Review: All-day eatery Centro brings dinner-and-a-movie combo back to life at Shaw Lido

There was a time when Shaw Lido meant one thing: You bought your ticket, grabbed whatever the concession stand had going, and disappeared into the dark. Level 5 of Shaw House has spent years being little more than a thoroughfare to the escalators — a stretch of Orchard Road real estate that never quite earned its view.

Centro is the first real attempt to change that, and it’s not a subtle one. Where there used to be a scattering of quick-service counters, there’s now a full all-day restaurant, an espresso and matcha bar, a grab-and-go counter, and a cocktail bar — all stitched into the cinema’s footprint across Levels 5 and 6.

The backstory

The concept comes with real pedigree attached. Centro was shaped with guidance from the same team behind Wild Honey — the restaurant that more or less invented the all-day breakfast category in Singapore back in 2009, long before brunch was a given on every corner.

That’s a useful thing to know walking in, because it recontextualises what could easily have been a forgettable cinema pit-stop into something with an actual point of view — food worth ordering on its own merits, and not just food that happens to be near a ticket counter.

I didn’t dine across all four spaces; my evening centred on the all-day restaurant itself, which occupies the best real estate of the lot, with floor-to-ceiling windows looking straight down onto Orchard Road. 

I did a full lap of the espresso bar, the grab-and-go counter, and the cocktail bar to get a sense of what Centro has built around it, though.

The design language is consistent and deliberately unfussy: The all-day restaurant and the espresso & matcha bar both go for a clean, modern, and no-frills aesthetic.

As for food, the menu itself runs an easy, unpretentious spread; think steak frites, fish & chips, calamari, a soba noodle dish — with nothing on it priced over S$30.

The espresso & matcha bar in particular is set up for speed, with a menu of espresso, matcha, and tea drinks (Toby’s Estate beans, matcha from Matcha Project, and TWG tea) all priced between S$4 and S$7, plus a signature salted caramel popcorn latte that takes inspiration from the concession stand.

On the other hand, the cocktail bar reads differently with its dimmer, moodier vibe, built more for slow sips, with a list of martinis and stirred drinks (all under S$25).

And finally, where Centro edges into genuinely novel territory is how it integrates with the cinema. The grab-and-go kiosk isn’t just a faster lane for the same food; it’s built so cinema-goers can carry select items straight into the hall. 

For the premiere halls, Centro also runs in-theatre dining directly at your seat, a service that’s just been extended from Lido to Shaw Jem.

Our verdict

I’m aware it sounds like a cop-out to say the food here is genuinely delicious, especially when most new places in Singapore do fall prey to social media hype. So, here’s the fuller version: Centro’s food is some of the most satisfying I’ve had in a while, and I say that as someone who walked in expecting a passable cinema pit-stop, at best.

There are small things worth tightening, but nothing close to a dealbreaker. I’d go back without a second thought.

The move here is to follow the menu’s own cues; dishes flagged as “Chef’s scene stealers” are exactly that, and the standout among them is the classic grilled Reuben (S$26), which I’m still thinking about.

Drinks deserve equal billing. The mango earl grey (S$8), tucked under the signature bubble milk tea section, is the kind of order that could potentially replace a proper dessert — it’s the drink I’d want in hand while watching the trailers roll.

Service moved at a brisk, attentive pace throughout; staff didn’t hesitate to correct a pasta mix-up when I pointed it out, and they were more than happy to explain the ingredients in various dishes when asked.

Between the laid-back atmosphere, the Reuben, and that tea, Centro’s already got me planning the next visit.

What it’s good for

Every good meal should start with something to snack on while you settle in, and the miso-labneh onion dip (S$14) does exactly that. Served with potato crisps, it’s got a nostalgic pull to it — the sour-cream-and-onion memory that took me straight back to carefree, poolside-BBQ childhood afternoons.

The labneh gives it more backbone than a straight mayonnaise base would, thicker and just tart enough to keep things interesting, while the onions bring a gentle sweetness that makes the whole dip dangerously moreish. Fair warning: it disappears fast.

Drinks followed not long after — the mango earl grey (S$8) bubble milk tea and the French Connection negroni, on a limited-time promo at S$12 (U.P. S$18).

The negroni takes a lighter, mildly sweeter turn than the classic, built on Archie Rose gin, Giffard Pampelle, and Dolin Red vermouth, and works well enough as a complement to our dishes. But it’s the bubble tea that made an impact.

I wasn’t expecting much going in, and came away genuinely surprised by how creamy it was — potent mango up front, earl grey trailing on the finish, all rounded out with boba and a mango cream foam.

I had to actively stop myself from finishing it mid-meal, just so I’d have some left as a proper reward once the food was done. My advice: Order it on its own terms, away from the savoury courses, so it gets the attention it deserves.

Good Reuben sandwiches are rare in Singapore, so spotting (and ordering) the classic grilled Reuben (S$26) here at Centro under the “Chef’s scene stealers” tag  — served with a choice of house fries or salad on the side — felt non-negotiable. It did not disappoint.

The first bite through toasted rye, house pastrami, sauerkraut, emmental, comte, and a housemade chutney mayonnaise sent everything into overdrive at once: Salty, peppery, vinegary, all landing together so it’s hard to stop eating.

The portion is generous enough to share, or to do what I did and take the other half home. Between bites, the table went quiet except for the occasional appreciative “mmm” — which tells you everything about how it went down.

The pasta selection reads unassuming on paper, which made the anchovy, tomato, Thai pepper berry, and Thai basil (S$20) served with penne something of a gamble.

There’s no standalone protein beyond anchovies blitzed so thoroughly into the sauce you’d barely know they were there, but the dish makes its case on flavour alone — rich, garlicky, and loaded with a pepper aroma that hits before the fork does.

I’d have liked the anchovies to hold more presence, in both taste and texture, but the pepper carries the dish confidently enough that it’s an easy thing to forgive.

What it could improve on

The first half of the meal at Centro was on such a roll that I felt this shortcoming even keenly — and it arrived with the parmesan and caper chicken schnitzel (S$22).

Visually, it doesn’t do much for itself — a scant scattering of rocket and parmesan salad on top does little to dress up the plate. 

A carb alongside would’ve gone a long way — a pomme puree, maybe — to round things out.

The schnitzel itself leaned dry, adequately seasoned but missing moisture that could potentially make the cutlet sing. I ended up reaching for the leftover labneh dip and chilli sauce just to give the dish some life back.

If the mains were mostly this good, dessert had a lot to live up to, but sadly, the popcorn sundae ($16) didn’t quite clear the bar.

The first few spoonfuls of the signature salted caramel-popcorn ice cream were genuinely lovely, but the popcorn brittle turned against itself almost immediately. The cold ice cream had hardened it into something closer to a dental hazard than a garnish, and I gave up on it fast.

The tall sundae glass didn’t help either: what should’ve been an easy layering of rocky road candy, ice cream, and then more rocky road, turned into a fishing expedition, with the rocky road bits only really working once excavated and eaten on their own.

And after a few scoops, the sweetness of the salted caramel popcorn ice cream started to overwhelm — enough that I tipped the whole thing onto a plate halfway through, so I could get a little of everything in each spoonful, and still couldn’t finish it.

It’s not a bad idea for a dessert. It just needs a rethink on execution — maybe a wider vessel, a component or two dialled back — before it matches the confidence of everything that came before it.

Small stumbles aside, they’re easy ones to overlook against a menu that got so much else right, and easy ones for Centro to fix.

Centro isn’t reinventing cinema dining so much as finally taking it seriously, and on the evidence of one visit, it’s pulling that off with real conviction — a Reuben worth the trip alone, a S$30 ceiling that’s rare for this stretch of Orchard Road, and sharp service.

Of course, the schnitzel and the sundae are teething issues a kitchen this promising should iron out quickly. Until then, I’d still book a table and bring my appetite for that Reuben again.

Our quick takes

Is it conducive to conversation? Somewhat. The noise levels here aren’t too intrusive, but the giant screen that plays ads and trailers on loop might prove a distraction with its flashing lights and images. We wouldn’t recommend coming here for, say, an official work meeting.

Is a reservation necessary? Not really on a weekday evening, as there were plenty of tables available when we visited on a Tuesday. However, if you’re coming in a group of four or more on the weekends, it might be wise to do so.

How to get there? Centro is a six-minute walk from Orchard MRT Exit 1 or 11.

HungryGoWhere paid for its meal at this restaurant for this review.

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