Private Karaoke in a Former Convent: ZIGGY'S at CHIJMES

ZIGGY'S Karaoke Rooms & Cocktail Bar, at 30 Victoria Street, #B1-03/04 CHIJMES, Singapore 187996, rents its smallest room for S$40 an hour on a Sunday-to-Wednesday evening, whether two people turn up or eight. The bar occupies the basement level of CHIJMES, the restored convent complex in the Civic District, and opens every day from 5 pm to 3 am. If you are searching for private karaoke near me around City Hall, this is the address where the cocktail list gets as much attention as the speakers.

ZIGGY'S is not a new name in Singapore. A Chope listing marked February 2021 placed it at Robertson Walk on Unity Street, describing a full-fledged cocktail bar whose private rooms came stocked with costumes, fancy dress and props. Its sparkling sorbet cocktails and crafted gin and tonics are still on today's menu. The bar now trades at CHIJMES under First Verse Pte. Ltd., and its terms page was last updated on 9 September 2026.

The new home carries far more history than the bar itself. According to CHIJMES, Caldwell House was built in 1840 to 1841 by architect G.D. Coleman, and Father Jean-Marie Beurel bought it for the Infant Jesus Sisters in 1853. The Gothic Chapel was consecrated on 11 June 1904, with stained-glass windows imported from Bruges. In 1990 the complex took the name CHIJMES, a blend of the convent's acronym and the peal of its tower bells.

There are ten rooms in three categories. Deluxe Rooms cover about 152 sq ft and are recommended for 2 to 8 guests, Premier Rooms about 264 sq ft for 9 to 15, and VIP Suites about 377 sq ft for 16 to 25. Those headcounts are a guide rather than a rule. The venue says it does not allocate rooms by group size, so a couple can take a Premier Room simply because they want space to move.

Deluxe Rooms combine custom wood panelling, wallpapered walls, brass and Spanish marble tables and velvet seating around a 75-inch 4K smart TV. Premier Rooms add dual-firing KEF subwoofers and room correction tuned for more seats. The VIP Suite is built around a private stage with a three-microphone setup, a large projection screen and a backstage area full of pop-star costumes. Every room includes high-speed Wi-Fi, phone chargers, costumes and a concealed call bell for ordering.

Nothing needs to be downloaded. You scan the QR code in the room and run the queue from your phone browser, searching, previewing, skipping, repeating and changing the key, or switching the original vocals on and off. The library holds more than 700,000 songs across Chinese, English, Malay, Vietnamese, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean and Thai. If a track is missing, it can be played straight from YouTube, and the system keeps your favourites and history for the next visit.

Sound is the bar's main boast. Every room starts with customised Sennheiser digital wireless microphones and speakers built with imported Italian RCF drivers, run through a JBL Professional DSP. Echo, delay, reverb and microphone levels can be adjusted mid-song, and tracks are volume-levelled automatically. ZIGGY'S says its directional microphones hold a singer's natural tone, so nobody has to pull the mic away on a loud chorus.

Room rental is charged per hour by room category, never per head, and standard bookings carry no minimum spend. A Deluxe Room costs S$40 an hour from 5 pm to 9 pm on Sunday to Wednesday, rising to S$60 after 9 pm. On Thursday to Saturday and the eve of public holidays it is S$60 before 9 pm and S$75 after. A Premier Room starts at S$80 an hour and a VIP Suite at S$160. All listed prices exclude GST and a 10% service charge.

On top of rental comes a one-off karaoke fee of S$10 per guest, which covers music licensing. Each hour is priced by the time it begins. The venue's own worked example puts eight guests in a Deluxe Room on a Wednesday from 8 pm to 10 pm at S$40 for the first hour, S$60 for the second and S$80 in karaoke fees, a subtotal of S$180 before tax and service. Buying one bottle of spirits or two cocktail flasks for a Deluxe Room earns two free rental hours.

Reservations go through the Book Now panel on the website, where you pick a date, arrival time, duration and number of guests. A deposit secures the room and is credited to the final bill. Cancel at least 48 hours ahead and the deposit comes back, less payment processing fees. Later cancellations, late reschedules and no-shows forfeit it.

Rooms are held for 15 minutes after the booked start time and may then be released, and the hourly charge runs from the booked time even if your group is late. ZIGGY'S is strictly non-smoking, with cleaning charges if smoking is detected. Birthday cakes are welcome, and deliveries can be accepted when you share the drop-off time in advance. Staff may ask for identification, since alcohol service follows Singapore licensing law. Free hours earned through bottles do not extend a booking.

The house signature is the sparkling sorbet cocktail at S$28 a glass, prosecco poured over homemade sorbet in passion fruit and mango, cranberry and white peach, or strawberry and lychee. Trays of six cocktail shots cost S$100, including Liquid Gold, made with Earl Grey-infused whisky and puréed white peach. Spritzer flasks serving six to eight cost S$120. A Nikka whisky flight of Yoichi, Miyagikyo and Taketsuru is S$68. Menu prices exclude a 10% service charge and GST.

Food comes from a short in-room dining list, ordered with the call bell. Pork belly bao sliders arrive three to a plate at S$18, with sous vide pork belly, pickled cucumber and a braised pork dipping sauce. Truffle fries with parmesan cost S$20, as do the golden cod fingers, while okonomiyaki fries and spicy buffalo wings finished with pandan leaves are S$18 each. The kitchen is closed on Sundays, so a Sunday session leans on drinks and Haitai honey butter chips.

CHIJMES sits inside the cloistered convent walls first built along Victoria Street, Bras Basah Road and North Bridge Road in the 1850s. Before your booking, cross the courtyard to the Gothic Chapel, now CHIJMES Hall, a National Monument designed by French priest and architect Father Charles Benedict Nain, with stained glass by Jules Dobbelaere. Then find Caldwell House, the oldest building in the complex and, by CHIJMES's own account, the second-oldest in Singapore.

ZIGGY'S Karaoke Rooms & Cocktail Bar is at 30 Victoria Street, #B1-03/04 CHIJMES, Singapore 187996, on the basement level. City Hall MRT (NS25/EW13) is about three minutes away on foot, and Bras Basah and Esplanade stations are about four minutes away. The bar opens daily from 5 pm to 3 am.

Deluxe Rooms start at S$40 an hour, Premier Rooms at S$80 and VIP Suites at S$160, plus a one-off S$10 karaoke fee per guest, with GST and a 10% service charge added to the bill. Groups larger than 25 can combine several rooms, and full-venue hire covers up to 150 guests with individually quoted pricing.