Eat your way round a Singapore hawker centre

What the experience is

Hawkers were once street sellers. Migrants from southern China, India and the Malay world cooked the food of their home regions on the pavements and quays of the colonial port, each selling one or two dishes. From the 1970s the government moved them into purpose-built covered markets with running water and fixed tables. There are now more than 110 such centres. In 2020 UNESCO inscribed hawker culture on its list of intangible heritage and described the centres as community dining rooms.

Each stall is still, as a rule, the business of one cook or one family making a narrow range of dishes: chicken rice, char kway teow, laksa, satay, roti prata, fish-ball noodles. A good way to eat is to order one dish from each of several stalls and share them.

The routine is simple. Find a seat first and mark it, traditionally with a packet of tissues. Queue at the stall, pay, and carry the food back. Return the tray afterwards, which is now expected in hawker centres. A long queue is often a guide to a good stall, but not always.

Where to go

Centres in the middle of the city that visitors often use are Maxwell, in Chinatown, the Victorian cast-iron market of Lau Pa Sat in the financial district, Tiong Bahru, above a wet market, and Old Airport Road.

When to go

Go at breakfast for kaya toast and coffee, and again for lunch, before the midday rush or after it. Individual stalls keep their own hours and close when they sell out, and centres close for cleaning on set days.

Why OKYTO recommends it

It is among the best-value food in Singapore, and a place where the whole city, rich and poor, eats together. Michelin has recognised hawker stalls since its first Singapore guide.