Cuppage Terrace & Emerald Hill

Named after William Cuppage, who was the 19th-century owner of the nutmeg estate here, Cuppage Tce, a renovated terrace of Peranakan-style shophouses dating from the 1920s, is overwhelmed by the surrounding shopping malls and hotels. Most of the terrace is given over to bars and restaurants, as is the Orchard Rd end of Emerald Hill. Take some time out, though, to wander up from pedestrianised Peranakan Pl to Emerald Hill Rd, where some fine terrace houses remain; the quiet atmosphere feels a million miles from bustling Orchard Rd. Check out Nos 39 to 45, built in 1903 with an unusually wide frontage and a grand Chinese-style entrance gate, and the art deco–style houses Nos 121 to 129, dating from 1925.