Stairway To Heaven

The angels have been grounded for good but the space formerly known as the Divine Wine Society is still flying high, soon to be reincarnated after a no-expense-spared re-fit as ATLAS, a cocktail bar and all-day dining establishment that is poised to make some noise in an increasingly crowded F & B field.

Almost 15 years after the high-ceilinged wine bar with the high-wire act (requiring 'angels' in harnesses to retrieve bottles) made its debut in the grand lobby of Parkview Square - a glamorous, retro-style 24-storey building that elicited comparisons with art deco skyscrapers in Manhattan and earned it a 'Gotham-in-Singapore' nickname - the building's original owners are betting that its latest statement-making renovation will vault the opulent 9,000 sq ft space onto the city's drinking and dining go-to list.

Six months and a seven-figure sum later, ATLAS - which officially opens on March 25 - will feature the mother of all gin cabinets, converted from the original 12-metre-tall wine tower, and a newly-installed wrap-around staircase with platform that will allow customers to examine a collection of roughly 1,000 gins - possibly the most extensive gin bar on the planet, with labels from Patagonia and the Yukon to Tasmania and Bolivia.