Singapore: Beginner's Guide to Hawker Food Centers

Our hawker center food crawl did not start until C got to Singapore. I'm the type who can eat anywhere; I’m not really the type to make the trek out just to eat at a certain resto, but C is.

Inspite of this being our third time in Singapore, this is our first time to venture into the hawker food stalls. The kids were much younger during our previous visit, and I did not feel all that brave letting them eat there. I did not want even a slight chance of any of them developing traveler’s diarrhea. But now that they are all teens, we decided that this is a good time to try.

But I still made the necessary precautions and brought along a bottle of multi-strain prebiotics. We normally take one capsule a day for daily maintenance, but we also take it every 3-4 hours when anyone gets a bad tummy.

Buti naman we all made it out fine! But an IG friend who traveled to Singapore the same time we did wasn’t so lucky. She ate at Makansutra Gluttons Bay and suffered from LBM right after.

Most hawker centers are filled with locals and tourists, so the best thing to do is to reserve a table by leaving your water bottle or tissue pack or any personal item that is not valuable. We would go around and get a variety of dishes in order to try more food.

Prio to our trip, C was kept busy watching vloggers eat their way through the hawker centers, and made a list of all the restaurants he wanted to try. He kept note of the Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurants where we can enjoy a meal without busting our budget. But even with that, the best rule of thumb in choosing a resto is where there’s a long line!

Here are the Hawker Centers that we’ve visited:

Old Airport Road Hawker Center

C had business matters to take care off so he just flew in middle of the trip, but he kept busy right away. On his first full day in Singapore, we went straight ahead to the Old Airport Hawker Center. We chose this as our first stop as it is located near the sports stadium where R has his swimming competition. We figured we’ll have a quick meal before going to the pool. While the 9am early morning visit meant less crowds, it also meant that some of the stalls we wanted to try were still closed.

Because of its location far away from the city, it is not frequented by tourists and it is not that visually appealing. But this food center is widely considered by locals to be the best hawker center in Singapore, in terms of value and taste.

Our first stop was at Michelin plate awardee, Xin Mei Xiang Zheng Zong. We didn’t have to look for it at all because the queue that morning was enough to draw our attention.

The Lor Mee (known as LoMi in the Philippines) uses a rich seafood stock to make their gravy.
comes with hard boiled eggs, crunchy bean sprouts, stewed pork, fried snapper flakes and egg., as well as chopped red chillies, sambal chili and Chinese parsley for some heat and freshness.

Xin Mei Xiang Zheng Zong Lor Mee 新美香卤面
51 Old Airport Road, #01-116 Old Airport Road Food Centre, Singapore 390051
Opening Hours: 6am – 2pm (Fri – Wed), Closed Thurs
https://www.facebook.com/xinmeixianglormee

C also ordered Big Prawn Mee from one of the other stalls while I was waiting for our Lor Mee.

Maxwell Food Center 

We went to the Maxwell Food Center located in Chinatown specially for the Hainanese Chicken Rice. Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice is a Michelin Bib Gourmand food stall. While the chicken is good, I've tasted better. I was expecting to queue for a few minutes, but was surprised to see no line here.

Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice bested Chef Gordon Ramsay in a chicken rice showdown in 2013.

Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice
Maxwell Food Centre #01-10/11,
1 Kadayanallur Street, Singapore 069184
Tel: +65 9691 4852

via

We lined up for Fu Shun Shao La Mian Jia Hong Kong style roast meat rice is because of the long queue that formed in front of the store. You know what they say of hawker centers, line up where the crowds are. Fave son stood in line for a good 30 minutes before it was his turn to order.

No photos of his plates (yes, plural) na since he was hungry already when he got it. Plus we were halfway done with eating our orders na din.

Fu Shun Shao La Mian Jia
Maxwell Food Centre, #01-71
1 Kadayanallur Street, Singapore 069184

C ordered this laksa noodle bowl from one of the stalls there.

Maxwell Fuzhou Oyster Cake is thin and crispy, loaded with fillings of minced meat, parsley, bite-sized oysters and shrimps. Locals say this is the best one there in the whole of Singapore.

Maxwell Fuzhou Oyster Cake
Maxwell Food Centre, #01-05
1 Kadayanallur Street, Singapore 069184
Open daily 9am – 6pm.

My order of oyster omelette looks different from the oyster omelette served in Manila (which lies down flat) as Singaporeans cut it up, making it look messy. While they are generous with the oysters,

Hawker Chan

Hawker Chan is the first ever  hawker food stall to get a one Michelin Star in the Singapore Michelin Guide 2016. So this was definitely on C's required pitstop in Singapore.

We got there at 10:45 wanting to beat the lunch crowd, only to find a long queue that went past the door already. B and I went to look for a table, while C lined up to order.

If you do eat here, I highly recommend that you order any of the noodles set, instead of getting rice. Roasted Chicken, roasted pork and the char siew are good, but not in the same spectacular level as those you can find in Hong Kong. Prices are very affordable, making it a suitable place for a family for a casual dining place.

Liao Fan Hawker Chan
78 Smith Street, Singapore

Tiong Bahru Market Food Center

Tiong Bahru Market Food Center is a serendipitous encounter because we just really wanted to visit the Tiong Bahru neighborhood cafes, vintage bookstores and iconic wall murals.

 One of the murals in the Tiong Bahru wet market

This hawker center is located above one of the nicest wet markets in Singapore, Tiong Bahru Market. We went around the wet market first and the went up to eat some of the top Singapore street food.

This mural is what welcomed us to the market

The food center has a relaxing and comfortable atmosphere because it is spacious and airy. It doesn't have the abrasiveness of the hawker centers located in Chinatown.

C encouraged us to try Jian Bo Shui Keuh. It's the best daw in Singapore. So even if I have no idea what it is, I gladly tried what he ordered for us. I agree it's good, not amazing, but good. I can't compare it to anything I've tasted before. The chwee kueh itself is soft, smooth but bland. The entire flavor experience is dependent on the chai poh toppings(Chinese dried radish) and the side of sambal chili .

 $2.50 gets you 5 pieces

Jian Bo Shui Kueh
#02-05, 30 Seng Poh Road
Tiong Bahru
Singapore


C knows I love oyster omelette so after our Maxwell visit, he ordered another one for me. Sadly, did not hit the spot for me as well as I realized now that I want my oyster omelette toasted and crispy on the outside, chewy and sticky on the inside, the way they usually serve it in Manila. The Singaporean version is served cut-up (messy-looking talaga, di ba?) and it is kinda gooey wet inside. Di ko type.

Lau Pa Sat Hawkers Center

Fave son had a celebratory dinner at Lau Pa Sat with the coaches and his teammates on the last day of the competition.  We left him to enjoy with his team and then the 3 of us explored the hawker center, which most tourists still consider as one of the best hawkers center in Singapore.

The colonial-style octagonal-shaped building dates back to the late 1800s 

C told us that Lau Pa Sat is one the longest-serving hawkers center in the city. Tame daw siya in the morning, but the scene changes at night, when it becomes more of a laid back party place where cold beer is usually ordered along with skewers of chicken, beef and shrimp satay.

Lau Pa Sat satay street is the only satay street in Singapore. It only opens at night for dinner

The barbecue smoke carrying the irresistible aroma of the satay on the charcoal fires 

Newton Circus Food Center

This is one of Singapore’s most historical hawker centers. This is the last hawker center we visited. I enjoyed our time here the most because it offered a quieter and cleaner atmosphere than the food centers we visited earlier. C wanted to visit to try Alliance Seafood, a Michelin Bib Gourmand hawker stall.

They specialize in chili crab, but none of us wanted to get our hands dirty that day. We were leaving for the airport in a few hours and it was so hot, too, walang gustong mag kamay.


https://guide.michelin.com/sg/alliance-seafood/restaurant

Sarap ng cereal prawns nila. I asked the owner what cereal he used to make his cereal prawns, on the off-chance na baka mag share. He went inside his kitchen and brought out this big package and  showed me the brand (Nestum, ladies!)

The grilled sambal stingray is very good. (spice on the side cos I can't eat spicy food due to my reflux problem). I thought stingray would have a texture similar to squid, 

but it tastes just like fish, but better.

Another round of satay skewers because our tummies couldn't get enough

fresh sugarcane juice

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Tiong Bahru Bakery

I was recommended to visit Tiong Bahru by an IG friend, and I couldn't be more glad to listen to her. The area is quaint and full of unique stores. We  spent the afternoon wandering the streets and visiting the market. Then we stumbled upon Tiong Bahru Bakery where we found the most the most beautiful pastries and bread, all freshly made using the finest French ingredients.

the Green Tea Almond Croissant is B's fave

The Kouign Amann is the best-seller

I especially loved the Brie and Roasted Mushroom Croissant. The croissant was buttery and flaky, with the right amount of air holes inside. 

#01-70, 56 Eng Hoon Street

Tiong Bahru
Singapore

Kam's Roast Goose

We were not planning on eating at Kam's, but since we saw a big sign tempting us to try their Iberico Char Siu, we gave in and got us a table. Considering it was lunch time, the place was not packed with hungry diners. There were only a couple of tables filled.

We ordered 3 sets of roast duck, one for each of us. 

C had to try the Iberico Char Siew. 

Iberico, which comes from the most decadent and coveted Iberian pig, has a higher fat content than regular pigs. That means that the meat they produce has a delightful tenderness and richer flavor because of the extra layer of fat. C fell in love with this, but I was not such a fan because of its price!

The crispy roast pork’s skin was crispy and the meat was tender.

premium portions of exquisite iberico char siew and super crispy roast pork

C ordered a side dish of dry noodles with wanton.

The wanton noodles did not make a remarkable impression

All in all, I've had better meals that was not this expensive. Food was tasty, but not the best.

Kam's Roast Goose
9 Scotts Road Pacific Plaza
Singapore

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The train stations, the streets and other public places possess that cleanliness and sense of order that I’ve come to associate with Singapore. The country has this image of being neat and modern, pretty much like Japan, but this is not visible at any of the hawker centers we visited.

I don't understand that they have this rule that chewing gum in public is not allowed, and yet diners in hawker centers can just leave dirty plates and unfinished food on the table once they are done eating.  There are elderly cleaners going around to wipe and clear away tables so other people can use them. But the general area is unkempt and messy.

I noticed that hawker centers do not provide paper napkins. To me, I look at Singapore's hawker centers and our food courts to be the same. Isn't providing for paper napkins part of the entire dining experience?

For you own peace of mind, be sure to check out the grading for cleanliness and hygiene of the stall before purchasing food. Stalls in hawker centres are given a grade (A, B, C or D). So make sure to only purchase from those that has a grade of A, or B at the very least.

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