Who says cheap food can’t taste nice? Hawker centres are the perfect places for delicious meals at a low cost. Here are our top 10 best hawker centres in Singapore.
1. Old Airport Road Food Centre
Situated far from Singapore’s city centre, the Old Airport Road Food Centre has been around for more than 30 years and is considered to be one of the best hawker centres on the island. Popular dishes include Hokkien mee from Nam Sing Fried Hokkien Mee, char kway teow from Dong Ji Fried Kway Teow & Lucky Char Kuey Tiao, and silky beancurd pudding from Lao Ban Soya Beancurd & 51 Soya Beancurd. The place is quite hot, so it’s recommended to find a table close to the main road where it is cooler, for an enjoyable meal.
Address: 51 Old Airport Rd, Singapore 390051
Tel: +65 6756 0266
Opening Hours: 6am – 11pm (daily)
2. Maxwell Food Centre
Located in the heart of Chinatown, Maxwell Food Centre is one of the more well-known hawker centres frequented by locals and tourists alike. It was made even more famous after celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay paid a highly-publicised visit to Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice. Specialities here include Hainanese chicken rice from the aforementioned Tian Tian Chicken Rice, and chicken/fish porridge from Zhen Zhen Porridge. Other great choices include China Street Fritters, Marina South Delicious Food and Hoe Kee Porridge. Do note that most stalls in this hawker centre are closed after 4pm.
Address: 1 Kadayanallur St, Singapore 069184
Tel: +65 6225 5632
Opening Hours: 8am- 2am (daily)
3. Chomp Chomp Food Centre
Chomp Chomp is a great place for those who love late-night suppers. It is open from the late afternoon until just past midnight; unlike the typical hawker centre opening hours of morning to evening. However, it is located relatively far from the city, in the residential part of Serangoon. Be sure to try out their satay, BBQ sambal stingray, carrot cake, barbecued chicken wings and fried Hokkien mee.
Address: 20 Kensington Park Rd, Singapore 557269
Opening Hours: 4pm – 12.30am (daily)
4. Tiong Bahru Market Hawker Centre
Being one of the cleanest and most spacious hawker centres in Singapore, Tiong Bahru Market is located just above Tiong Bahru Wet Market. Popular picks that see long queues include Jian Bo Shui Kueh, widely known as one of the best chwee kueh in Singapore. Do not miss out on snacks and baos from Tiong Bahru Pau, and the two popular lor mee stalls: 178 Lor Mee and Tiong Bahru Lor Mee.
Address: 30 Seng Poh Rd, Singapore 168898
Opening Hours: 9am – 8pm (daily)
5. Golden Mile Food Centre
Golden Mile Food Centre has been around since 1975. It used to be famous for its many stores that sold army equipment, and is thus also known as the “army market”. Various local dishes ranging from Chinese, Malay, Indian to Thai food can be found in this hawker centre, which spans the first two floors of the building. There are many halal stalls here, mainly located downstairs. Some of the recommended dishes to try include char kway teow, hokkien mee, nasi lemak, burgers and thai food. As some stalls here will close as soon as they are sold out, it’s best to go during breakfast or lunch to avoid disappointment.
Address: Golden Mile Food Centre, #01-65, 505 Beach Rd, Singapore 199583
Tel: +65 9129 9832
Opening Hours: 12pm – 2pm; 5pm – 9pm (daily)
6. Bukit Timah Market and Food Centre
Bukit Timah Market and Food Centre is a food haven that offers various delicious local dishes. Do try out the signature clear fish soup from Leng Kee. Their fish slices are generous, the soup is made slightly savoury, and you can even add a spoonful of chilli for an extra kick. Another dish worth visiting for is the satay bee hoon from Sin Chew Satay Beehoon. The creamy peanut sauce is actually more savoury than sweet, with the well-balanced taste of spices.
Address: 51 Upper Bukit Timah Rd, Singapore 588215
Opening Hours: 7am – 11pm (daily)
7. Amoy Street Food Centre
Another hawker centre situated in the heart of Chinatown, Amoy Street Food Centre has two floors of hawker stalls. Hoo Kee Rice Dumplings—and their unique steamed dumpling that put them on the Michelin Bib Gourmand list—can be found here. Other stalls worth paying a visit to include J2 Famous Crispy Curry Puff that serves yummy traditional curry puffs, and A Noodle Story that offers great fusion Japanese ramen. Do also try out Hong Kong Beef Noodle and Han Kee Fish Soup.
Address: 7 Maxwell Road MND Building Annexe B, Singapore 069111
Tel: +65 1800 225 5632
Opening Hours: 6.30am – 9pm (Sunday to Friday); 10.30am – 1.30pm (Saturday)
8. Chinatown Complex Food Street
The largest hawker centre in Singapore, Chinatown Complex Food Street houses over 260 food stalls that serves various local delights. From the cheapest Michelin dish at Liao Fan Hong Kong Soya Sauce Chicken Rice and Noodle to the old-school claypot rice at Zhao Ji Claypot Rice, whatever you can think of can definitely be found here. With fierce competition among the many stalls, the food offered here is often cheaper than usual. How could you miss this?
Address: 335, Smith St, Singapore 058938
Opening Hours: 11am – 11pm (daily)
9. Hong Lim Food Centre
Located near Chinatown Complex Food Centre, Hong Lim Food Centre is much quieter and less crowded than its neighbour. So is it worth a stop at this two-storey hawker centre? Hong Lim is home to many established crowd favourites, and even a Michelin Bib Gourmand stall. From curry chicken noodles at Heng Kee Curry Chicken Bee Hoon Mee, all-time-favourite wonton noodles at Ji Ji Wonton Noodle Specialist, to Michelin katong-laksa at Sungei Road Trishaw Laksa (thrice awarded the Michelin Bib Gourmand), this is a place you will not regret.
Address: 531A Upper Cross St, Singapore 051531
Tel: +65 6225 5632
Opening Hours: 7am – 9pm (daily)
10. Zion Riverside Food Centre
Despite being situated in an atas (expensive) area surrounded by private properties, Zion Riverside Food Centre offers surprisingly cheap and reasonable food. While it is one of the smallest food centres in Singapore, Zion Riverside still continues to capture the hearts of locals and tourists alike. Specialities here include char kway teow at No. 18 Zion Road Fried Kway Teow, kway chap at Boon Tong Kee Kway Chap Braised Duck, and fresh prawn mee at Noo Cheng Adam Road Big Prawn Mee.
Address: 70 Zion Rd, Singapore 247792
Tel: +65 1800 225 5632
Opening Hours: 8am – 10pm (daily)
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Learn about the History of Singapore’s Hawker Culture
