Why Hawker Centres Are An Essential Singapore Experience
Singapore hawker centres are one of the best damn places to eat in the entire world. This is a statement that is simultaneously 100% my opinion and 100% fact. Anywhere from a dozen to 100 little stores, each doing one thing especially well, hawker centres cater to the diverse multicultural population of Singapore and the no frills perfection enjoyed by the 15/16 Singaporeans who aren’t millionaires. If you go to Singapore and don’t go to a hawker centre you might as well pop over to New York City and not eat a bagel. Once you’re done with that, pop round to Delhi and drink Coke instead of chai and if you’ve got time after that, head on down to Narooma and don’t visit the oyster co-op.
Yet, many people who visit Singapore skip the hawker centre. I suspect this is due to people finding it daunting or because they’re in the market for something more upscale (which we did plenty of on Katie’s Planned Day).
For me, I was sold on Singapore hawker centres when I was 13 and saw Anthony Bourdain suck marrow out of erotic red mutton bones in what looked to me like a food court. And yeah, they’re nothing flashy and there’s a bit going on but I believe hawker centres are the pinnacle of dinning and here’s why you should too. Additionally, because some people do find hawker centres daunting, I will be including at least one actionable tip with each point of my thesis (yes, thesis).
Easy
While some may find the sheer choice available at some hawker centres too much for their brain, there is no simpler group dining situation than finding a table at a hawker centre and sending everybody out to sort out their own dinner. All the joy of a table full of delicious variety but with none of the split bills. Believe me when I say, even picky eaters will find something to eat at a hawker centre because there’s always one stall doing an endearing but pretty hilarious rendition of ‘western food’.
Tip 1: Go with a group (or one hungry companion) so you can try a variety of dishes from several different stalls.
Tip 2: Check if your table has a number. Freshly prepared food means you might wait 10-20 minutes to get your food but if you give the people at the stall your table number they can bring it to you when it’s ready.
All of this was about $20 Singapore dollars at Newton Hawker Centre.
Cheap
Spoilers for our Singapore episode but out of the $30 budget for dinner I spent $20. I had three different dishes as well as sugar cane juice, a coconut and some mochi. Meanwhile, on Katie’s day, lunch and dinner combined was somewhere close to $300 worth of food and drinks. Simply, Singapore isn’t a cheap place to eat or drink but no one has told the hawker centres yet.
Yes, there are some that are in the Michelin guide that will charge you a bit more but for the most part it’s some of the cheapest food going in Singapore which is why so many of them are always busy.
Tip 3: Have cash! Some hawkers don’t take card, only cash or a banking app that you need to be a Singapore resident to download and use. Having cash on hand solves this problem.
My ‘every time I’m here’ dish, Sup Tulang at Golden Mile Hawker Centre.
Authentic
Not only is a lot of hawker food authentic to the culture from where the dishes originate but so much of it are original Singapore classics that you can gobble down in the exact context they were intended to be eaten. Things like carrot cake (radish and egg stir fry), black pepper crab and about 100 types of Indian inspired flatbreads are testament to the delicious creativity that this humid hub has fostered.
Most stalls have a very limited menu and many make just one thing superbly well. The people who work these stalls do so unpretentiously, why make such a big fuss about what they do every day for their whole adult life? Praise their food to their face and they’ll probably find it pretty funny. It’s as unpretentious as dining gets.
Tip 4: Look for stalls with a small menu or even just one offering (e.g. satay skewers) as the more specialise the one stall is, the better it usually tastes.
Very popular Newton Food centre and this caption, home to a BONUS TIP: go with a local!
Just. So. Delicious.
Alright, forget the other reasons for a sec because this is probably the only one you need. If you know where to look, the food at hawker centres is incredible. Even if you don’t know where to look, there is still no more delightfully tasty way to roll the dice across your tongue.
Yes, you can sometimes accidently order something really weird (like when my aunt accidently got sea cucumber noodles) and if you’re really unlucky, you might get something bland. However, I maintain most hawker stalls sell something worth eating than those that don’t.
So take a local tip, follow a TikTok, jump in a long line or jump in a short line. Try something you’ve had before, something you haven’t or something you never thought you would eat. Worst case scenario, you try something you don’t like and it costs you like $3.
Tip 5: Hawkers that are only open for the evening usually have fresher food because during lunch they are sourcing fresh produce. If you’re thinking of getting some seafood look for hawkers like this (my favourite is Chomp Chomp).
Tip 6: The iconic chilli mud crab is usually only available at hawkers if you give them notice the day before you want to eat it. Hawkers with 24/7 chilli crab are generally considered an inferior product by locals.
Sorry pork trotters. You can’t all be winners but I’m glad we got to hang out for one dinner.
