigo is an online restaurant reservation service that offers discounts based on what time you dine. Check out the full list of hotel buffet deals at their website.
Chope
Like Eatigo, Chope reservation service that happens to also offer exclusive discounts for their users. Chope is currently having a year end sale, offering over 200 dining deals, a hundred 1-for-1s, and flash deals as low as $1.
The full selection of restaurants and partners are available here: Chope Deals promotion page.
Fave
Fave is the new Groupon, and while they’ve expanded their services to include a lot of new things like FavePay, they still sell discounted dining vouchers.
They may not have a dedicated 1-for-1 buffet section (they go on a discount basis), but some restaurants offer up to 60% and up, which is an even better deal. Check out the current promotions here.
Did we miss out your favourite credit card buffet promotion 2020? Tell us about it in the comments!
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