Historic Prinsep Street shophouses with rare side courtyard up for sale from $26 mil
The two shophouses at 66 (left) and 64 Prinsep Street currently on the market collectively for $26 million (Photo: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)
At one end of Prinsep Street is a teardrop-shaped roundabout with a single tree. Just off this roundabout stand two adjacent conservation shophouses at 64 and 66 Prinsep Street, separated by a rare side courtyard that runs the full length of No. 64.
“The side courtyard is a unique feature for a shophouse and offers bragging rights for the owner,” says Arjan Chotrani, founder and director of Kuvera Properties, which owns the properties.
The courtyard was once an open street where cars and bikes passed through, but it was sealed off years ago after frequent accidents. By the time Arjan purchased the two properties in February 2007—for a total of $4 million, according to a lodged caveat—the road closure was long complete.
The teardrop-shaped roundabout with Selegie Arts Centre on one side and the row of shophouses at the other end (All pictures by Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)
Tenants with deep roots, youthful buzz
The ground floor of 66 Prinsep Street is tenanted to Rex Mackenzie, an old-school restaurant famous for its halal Chinese chicken rice. The first outlet opened in 1966 as Rex Restaurant and Milk Bar on Mackenzie Road opposite the Rex Cinema. When it moved to Prinsep Street in 1986, second-generation owner Roldy Koh added “Mackenzie” to the name to remind patrons of its origins.
Arjan recalls the original Rex Cinema, which opened in 1946 and quickly became a landmark in the area. It was also one of the few cinemas in Singapore that screened Hindi films. “My parents loved Hindi shows. I remember growing up in the 1960s and being dragged along to the cinema with them,” he says.
Rex Mackenzie carved out a niche serving Chinese-style halal food to Muslim diners and remains a weekend magnet for locals and tourists alike. “You’ll see Rolls-Royces parked outside,” says Arjan. “It is popular with visitors from Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and all over Asia. It may look like just a kampong-style shophouse, but you will see royalty sitting there and eating like everyone else.”
The original Mackenzie Rex restaurant on Mackenzie Road opened in 1966 as Rex Restaurant & Milk Bar, and used to sit directly opposite the Rex Cinema
Mackenzie Rex, a Chinese-style Halal restaurant, attracts both locals and tourists, especially on weekends.
Mackenzie Rex is famous for its Chinese-style Chicken Rice
Mackenzie Rex has been located at 66 Prinsep Street since 1986
The second storey of No. 66 is leased to SJ Dermacare, a beauty and wellness spa.
Next door at 64 Prinsep Street, the energy is distinctly youthful. The ground floor houses Chix Hot Chicken, a Nashville-style fried chicken concept founded by singer-turned-entrepreneur Taufik Batisah with partners Bober Ismail and Zad. Opened in February 2025, the restaurant features neon lights, pop art, and upbeat music, along with alfresco dining through glass doors that open to the side garden. Walls adjoining the courtyard were removed to create a spacious 100-seat indoor dining area and a coffee counter operated by Penny University.
Before Chix Hot Chicken, the previous tenant was a hotpot restaurant.
The Chix Hot Chicken outlet at 64 Prinsep Street opened in February this year, sporting a trendy interior with pop art, bright colours and neon lights
Designed in the style of an American diner, Chix Hot Chicken specialises in Nashville-style fried chicken with different degrees of spiciness
The courtyard of 64 Prinsep Street also has an alfresco area for those who want to dine outdoors in the evenings
The upper level of 64 Prinsep Street has seen a variety of tenants, including a successful board-game café that eventually bought its own shophouse on Prinsep Street. Kuvera Properties then used the space as its office until Arjan decided to move the office elsewhere. A specialty coffee joint took over the space, but it became one of the casualties of the pandemic.
Now, the second level is home to Bunnyside Basement, an arcade for serious rhythm-game enthusiasts. Founder Runze Zhang, a full-time NUS student, purchased the machines, such as Sega’s MaiMai DX and Gitadora series by Konami, from Japan. The arcade opens from afternoon till late (11pm on weekdays and 1am on weekends) to cater to working adults, some of whom compete in these games internationally.
Founder of Bunnyside Basement, Runze Zhan,g demonstrating the MaiMai DX, one of the rhythm game machines featured in the arcade on the second floor of 64 Prinsep Street
A lively arts-and-culture precinct
Prinsep Street comes alive at night as bars, restaurants, and cafés draw both students and professionals. The neighbourhood is ringed by tertiary institutions including Singapore Management University (SMU), LaSalle College of the Arts, Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (Nafa), School of the Arts (Sota) and the University of the Arts Singapore (UAS).
It is also an arts hub. Next door is The Foundry, the former Elections Department building that now houses 14 non-profit organisations and social enterprises. The former Catholic High School campus (built in 1935) is being converted into a new arts centre.
Directly opposite stands the wedge-shaped Selegie Arts Centre, a conserved three-storey Art Deco landmark with colourful windows. According to RememberSingapore.org, the building housed a bustling Indian coffee shop serving rojak, banana curry and tandoori dishes in the 1980s. The building used to sit at the junction of Prinsep Street and Selegie Road, but that has now been closed off.
A picture of the Selegie Road and Prinsep Street area in 1950, when Prinsep Street and Selegie Road merged into one road at the junction of the wedge-shaped three-storey building now known as Selegie Arts Centre
After the building was restored by the National Arts Council in 1994, it has housed the Photographic Society of Singapore and the Loke Wan Tho Gallery since 1995.
Renewal continues nearby. The most significant redevelopment taking shape in the area is at the former Peace Centre and Peace Mansion, which have been demolished to make way for the mixed-use project, One Sophia and The Collective at One Sophia. The development features 122 strata office units and 127 strata retail units across a 13-storey commercial block at One Sophia and 367 apartments across two residential blocks at The Collective at One Sophia.
New hotels, such as Hotel Mi Rochor (which replaced the Golden Wall Centre) and a 502-room hotel on the former Min Yuan Apartments site, complement established properties like the Rendezvous Grand Hotel, Strand Hotel, and Hotel Bencoolen.
Read also: Co-working operator Found carves out a niche
The most significant redevelopment taking shape in the area is at the former Peace Centre and Peace Mansion, which have been demolished to make way for the mixed-use project, One Sophia and The Collective at One Sophia
Investment opportunity
After holding the Prinsep Street shophouses for over 18 years, Kuvera Properties’ Arjan has decided to divest the properties and invest elsewhere..The shophouses have been put up for sale by expression of interest (EOI) by exclusive marketing agent Jeffrey Sim, advisory group division director at ERA Realty Network. The EOI will close on Oct 22.
The two 2-storey properties, 64 and 66 Prinsep Street, will be sold collectively. Both are zoned for commercial use, with food and beverage operations on the first level. Together, they occupy a 5,942 sq ft site and have an existing 8,842 sq ft, built-up area. The properties have a 99-year lease that commenced in November 1995. Hence, they have a remaining lease of 69 years.
According to caveats lodged, the most recent transaction in the area was for a two-storey shophouse at 52A Prinsep Place, which has a strata area of 2,393 sq ft. The 99-year leasehold strata shophouse unit changed hands for $4.12 million in November 2024
The internal courtyard of Prinsep Place
The indicative price starts from $26 million, or $2,941 psf based on built-up area. Both will be sold with tenancies in place until October 2027.
“Most of the shophouses along Prinsep Street are tightly held,” notes ERA’s Sim.
According to caveats lodged, the most recent transaction in the area was for a two-storey shophouse at 52A Prinsep Place, which has a strata area of 2,393 sq ft. The 99-year leasehold strata shophouse unit changed hands for $4.12 million in November 2024. Sim expects strong interest from shophouse collectors, including foreign buyers, as commercial shophouses are not subject to additional buyer’s stamp duty.
Follow Us
Property updates, 24/7.
Subscribe to Newsletter
Market insights, delivered weekly.
Top Articles
Search