Opening hours: Early morning to about 10pm, though some may be open 24 hours.
Hawker Centres
Probably the most distinctive eating places in Singapore, hawker centres
house dozens of food and drink stalls under one roof. The best advice is,
walk around the whole place and take in everything before ordering. Prices
are cheap and comparable to those in coffeeshops,although tourist favorites
like Newton Hawker Centre and Lau Pa Sat are more expensive. When ordering,
tell the hawker your table number and you should get your food within 10-15
minutes.
Opening hours:10am to about 10pm, though the bigger ones like Newton open
till about 4am.
Foodcourts
Together with hawker centres, food courts are the people's main eating choice
when dining out. They are usually found in shopping malls, and are air-conditioned
and thus more expensive. For example,a plate of noodles that cost $3 in a
hawker centre may cost $4 in a foodcourt. The choice of food is also more
cosmopolitan, with some food courts even offering Italian, Korean, Japanese
and Greek cuisine all in the same place. Be warned: at the more popular food
courts, you could find people waiting behind you for your seat, so if you
like to take your time, go during off-peak hours. Unlike hawker centres, you
have to carry your own food to your table.
Opening hours:11am to about 10pm
Fastfood
A favourite with children and teenagers, fast food arrived in Singapore in
the late 70s and is today a familiar sight everywhere.There's McDonald's,
KFC, Pizza Hut, Burger King, Dunkin' Doughnuts and much much more.
Opening hours:7am to about 11pm (weekdays); midnight (weekends)
Cafes
A growing favourite with the young working crowd. Designer coffee places
like Starbucks, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf and Coffee Club have become the
"in" places to hang out with friends. Most cafes serve Western food
like sandwiches, pizzas and pasta.
Opening hours:10am to about 11pm (weekdays); midnight (weekends)
Restaurants
These range from the cheaper and more informal, like Spaggedies or La Smorfia
(Italian) and Ponderosa (Western) to the decidedly posh and budget busting,
like The Pinnacle. Whatever the cuisine, the budget or the occasion, there's
definitely more than a few to choose from.
Opening hours:11am to about 11pm (weekdays); midnight (weekends)
Popular Local Food Haunts
Newton Hawker Center
(Take to Newton MRT station and follow signs)
Hours: 6pm - 4am (only some stalls are open for lunch
All types of cuisine, but well-known for seafood. Prices may be slightly
more expensive than other hawker centers
Lau Pa Sat Hawker Centre (literally"Old Market")
(Take to Raffles Place MRT and follow signs)
Hours: Noon - 4am
Astonishing number of stalls to choose from. At night, al fresco satay stalls
are open.
Clarke Quay Satay Club
Hours: 7pm - 3am
Many of the original Satay Club stalls moved here after they were relocated
a few years ago. Most agree the best satay on the island can be found here.
Marina South Hawker Centre
(Take to Marina South MRT station and transfer to bus service 400; more
convenient to take a taxi)
Hours: Noon - 2am
Well-known for both its seafood and steamboat stalls. Steamboat is a way
of cooking whereby a pot of water is placed over a small stove on the table
and brought to boil. You then cook your own food, buffet style, in the boiling
soup, or fry meats on a hotplate coated with butter. Steamboat is popular
at family and friend get-togethers.
Chinatown Food Centre
(Take to Outram MRT station and walk toward Chinatown)
Hours: 7am - 9pm
An excellent example of the wide variety of Chinese food that can be found
in Singapore. Prices are ridiculously cheap but be prepared to bear with
the heat and the crowds,especially during lunch. Take a walk around this
huge complex to soak inthe atmosphere, including a wet market at the basement.
Particularly well-known are the colourful Cantonese cold dessert stalls.
Little India
Be prepared to walkaround a bit as there is great food all over the area.
The food outlets here range from cheap S$3-meal places to posh North and
South Indian restaurants.The best bet is to start with the cheap places
and discover what kind of food you prefer before "graduating"
to the restaurants. The vegetarian food here is especially good.
East Coast Park Seafood Centre
(Not immediately accessible by public transport, best bet is to hop into
a taxi; parking almost non-existent on weekend nights)
Hours: Dinner only
Many say the best seafood in town can be found here, whether you fancy a
spicy black pepper crab or juicy lobster. You will see why when the crowd
starts pouring in,especially on weekends. A big attraction here is that
you can dine pretty close to the sea and enjoy the breeze. But as with most
popular eating places in Singapore, prices can be slightly higher here.
Bencoolen Street 24-hour rotiprata
Located below a backpackers lodge and a popular haunt with both locals
and foreigners in search of a 60 cent roti prata at 2 am in the morning.
Don't forget to try the teh-tarik as well. After a late-night meal here,
you are guaranteed to feel truly Singaporean. In the wee hours, this is
also a great place to people-watch,as colourful Singaporeans from all walks
of life converge here.
