Singapore is the largest economic city in Southeast Asia. It is also a gourmet powerhouse where you can eat dishes with various roots because it is a mixture of multiple ethnic groups. I want to eat delicious restaurants!

This time, the En-eating editorial department participated in a 24-hour survival tour of the local "B-class gourmet" book "Makansutra" editorial department and the "stall gourmet" recommended by popular bloggers. Among the many stalls (stores), I have been eating exquisite dishes recommended by local "professionals".

This article is the first part that introduces mainly the shops in the Hawkers Center (hereinafter Hawkers), the kitchen of Singapore. (Please also the second part)

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◆ What is Hawkers?

A hawker is a food stall. There used to be food stalls everywhere on the street, but due to hygiene issues they were gathered in one place. This is the Hawkers Center, so to speak, the food stall village. Formally known as the Food Center, it is managed by the government. The large alphabet posted on the storefront shows the results of government hygiene inspections, with A being the highest. Cleanliness = not delicious, but please use it as a reference when choosing a store.

In addition, there are coffee shops and Kopitiam, which are like food centers. This seems to refer to a collection of food stalls in a privately run store. Also, what is installed in the shopping center is called a food court. It's especially popular with young people because it's air-conditioned.

1. The royal road "Chicken Rice" is in heaven!


If you come to Singapore, you can't go home without eating this! Chicken Rice, which eats boiled chicken and rice cooked in boiled soup together, is a standard menu of Hawkers.

"Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice" in the giant hawkers "Maxwell Food Center" in Chinatown. The famous restaurants that are featured in many Japanese guidebooks have a taste that foodies will appreciate. Even though I visited halfway after 15:00 on weekdays, the line of about 10 people was not interrupted. Of course, it seems that there will be a large line at noon.


Eat chicken and rice with ginger and garlic sauce and sweet and spicy soy sauce. In Hainan Island, the land where this dish was born, many people eat it without adding anything. The store also has a "roasted chicken" version baked in caramel. Try it to your liking.

By the way, the nearby "Ako Hainan Chicken Rice" is not a Pakuri restaurant, but a restaurant opened by a person who was the top chef of Tian Tian Hainan Chicken Rice. Both stores are characterized by using raw meat instead of frozen meat. People who are accustomed to eating can tell if they are using frozen meat by looking at the color of the chicken bones that come out.

2. The Singaporean food "Laksa"


This is also the famous noodle dish "Laksa" which can be said to be synonymous with Singapore. Laksa in Singapore is characterized by its spicy coconut milk-based soup with thick rice noodles. According to the local guide, it contains plenty of various ingredients such as dali, ginger, lemongrass, chili, garlic, garlic, and candle nuts.

The food center along Woodlands Center Road, where we visited Ye Lai Xiang Laksa, is the closest Hawkers to Malaysia. Right there is the border with Malaysia. Many factory workers who come to Singapore across the border come here for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. There is a unique atmosphere that is a little different from other Hawkers.

3. "Carrot cake" that is inevitably sold out


Carrot Cake is not a sweet cake with carrots, but an omelet with finely chopped radish cake and pickles. In Cantonese, it is said that radish was named after it is called "white carrot".

Chey Sua Carrot Cake at Hawkers Toa Payoh West Mkt & Food Court in downtown Toa Payoh is also very popular with Singaporeans. A perfect balance of moderately effective salt and slightly sweet soy sauce. It's strange because it melts in your mouth even though it's baked well. It's so popular that it often sells out, so if you visit it in the morning. Open early in the morning.

4. The standard food stall "Hokkien Mee"

Fried Hokkien Mee, one of the standard street foods, is a stir-fried thick egg noodle "Hokkien Mee". It has a familiar taste like yakisoba. Rice noodles are generally included to create a change in texture, and the ingredients are pork and seafood. If you like, mix sambal chili and lime and eat.


Tian Tian Lai Hokkien Mee's Fried Hokkien Mee, located in the same Hawkers as the carrot cake shop, is characterized by the crustacean soup stock soaking into the noodles. It's a taste that makes you want to eat it again because it's simple.

5. "Fish balls" are delicious because they are made from "raw surimi"


One of the dishes I was most impressed with this time was Fishball Noodles (sometimes called Fishball Mee). A set of noodles and soup with fish dumplings. Mix the noodles with chili sauce and sprinkle the soup as you like. Meat dumplings may be in the soup, or the noodles and soup may be combined from the beginning.


Hawkers Golden Mile Food Center near an area called Little India. It's not very famous in Japan, but Hawkers has a lot of local food. There is a Fishball story. The fish ball noodles here have a delicate taste that is "not like a food stall" in a sense. The dumplings, which are particular about making with raw fish meat, have a crispy texture and flavor. The well-dashi soup has no unpleasant taste and fits comfortably in your body. The owner's brother is one of the young cooks who is attracting attention in the hawkers world.

◆ Original traditional food "Peranakan cuisine"

Singapore is a country made up of immigrants from neighboring countries. Of course, there are dishes from overseas such as Italian, French, and Japanese ramen, but most of the dishes sold at Hawkers have roots in China, Malaysia, and India.

Chinese food is familiar in Japan. In Singapore, there are many southern ones such as Fujian and Teochew. Are there many dishes that use soy sauce? The author decides to think, "If Kanji is written, it is Chinese." Malay dishes are characterized by using plenty of coconut milk and chili. In Indian food, the familiar spice "masala" is often used.

And the traditional food born in Singapore is "Peranakans cuisine (Peranakan cuisine)". It is also called Peranakan cuisine, which is made by a Peranakans woman (Nyonya). Laksa is this representative. It features a "fusion of Chinese and Malay cuisine," such as combining Chinese ingredients with the spices of Malay cuisine. The local guide described it as "a dish of soy sauce and coconut milk married." These include Ayam Buah Keluak, which is stewed chicken with black nuts, and Sambal Prawn, which is fried shrimp with Peranakan chili sauce.


There are many restaurants that serve Peranakan cuisine in the Katong area, where Peranakans culture remains strong. The Orchard Café at the Orchard Hotel offers a buffet of Peranakan cuisine. In addition, Singapore's famous chilli crab , Malay food, Chinese food, Indian food ... You can eat various dishes, so you want to enjoy Singapore gourmet food even though your stay is short! I'm sure it will come true.