Where to Eat in Singapore: Best Street Food & Notorious Hawker Centres
Discovering where to eat in Singapore is almost as fun as learning what to eat when you get there! Ditch the long wait and steep bill at a frilly restaurant, and make your way to the real deal. Singapore’s most popular eating districts have all the authentic eats you want at prices any backpacking foodie can afford.
AGODA EXTRA: The Singapore Food Festival, organized by the Singapore Tourism Board, takes place annually during June or July. Restaurants across the city take part in the event by setting up pop-up restaurants, hosting competitions and conducting culinary workshops.
1. Tour each of Singapore’s HAWKER CENTERS to decide which street foods you love most
No matter where you stay in Singapore, you won’t be far from a hawker center. These street-side “food courts” are loaded with a mix of Chinese, Malay and Indian dishes, as well as local snacks and drinks. Hawker centers fill up during meal times, so you’ll want to “chope” a seat the Singaporean way: leave a pack of tissues (which you should carry at all times) at your seating place until you return with your food!
A few can’t-miss hawker centers in Singapore:
Lau Pa Sat Food Court, 18 Raffles Quay
Maxwell Food Centre, 1 Kadayanallur Street
Tiong Bahru Market, 30 Seng Poh Road
Chomp Chomp Food Centre, 20 Kensington Park Road
Old Airport Road Food Centre, 51 Old Airport Road
What to eat when you get there:
Chili crab
Black pepper crab
Hainanese chicken rice
Hokkien mee
Check In to COO Boutique Hostel, Step Out to Maxwell Road Hawker Center
Discover more hostels and capsule hotels in Singapore
2. Discover oodles of noodles – and stingray – at CHINATOWN FOOD STREET
Cheap food and crazy good flavors reign supreme along Chinatown Food Street. Find Smith Street in Chinatown Singapore, and you’ll be on your way to a steamy bowl of noodles, satay skewers and possibly even a delectable plate of stingray. (Don’t wrinkle your nose at that last one until you try it!)
What to eat when you get there:
Bak kut teh
Yong tau fu
Char kway teow
Check In to Porcelain Hotel by JL Asia, Step Out to Chinatown Food Street
Discover more hostels and hotels in Chinatown Singapore
3. Go where food, drinks and nightlife flow in CLARKE QUAY
While you won’t find the cheapest prices around Clarke Quay, you will find plenty of happy hour specials and every cocktail under the sun. And when the sun goes down, many restaurants in Clarke Quay turn into hopping clubs and bars. For serious techno beats and plenty of room to dance, head to Zouk. Take a shot and chill out at Chupitos Shots Bar, or enjoy a cold beer while listening to live rock ‘n’ roll at the Crazy Elephant.
Check In to Champion Hotel City, Step Out to Zouk
Discover more hostels and serviced apartments in Clarke Quay
4. Spice up your foodie tour with a bowl of curry at LITTLE INDIA
If you like to scoop up your curry with a fluffy piece of naan, Little India is where you’ll get the hook-up. You also might get a warm, fuzzy feeling when you find that Little India offers way more than traditional Indian food. Make your taste testing a little easier by going to Tekka Center, where you’ll find all the dishes you can sample under one roof. If you’re tired of sightseeing and are ready to sit down at a nice restaurant with air conditioning, pick a table at The Banana Leaf Apolo, where you can choose a house specialty and eat it off a banana leaf.
What to eat when you get there:
Fish head curry
Briyani
Vadai
Check In to Moon 23 Hotel, Step Out to Tekka Center
Discover more hostels and capsule hotels in Little India
5. Eat all the halal food you can find in BUGIS and KAMPONG GLAM
While Bugis and Kampong Glam are best known for their halal and Middle Eastern cuisines, the areas also tout plenty of international choices – with prices that make hungry tourists happy. Start on Bugis Street, and eat your way to Arab Street, where you can continue your culinary journey all the way to Sultan Gate.
What to eat when you get there:
Satay
Laksa
Martabak
Check In to Hotel Mi, Step Out to Bugis Street
Discover more hotels and hostels in Kampong Glam
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Discovering where to eat in Singapore is almost as fun as learning what to eat when you get there! Ditch the long wait and steep bill at a frilly restaurant, and make your way to the real deal. Singapore’s most popular eating districts have all the authentic eats you want at prices any backpacking foodie can afford.
AGODA EXTRA: The Singapore Food Festival, organized by the Singapore Tourism Board, takes place annually during June or July. Restaurants across the city take part in the event by setting up pop-up restaurants, hosting competitions and conducting culinary workshops.
1. Tour each of Singapore’s HAWKER CENTERS to decide which street foods you love most
No matter where you stay in Singapore, you won’t be far from a hawker center. These street-side “food courts” are loaded with a mix of Chinese, Malay and Indian dishes, as well as local snacks and drinks. Hawker centers fill up during meal times, so you’ll want to “chope” a seat the Singaporean way: leave a pack of tissues (which you should carry at all times) at your seating place until you return with your food!
A few can’t-miss hawker centers in Singapore:
Lau Pa Sat Food Court, 18 Raffles Quay
Maxwell Food Centre, 1 Kadayanallur Street
Tiong Bahru Market, 30 Seng Poh Road
Chomp Chomp Food Centre, 20 Kensington Park Road
Old Airport Road Food Centre, 51 Old Airport Road
What to eat when you get there:
Chili crab
Black pepper crab
Hainanese chicken rice
Hokkien mee
Check In to COO Boutique Hostel, Step Out to Maxwell Road Hawker Center
Discover more hostels and capsule hotels in Singapore
2. Discover oodles of noodles – and stingray – at CHINATOWN FOOD STREET
Cheap food and crazy good flavors reign supreme along Chinatown Food Street. Find Smith Street in Chinatown Singapore, and you’ll be on your way to a steamy bowl of noodles, satay skewers and possibly even a delectable plate of stingray. (Don’t wrinkle your nose at that last one until you try it!)
What to eat when you get there:
Bak kut teh
Yong tau fu
Char kway teow
Check In to Porcelain Hotel by JL Asia, Step Out to Chinatown Food Street
Discover more hostels and hotels in Chinatown Singapore
3. Go where food, drinks and nightlife flow in CLARKE QUAY
While you won’t find the cheapest prices around Clarke Quay, you will find plenty of happy hour specials and every cocktail under the sun. And when the sun goes down, many restaurants in Clarke Quay turn into hopping clubs and bars. For serious techno beats and plenty of room to dance, head to Zouk. Take a shot and chill out at Chupitos Shots Bar, or enjoy a cold beer while listening to live rock ‘n’ roll at the Crazy Elephant.
Check In to Champion Hotel City, Step Out to Zouk
Discover more hostels and serviced apartments in Clarke Quay
4. Spice up your foodie tour with a bowl of curry at LITTLE INDIA
If you like to scoop up your curry with a fluffy piece of naan, Little India is where you’ll get the hook-up. You also might get a warm, fuzzy feeling when you find that Little India offers way more than traditional Indian food. Make your taste testing a little easier by going to Tekka Center, where you’ll find all the dishes you can sample under one roof. If you’re tired of sightseeing and are ready to sit down at a nice restaurant with air conditioning, pick a table at The Banana Leaf Apolo, where you can choose a house specialty and eat it off a banana leaf.
What to eat when you get there:
Fish head curry
Briyani
Vadai
Check In to Moon 23 Hotel, Step Out to Tekka Center
Discover more hostels and capsule hotels in Little India
5. Eat all the halal food you can find in BUGIS and KAMPONG GLAM
While Bugis and Kampong Glam are best known for their halal and Middle Eastern cuisines, the areas also tout plenty of international choices – with prices that make hungry tourists happy. Start on Bugis Street, and eat your way to Arab Street, where you can continue your culinary journey all the way to Sultan Gate.
What to eat when you get there:
Satay
Laksa
Martabak
Check In to Hotel Mi, Step Out to Bugis Street
Discover more hotels and hostels in Kampong Glam
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