•    HOME   
•    NEWS   
•    BUSINESS   
•    INTERNATIONAL   
•    TECH   
•    SPORTS   
•    LIFE & TIMES   
•    OPINION   
•    MY JAKARTA   
•    BLOGS   
•    EYEWITNESS   

The bellhop had not even finished showing me the room before the woman from housekeeping buzzed at the door to collect the shirt I had told the front desk needed pressing.

“How soon do you need it, sir? Noon?” she inquired.

“As soon as possible,” I told her. I had flown into Singapore that morning after an hour delay out of Indonesia. What was supposed to be a leisurely couple of hours to prepare for a midday business meeting had turned into a rush.

My first prayer had already been answered when Singapore efficiency had done the trick at Changi Airport, getting me out of the plane, through immigration and bag collection and into a taxi in 30 minutes.

 Now I was in the hands of the staff at The Scarlet, billed as Singapore’s only luxury boutique hotel.

All too often boutique hotels try to make their name on kitschy cuteness or the historical appeal of their buildings, and then come up short in the service department.

And sometimes business travelers act as the vehicle, because they are willing to sacrifice the consideration and conveniences they would expect at a five-star hotel to stay at a place with a little bit of soul and spice.

Market manager, Velda Mah, seemed to agree with that assessment.

“Before The Scarlet opened in December 2004, the impression of boutique hotels was that they were mainly fitted for budget and quirky travelers. With the opening of The Scarlet we redefined the boutique hotel experience … with our luxury offerings of five-star service, in-room amenities and facilities.”

Things worked out well that Monday. The shirt was returned sharply pressed while I was in the shower for an after-flight spruce up, and then I was out the door after a quick survey of my room, a standard, single interior unit with no window.

It was small, but tastefully appointed in black wood, leather and the hotel’s signature scarlet. “This will do nicely,” I thought.

In the evening, business done, I came back to the hotel after a short walk through the neighborhood of laid-back restaurants and bars along Ann Siang Road and Club Street — just off South Bridge Road and across from the night market, temples, herb and medicine shops, food stalls and Chinatown restaurants.

After a couple of beers in the lobby bar, I finally noticed the slightly risque themes the hotel plays with — such as the bar’s “Pro-create” Mondays, “for the pros in the creative industry,” “Who’s Your Daddy?” Wednesdays, “for the men who sugarcoat your life;” and “Give It To Me Baby!” Fridays, “for those on the hunt.”

An hour or so later, I saw the same playfulness in the room-service menu, with appetizers listed under “Foreplay” and sandwiches under “Between the Sheets.”

If that sort of cheekiness gave rise to thoughts that I had checked into an upscale love hotel — a suspicion not allayed by the couple that had been discreetly enjoying each other in a cozy corner of the hotel’s Bold bar— the service and professionalism I had encountered from the staff had been five-star.

I was intrigued, and pleased. This was not the sort of cookie-cutter experience you get at the usual run-of-the-mill business hotel, and the experience had the unexpected feeling of fun.

“We do not propose that our hotel should be symbolic of anything of the racy sort, but we still want to maintain a sense of sensuality in the way we theme our hotel,” said Mah.

“We want people who come to our hotel to go away with the feeling that they have partaken a little of the good life, the food, the ambiance and the pampering service.”

And since the cable port on my computer was broken and I had to go down to the lobby to connect to the hotel’s Wi-Fi, I had further chances to observe the hotel — and its guests — in action from late at night to early morning.

There were travelers — both business and leisure — and what I supposed to be local lovebirds celebrating a special anniversary, and they all received courteous and professional service, from the bellhops on up.

The staff seemed to enjoy not only working with each other, but also providing quick and efficient service to their guests.

“Being small and intimate has its flexibilities in all our service extensions. The big hotel chains have certain fixed principles in their service applications due to their size.

At The Scarlet, we constantly encourage our team members to be creative in all aspects of service delivery,” Mah said.

I started the next morning with a hearty buffet breakfast at Desire, the hotel’s intimate restaurant, the only sour notes being that the scrambled eggs could have been warmer and that I felt a bit rushed when I would have rather had another cup of coffee or two while I read the paper.

But the table was needed for other guests, so I settled my breakfast bill and returned to my room to finish my morning read.

The check out at noon went smoothly, and I left my bags at the hotel to collect later.

Late in the afternoon when I came back to retrieve them prior to heading to the airport, I had another chance to sit in the small lobby and watch The Scarlet’s choreography of guests and staff while I caught up on e-mail.

The Scarlet is the sort of hotel that encourages one to ponder the lives of one’s fellow guests.

It has the sort of elegant atmosphere one imagines in much larger, grander, classic hotels of years gone by, such as The Peace Hotel in Shanghai or the venerable Imperial Hotel in Tokyo.

My only regret is that I was only staying one night and didn’t take the opportunity to check out Breeze, the hotel’s rooftop bar and grill that offers a panoramic view of Singapore’s Chinatown.


The Scarlet, 33 Erskine Road, Singapore. Tel: 65 6511 3333. Fax: 65 6511 3303
E-mail: reservations@thescarlethotel.com
Web site: www.thescarlethotel.com