Jiwa Singapura will open tonight at Tysons Galleria, mixing fine dining with street food

A new Singaporean restaurant at Tysons Galleria is ready to serve its first patrons tonight (Wednesday).

After offering a preview in December, the mall will officially welcome Jiwa Singapura at 5 p.m. on the third floor of its redeveloped Macy’s wing, across from the recently launched CMX CinéBistro movie theater.

The restaurant comes from international chef Pepe Moncayo, who’s best known in the U.S. for the Spanish-Japanese fusion establishment Cranes in downtown D.C.

“Jiwa Singapura blends street food and high-end dining, for a taste of some of the Asian city-state’s boldest, nuanced flavors,” the restaurant said in a press release. “The menu features classics like Hainanese chicken rice, laksa and chili crab, as well as nods to the family recipes of Singapore native and Moncayo’s wife, Aishah Moncayo.”

Though originally from Spain, Moncayo moved to Singapore in 2010 to work at a new restaurant. He met his wife and launched his first solo venture on the island before relocating to D.C. to open Cranes in 2019.

Brookfield Properties, which manages Tysons Galleria, previously told FFXnow that it made a deal with the Cranes team for Jiwa Singapura because the restaurant would be “a unique offering” not just for the mall, but for the D.C. area as a whole.

Moncayo says the “diverse and collaborative” community in Tysons is something he values after working and living in Singapore.

“Tysons has an urban presence with a small community feel and we felt it would be the perfect place to open this new and exciting concept of Singaporean cuisine in the Northern Virginia area,” he said in a statement to FFXnow. “We look forward to this new chapter and collaborating with our neighbors and other stakeholders in the community.”

Designed by the architectural firm //3877, the 10,000-square-foot restaurant features a main dining room with 170 seats, 30-foot-high ceilings, an open kitchen, and a bar area with 10 seats and four stand-up tables.

There is also a 16-seat “semi-private” dining room and a 3,000-square-foot outdoor terrace with 80 seats and a mini-bar.

The drink offerings include a wine list with nearly 60 labels, sake, a house rice pilsner developed in partnership with local favorite Caboose Brewing Company, and a signature rum and apple brandy cocktail named after Singapore’s iconic Merlion.

For now, Jiwa Singapura is only open for dinner, operating from 5-10 p.m. Wednesdays through Sundays, but lunch hours are coming soon, according to the press release.