TRIP REPORT: Summer Premium Adventures – Exploring Hawker Food Markets in Singapore

Exploring Hawker Food Markets in Singapore
Summer Premium Adventures

In this Summer Premium Adventure (Warning: Long!)

• In the Summertime when the weather is hot…
• Off to Heathrow, British Airways Galleries North Lounge
  
• BA762 London Heathrow to Oslo – A321neo (EuroTraveller)
• Oslo Airport, OSL Lounge
• AY914 Oslo to Helsinki, Business Class
• Helsinki Airport lounging
• QR302 Helsinki to Doha (Business Class)
• Doha Lounge Stop Part 1
• QR946 Doha to Singapore (QSuites)
• Hotel Indigo, Katong, Singapore
• Exploring Hawker Markets
• Intercontinental, Bugis, Singapore
• Orchids Everywhere – The National Orchid Garden
• Off to Changi featuring the Singapore Pokemon Centre
• Scoot TR604 Singapore to Bangkok
• Dream Hotel, Bangkok
• Exploring the Wats
• Food Mistakes in Bangkok (Or Regrets. I have a more than a few)
• Back to Suvarnabhumi, Qatar Airways Lounge, Bangkok Airport
• QR833 Bangkok to Doha (QSuites)
• Another long Doha Layover
• QR175 Doha to Oslo
• Back at Oslo Airport
• BA767 Oslo to London Heathrow (EuroTraveller)
• Homeward bound
• Always Curious

Exploring the Food Hawker Centres in Singapore

Food, glorious food. I don’t need to introduce Hawker Centres to you – Mike Chenug can do that better than I can.

Instead, I’m going straight to the food adventures I had on the way in Hawker Centres.

Old Airport Road Hawkers Centre

To get to this one is a little bit of a challenge – you’ll be busing and MRT, or if you’re coming in fro the Hotel Indigo/Holiday Inn Express in Katong, there’s a direct bus. Or just use a Grab.

Where I ended up first

With places like this, there is almost too much choice. So the first thing to do when hitting a hawker centre is to circulate around and see what there is. Also, pay attention to the lines – this is important. If you see long lines, there’s a reasonable chance the food will be good.

Remember to return your tray.

Tea?

Queue – Good normally.

Bit early for Chicken Rice… But is it ever too early for chicken rice? 

Baked goods

Fried noodles anyone?

I did a circle or two and settled on some wanton noodles and char siu for the princely sum of S$4.

And I’m not objecting what I got for S$4.

A decent portion of all those things, with some nice wanton tails which were well filled, some noodles (because noodles are a done thing), and tasty pork char siu.

More queues…

I was done with that reasonably quickly enough and was heading to the exit – when I saw some Nasi Lemak in a bamboo leaf for S$1.80.

How could I say no to that?

Let’s open this package of wonders, with Rice, peanuts, fried sardines, and a fish hidden away.

Not bad at all for $1.80. Heck, best-priced meal this trip – end of the matter.

Albert Street Food Centre

Let’s move onto the Albert Court Food Centre. This one is near the Intercontinental at Bugis – and given the choice between an expensive hotel breakfast or cheap fun choose what you like for near enough S$5, I know which I can deal with.

My wallet also agrees with this too.

I stopped here for breakfast more often than not due to the location.

First up Pork, Pork and More Pork. In a soup. Yours for the grand total of S$3.

(Meat ball soup selected)

Put it all together…

Meat ball soup. 

Simple and delicious – something I have no problem enjoying most days of the week. Heck, Soup and noodles and I’m a happy person 9 out of 10 times.

Also, there is Nasi Lemak. Yes. This is a thing in Singapore, and we’re all going to have to deal with it. And at S$2.80, I can deal with it.

It has a bit of a queue – remember –  queues = better chance of good food.

This one is prepared fresh in front of you, so select what you want top in, pay and off you go.

Select your own nasi…

And boom. Very nice too. 

More breakfast? Let’s move onto another Singaporean Classic – Laksa. And it’s a Spicy Noodle Soup.

What did I say about me and noodle/soup combos?

Putting a bowl of laksa together

A nice coconut-creamy laksa here. And just the right level of spice too.

It wouldn’t be a meal without another Nasi Lemak – this time brought inside the market at Bugis.

Spot the food 😉

This is a bit different from the one before – with everything fresh. Lovely to see here – and again – around S$2.

Maxwell Food Centre, Chinatown

Moving on the granddaddy of them all – Maxwell Street Hawkers market near Chinatown

I arrived there after 8pm – and Tai Tian Tian had shut up shop for the evening.  However Hainaese Chicken Rice is a thing, and by dingo, we’re going to have some this trip

Don’t tempt me with delicious gyoza…

Or Ramen for that matter. Focus Kevin. FOCUS…

Coconut water? Check.

Food brings people together

I picked a reasonable looking one out – stretching to S$4 out (Look at me, breaking the food budget.) A pretty flavourful chicken and coconut rice combo to be nice.

Then again, it’s pretty hard to go wrong with Hainesse Chicken.

Song Fa

The one restaurant meal I had was for some Bak Ut Tee. This is pork bone rib soup, with the soup varying from either a medicinal taste to a peppery taste. This one was a lot more peppery – to say the least

And it was served with my vices – Chicken feet with Tofu skins.

I may not have many vices in the world, but I’m a sucker for chicken feet in black bean sauce. Add some lime juice, and this meal broke the bank at … S$20. Or about £10.
Lime Juice

I’ve paid more and have been disappointed more in the past – this was a good value meal out. Whilst I can appreciate a high-end restaurant, hawker centres offer good value for money – and I encourage you to seek them out if you’re travelling through Singapore.

It’s an enjoyable discovery experience, and it won’t cost the earth.

And if you do… have a Nasi Lemak for me, please? 😉

Next: Intercontinental Singapore, Bugis 

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