Singapore’s hawker stalls are a culinary treasure, offering a variety of flavours at affordable prices. While the food is inexpensive, it doesn’t lack quality and taste, for many have earned Michelin stars.
These stalls in bustling hawker centres across the city serve everything from traditional Chinese, Malay, and Indian dishes to fusion and international cuisines.
Each vendor has unique stories and specialties, making them a must-visit for foodies. Sampling dishes from these stalls is a feast for the palate and a deep dive into Singapore’s diverse cultural heritage.
Regarding hawker centres in Singapore, you’re genuinely spoiled for choice, and there are over 6000 vendors to choose from. However, I’ve narrowed down the list to the top hawker centres that offer a wide variety of delicious and affordable food.
1. Maxwell Food Centre
Deep in the heart of Chinatown, I discovered the Maxwell Food Centre across the street from the Buddha Tooth Temple. It’s a great stop for breakfast since it opens at 8 am and closes at 2 am.
The centre has over 100 stalls, from fruit juices and coconut water to full meal dishes. Choose from classic dishes such as chicken rice, char siew, roast pork, or roast duck. They offer Western cuisine, too.
With three rows of vendors located under a covered roof, it was hard to choose, so I went there more than once.
The centre isn’t air-conditioned, and I found it hotter under the roof with so much cooking happening. Instead, I sat outside under the roofline for a bit of shade. To avoid the crowds, plan to visit during off hours, before 11 am and after 2 pm.
The busiest stall is undoubtedly Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice, which has been endorsed by Gordon Ramsay and Anthony Bourdain. Here, I needed to order a medium size to taste the very tender boiled chicken. I found the roasted chicken equally as good.
Other tasty options include Teochew-style porridge from Zhen Zhen Porridge, oyster cake from Maxwell Fu Zhou Oyster Cake, appam from Mr. Appam, and Thai food from Sisaket Thai.
2. Old Airport Road Food Centre
Old Airport Road Food Centre is one of Singapore’s largest and oldest hawker centres. With over 150 stalls, it offers a wide range of local cuisine. Since it’s away from downtown and not easily accessible by transit, it’s more frequently visited by locals and not tourists.
Some must-try dishes include the famous lor mee, prawn noodles, and oyster omelette.
For the best caramelized char siew, hit up the Roast Paradise stall, who uses fattier meat and cook it longer. The result is a tender dish that’s packed with smokiness and flavour.
Chee Cheong Fun serves freshly made rice noodles that are a must-try. Depending on your taste buds, you can select from different fillings.
Stick with traditional ingredients such as mushrooms, prawns, or char siew, or go for the century eggs. Served with sambal, it’s simply delicious!
3. Chinatown Complex Food Centre
Walking through Singapore’s Chinatown, we discovered another excellent hawker centre, twice the size of the Maxwell Food Centre.
The Chinatown Complex Food Centre is a multistory building with over 250 vendors. We browsed the mix of souvenirs and other goods on the lower level before heading upstairs.
The food floor offers a mix of Chinese, Western, Indian, and other cultural flavours. Go for a full meal or graze through a variety of smaller dishes.
Head to Heng Ji chicken rice for a traditional meal. As one of the oldest stalls in the complex, it has delighted customers with its food for over fifty years.
Try the rice noodle rolls from Chef Leung’s Authentic Hand-Milled Rice Noodles for gluten-free Singapore dishes. Order without soy sauce and add a gluten-free version.
Lian Fan Hong Kong is the place to go for Michelin-star cuisine. Their soy sauce chicken rice, and noodles are always a hit. We tried the fried onion chicken here, which was full of flavour.
Complete your meal with a dessert from Old Amoy Chendol, a popular chain in Singapore.
4. Tekka Centre
The Tekka Centre is always buzzing with activity, and here, we found the tastiest and most budget-friendly food. Located in Little India, it offers classic Indian cuisine and allows visitors to immerse themselves in the culture of eating with their hands.
You can choose from biriyani, Sri Lankan curries, or a Singapore classic, Heng Gi Goose and Duck Rice, which is a bargain at SGD 5.
If you need gluten-free food, try masala thosai and appam. The thosai pancake is made from rice flour and sometimes lentils. It’s served with curry sauces and other spices. At SGD 2.50 for a full meal, it was inexpensive and one of the tastiest dishes I tried.
Appam is made with rice and coconut milk. Hawker stalls sell it plain or with sides. I tried the egg appam with coconut and orange sugar, which was delicious. It’s another bargain at just SGD 2.50.
5. Lau Pa Sat
Located in the heart of the Central Business District, Lau Pa Sat is a historic hawker centre that dates back to the 19th century. It has over 50 food stalls offering a variety of local and international cuisines. Some of the most ordered dishes include laksa, satay, and nasi lemak.
Lau Pa Sat is open all day but best known for its evening satay. You’ll find a mix of cuisine, desserts, and drink vendors inside the building.
It’s hard not to appreciate this building with vaulted ceilings and large cooling fans. The Victorian architecture added to the ambiance of enjoying a meal there.
At 7 pm, the centre comes alive as visitors flock to savour the smells and flavours of the barbeque. As indicated by the crowd, the best satay is the # 8 stall. Be prepared to queue to order and wait 20 minutes or longer for your satay.
This vendor now has a satay set, meaning you can’t order one kind of meat. Sets usually include a mix of chicken, mutton, and prawns. The highlight is the chicken, which is super tender and has the best flavour. We found the mutton tough.
6. Newton Food Centre
The Newton Food Centre was featured in the movie, “Crazy Rich Asians.” While it isn’t the largest hawker centre, with around 80 vendors, it is open 24 hours. The vendors here create their own hours, so we found some closed when we visited for lunch.
It’s easily accessible from the Newton MRT station, and the covered walkway provides protection when it rains.
The centre has a nice layout with the vendors on the perimeter and seating inside an open courtyard. Its notable stalls are as follows:
- Hup Kee Fried Oyster Omelette: Oysters and eggs might seem like an odd combination, but if you love oysters, give this a try.
- Alliance Seafood is an excellent choice for seafood lovers. Choose from tiger prawns, chili crab, or BBQ sting ray. It’s served on a banana leaf with sambal chili.
- San Ren Cold and Hot Dessert. Shave ice is a refreshing treat on a swelting day. San Ren Cold and Hot Dessert offer a variety of sweet desserts, such as Ice Jelly with Cocktail, Mango Ice Kachang, and Mango Pomelo Sago.
7. Amoy Street Food Centre
Open 6:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily; the centre has over 60 food stalls across two levels. Depending on when you arrive, some are always closed. We visited on a weekday at 3:30 p.m. and found about 30% open.
Choose from Singapore favourites or opt for Indian, Thai, or Malay cuisine. For Michelin-star stalls, six vendors made the cut. They are:
- A Noodle Story makes Japanese-style ramen.
- J2 Famous Crispy Curry Puff – Choose from chicken curry, beef, yam or sardine.
- Hoo Kee Rice Dumplings.
- Yuan Chun Famous Lor Mee.
- Ah Ter Teochew Fishball Noodles.
- Hong Kee Beef Noodle.
8. Margaret Drive Hawker Centre
Margaret Drive Hawker Centre is relatively new, having opened after the closure of Tanglin Haly Hawker Centre. You can choose from two levels of food vendors.
A popular choice is the Queenstown Lontong, a transplant from the closure of Tanglin Haly. Judging from its lineup, locals know its food is good.
Sukarnih Chicken Rice was another hot spot where locals lined up to get their favorite steamed chicken.
If you’re in the mood for something sweet, head to Ah Luck Desserts, where you’ll have plenty of choices. We tried the mango with longan, a refreshing delight on a hot day.
9. Makansutra Gluttons Bay Hawker Centre
Located on the Marina Bay waterfront, expect to pay higher than average hawker stall prices here. While this open-air hawker centre has fewer stalls (about a dozen) than many others, you’ll still have lots of variety.
On busy days, expect to wait for food, but thankfully, some stalls publish their wait times. Here are some of the highlights:
- Kebab & Karahi – Pakistani Traditional Cuisine.
- Syifa’ Satay, serves meat sticks with a delicious smoky flavour.
- Sweet Spot – for Ice Kachang, sticky sauces, jellies, and much more.
- BBKia Stingray – the go-to place for fresh seafood done over a grill.
- Gluttons Bar serves Tiger Beer to complement your food.
10. Alexandra Village Food Centre
The Alexandra Village Food Centre is near the Queensway Shopping Centre in the Bukit Merah district. It’s a bit off the beaten path for tourists.
Order classic chicken rice from Tai Liok Claypot Chicken Rice or try something new. Shanghai La Mian Xiao Long Bao, another popular stall, sells handmade dumplings. It had the longest line during our visit, indicating its tasty food.
Zi Char and Barbequed Seafood provides another opportunity to try Sambal Stingray. For a sweet treat, the fresh baked goods from Ah B Bakery are the best.
Western food lovers can get their fix at Ashes Burnnit, which specializes in gourmet hawker burgers.
11. Ayer Rajah Food Centre
Ayer Rajah Food Centre, located in Singapore’s west, is a hidden gem worth the trip. It has over 50 stalls offering a variety of Malay, Chinese, and Indian cuisine. However, the latter stands out above the rest.
The must-try dishes include the famous nasi biryani, roti prata, mee hoon, mee Goreng, and rojak. When in the mood for rojak, must-try stalls include Adhus Salam Rojak and Habib’s Rojak. However, if you like spicy food, order from Adhus Salam’s, as it has more of a kick.
People tout Tokyo BBQ Stingray as offering some of the best stingray in Singapore if you choose to skip Indian cuisine.
12. Chomp Chomp Food Centre
Chomp Chomp Food Centre, located in the east of Singapore, is a popular spot for supper. It has over 20 stalls offering a variety of local cuisine. Like the previous hawker centre, this one takes some traveling to reach.
Some of the must-try dishes include the famous stingray, BBQ chicken wings, and Hokkien mee. If you haven’t tried Satay yet, Chomp Chomp Satay is the stall to visit. The chicken and pork are the best, and unlike Lau Pa Sat, diners can purchase one meat instead of sets.
Another popular stall is Ah Hock Fried Hokkien Mee, which sells three sizes of fried Hokkien mee. Its food is so popular that it’s mentioned in the Michelin guide.
Conclusion
Those living in Singapore may have a favourite hawker centre, which could be within walking distance from home. However, tourists try places that are more accessible and convenient from where they are staying.
The “best” hawker centres in Singapore are a matter of opinions; everyone has one. We ate at hawker centres almost daily and traveled far and wide to try out different venues.
No matter what we tried, we were pleasantly surprised by the flavours, portions, and inexpensive pricing.