YARDBIRD SOUTHERN TABLE & BAR
Marina Bay Sands Singapore
Yardbird Southern Table & Bar occupies two levels at The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands, Singapore: B1-07 on the Galleria Level and L1-82 on the Bay Level, facing the South Promenade and Marina Bay. The restaurant opened in July 2017 and seats 190 guests, with a private dining room that splits into two sections of 6 to 10 guests and a semi-private dining room for up to 30.
Yardbird was founded by John Kunkel, a Miami-based restaurateur and the founder and CEO of 50 Eggs Hospitality Group. The original Yardbird opened in Miami in 2011 and was nominated for a James Beard Award. It became known for a fried chicken recipe described as 100 years old, brined for 27 hours and served with a Vermont cheddar waffle and watermelon with lemon-pepper seasoning. The brand expanded to Las Vegas, Los Angeles, and other US cities, and Marina Bay Sands describes Singapore as Yardbird's only location outside the United States. At opening, the Singapore restaurant was named The Bird Southern Table & Bar, to avoid confusion with an unrelated Hong Kong restaurant also called Yardbird; it has since reverted to the Yardbird Southern Table & Bar name used across the rest of the brand.
Silverfox Studios designed the Singapore restaurant around a concept called Barnhouse, drawing on barnyard and farmhouse architecture: reclaimed barn doors, white walls, and rustic reclaimed wood and metal throughout. Marina Bay Sands' own opening announcement described the finished interior as a modern-rustic design with industrial touches, built from reclaimed wood, recycled machinery parts, and mason jars, with greenery and live plants added for what the announcement called their connection to the cultural roots of Singapore's own gardens.
On the Galleria Level, the restaurant opens onto the promenade through a run of sliding barn-style timber and glass doors, under an exposed timber beam ceiling. Inside, the open kitchen sits in full view of the dining room, its stainless steel line framed by reclaimed wood beams and wire-cage pendant lights, with signage reading "Run Chicken Run" alongside rooster and pig graphics. Long communal tables in reclaimed wood, set with mason jar glassware and cushioned bench seating, run the length of the dining room. The bar and lounge area is built around a cluster of mason jar pendant lights over a wood-and-glass bottle display, furnished with tufted leather armchairs, leather banquettes, and round live-edge wood tables.
The Bourbon Bar and private dining room, also on the Galleria Level, is built around a wall of backlit wood shelving displaying the restaurant's whiskey collection, lit by a chandelier made from a cluster of repurposed glass bottles. Whitewashed brick walls and a long reclaimed-wood communal table complete the private dining room.
The Bay Level opens onto the palm-lined South Promenade beneath Marina Bay Sands' lattice-patterned canopy roof. The bar here carries an illuminated "Run Bird Run" sign, and a repurposed whiskey barrel serves as the host stand at the entrance. Outdoor seating in black metal furniture, set among potted greenery, looks out over the promenade with views of Marina Bay. The bar program is built around bourbon and one of the largest collections of American whiskeys in Asia, alongside gin, beer, and wine. Beyond the fried chicken, the kitchen serves lump crab cakes, shrimp and lobster avocado rolls, lobster mac and cheese, and a bourbon-aged US Prime Ribeye, all served family-style for the table to share.
