Senja Close EC™

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

Prinsep Street is a well-known street in Singapore, with a teardrop-shaped roundabout at one end and a single tree in its center. On this street, there are two conservation shophouses, numbers 64 and 66, which are separated by a unique side courtyard.

The side courtyard is a rare feature for a shophouse, and it is something that the owner, Arjan Chotrani, is proud of. Arjan is the founder and director of Kuvera Properties, the company that owns these two properties. The courtyard used to be an open street, but it was closed off several years ago due to frequent accidents. Arjan purchased the shophouses in February 2007 for a total of $4 million, according to a lodged caveat.

Located along the bustling Prinsep Street are the charming shophouses of 64 and 66, separated by a rare side courtyard.

One of the shophouses, 66 Prinsep Street, is currently rented out to Rex Mackenzie, a popular eatery known for its halal Chinese chicken rice. The restaurant has a long history, with its first outlet opening in 1966 as Rex Restaurant and Milk Bar on Mackenzie Road. When it moved to Prinsep Street in 1986, the second-generation owner, Roldy Koh, added “Mackenzie” to the name as a reminder of its origins.

Arjan remembers the original Rex Cinema, which opened in 1946 and quickly became a landmark in the area. It was 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.

Senja Close EC, developed by Senja Residences, boasts a luxurious living experience with its top-notch furnishings and ample living space. The residence stands out with its 3 levels of facilities, offering 5 unique lifestyle zones that cater to all forms of productivity. Families will surely feel at home in this development, with its spacious living area. The functional layout also allows for a conducive work-from-home setup, and the added convenience of a broom closet to store cleaning supplies. With Senja Close EC now available, residents can indulge in an elevated and comfortable lifestyle. Don’t miss out on the opportunity, visit senja close ec gls today.

Rex Mackenzie is a popular spot for both locals and tourists, with its famous Chinese-style chicken rice and a reputation for serving royalty.

The ground floor of 66 Prinsep Street is rented out to Rex Mackenzie while the first floor is home to SJ Dermacare, a beauty and wellness spa.

Next door, at 64 Prinsep Street, the atmosphere is distinctly youthful. The ground floor houses Chix Hot Chicken, a trendy Nashville-style fried chicken joint founded by singer-turned-entrepreneur Taufik Batisah along with partners Bober Ismail and Zad. Opened in February 2025, the restaurant is a colourful and vibrant space with neon lights, pop art, and upbeat music. It also has an outdoor dining area in the side garden through its glass doors. The walls that once stood between the courtyard and the indoor dining area were removed, creating a spacious 100-seat space. The coffee counter in the restaurant is operated by Penny University.

Previously, the ground floor of 64 Prinsep Street was home to a hotpot restaurant.

The second floor 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.

Currently, the second floor is home to Bunnyside Basement, an arcade for rhythm game enthusiasts. It was founded by Runze Zhang, a full-time student at NUS, who bought the machines from Japan – including Sega’s MaiMai DX and Gitadora series by Konami. The arcade is open from afternoon till late and caters to working adults who come to compete with other players.

On the other end of the street, Prinsep Street comes alive at night with its bars, restaurants, and cafés, attracting students and professionals. The area is surrounded by tertiary institutions such as 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 with The Foundry, a former Elections Department building now housing 14 non-profit organisations and social enterprises, located next door. The former Catholic High School campus, built in 1935, is also being transformed into a new arts centre. Across the street stands the Selegie Arts Centre, a conserved three-storey Art Deco building with colourful windows. The building used to sit at the junction of Prinsep Street and Selegie Road but has now been closed off.

Selegie Arts Centre is a three-storey Art Deco building with colourful windows.

After being restored by the National Arts Council in 1994, the building became home to the Photographic Society of Singapore and the Loke Wan Tho Gallery. Nearby, the most significant redevelopment taking place is at the former Peace Centre and Peace Mansion. These buildings have been demolished to make way for One Sophia, a mixed-use project consisting of 122 strata office units and 127 strata retail units at One Sophia, and 367 apartments at The Collective at One Sophia.

Meanwhile, new hotels have popped up, including Hotel Mi Rochor and a 502-room hotel on the former Min Yuan Apartments site, alongside established properties such as Rendezvous Grand Hotel, Strand Hotel, and Hotel Bencoolen.

Prinsep Street has always been a prime location, and the shophouses in the area are highly sought-after. According to caveats lodged, the most recent transaction in the area was for a two-storey shophouse at 52A Prinsep Place, which changed hands for $4.12 million in November 2024. The property has a strata area of 2,393 sq ft and a remaining lease of 69 years.

Kuvera Properties’ Arjan has owned the Prinsep Street shophouses for over 18 years and has decided to sell them to invest elsewhere. The two shophouses, 64 and 66 Prinsep Street, will be sold as a package through an expression of interest (EOI) to be closed on October 22. The properties are zoned for commercial use and have food and beverage operations on the first floor. They occupy a 5,942 sq ft site with a built-up area of 8,842 sq ft. The indicative price starts from $26 million, or $2,941 psf based on built-up area. Both shophouses will be sold with tenancies in place until October 2027. According to exclusive marketing agent Jeffrey Sim from ERA Realty Network, there has been strong interest from shophouse collectors, including foreign buyers, as commercial shophouses are not subject to additional buyer’s stamp duty.