We’re going to be completely honest with you. There is no good way to get a complete culinary picture of Singapore in a single day. Whether it’s fashion, architecture or business. Everything that this bustling city takes on, it does well and with gusto, and that definitely goes for eating as well. From its astonishing and renowned plethora of street food options to its refined high end dining, Singapore simply has too much to offer. But hey, we’re going to do our best. Let’s dive in. And so with that in mind, we recommend a simple, relatively light breakfast to start your culinary journey, beginning with Kaya toast and coffee, or kopi as it’s referred to locally. Kaya Toast is a local favorite snack consisting of toast with butter and Kaya, a spread made of coconut milk, egg and sugar.
Singapore – Map of Singapore
As for your cup of kopi, be sure to familiarize yourself with the terminology before ordering. Simply asking for a copy will get you coffee. With condensed milk, it’s the default serving style, and definitely worth trying at least once. Just ask a local, even in cities with a bustling high end culinary scene, most of the best bites usually come from the unassuming local stand or vendor street food is the food of the people, and it’s usually being made by someone who’s been perfecting one or two dishes over decades. Well in Singapore Street food thankfully gets the supreme recognition it deserves thanks to the massive popularity of food Hawker centers, which can be found all across the city. For the first chapter of this edible epic, we suggest hitting up one or multiple street food hubs. Sampling as many offerings as you can comfortably handle, we’re going to start with the largest such destination in all of Singapore, the Chinatown Complex Food Center, which boasts over 260 food Hawker stalls. We know it’s all a bit overwhelming, isn’t it? But half the fun of being here is just walking around, stopping and trying dishes from stalls that catch your attention.
With that being said, we do have a few recommendations. Zolomon Sao Paulo serves up delicious steamed buns, the laksa from muji cooked food. Is excellent, as are the offerings of Leon he, Ben Ji Claypot Rice, the biggest attraction at Yale fund, Hong Kong soya sauce, chicken rice and noodle, the world’s cheapest Michelin starred restaurant where for around $2.00 you can try award-winning soya sauce chicken rice. While in Chinatown you’ll also want to check out the Maxwell Rd Hawker Centre. Those smaller in size and more limited in terms of seating. Maxwell Rd is most assuredly well worth a visit. Here you can try another Singapore Michelin starred food Hawker Stall. San SAN Hainanese chicken rice and with over 100 stalls to its name, Maxwell Rd has much more to offer. These foodie destinations might be among the city’s most popular Hawker centers, but they’re definitely not without robust competition. Located off the traditional path taken by tourists, the old airport Road food Center is a rather modest, no frills space. When it lacks in decor, however, it more than makes up for in flavor and diversity style. Highlights include swankie satay, freshly made, xicheng fun.
Sun Bango Todd Delights and Whitley Rd. Big prawn noodles. Last but not least, tianba is a food market and Hawker Center. It stands out from the crowd as one of the sharpest looking of its kind. Having undergone a three month renovation in early 2017, there is a lot to discover here, Jenn Bushwick way. Another starred stall is considered a standout, but you can discover your own restaurant gems. As previously mentioned, Singapore is a real melting pot and without a doubt one of the most prominent cuisines to be found here. As an Indian , making a trip to Little India is a must. The colorful neighborhood warrants a visit for the sites alone, but the food here really takes it to the next level. There are so many intriguingly delicious restaurants to choose from. Mustard is the place to go for Bengali dishes in Singapore.
Quite possibly the only one. It’s been called the jewel of Little India and with good reason. The Curry dish, chingri, macher, Malay Curry, and the fish in banana leaf betke, Marshall pottery are both worthy of your enjoyment. Mamata also comes highly recommended. Whatever you order, just make sure to try one of their divine mango lassies to finish our side trip to Little India is banana leaf Apolo, which is perhaps the most beloved Indian restaurant in Singapore. Here you’re likely to try some of the most complex and savory Curry’s you’ve ever had the pleasure of tasting. The most iconic of the bunch, the fish head Curry, but if you don’t like your food to have eyes, don’t worry. There is a wide selection of less stary dishes on the menu. You really can’t go wrong. Singapore is one of the more expensive places you can visit in Southeast Asia, and yet we’ve spent an entire day eating without ever really breaking the bank.
Though it has been fun, gratifying and decidedly delicious to eat on the cheap, there’s no denying the appeal of Singapore’s more upscale dining scene. So come suppertime, you’re gonna want to treat yourself. Our first option for dinner is candlenut. This Peranakan restaurant was the first of its kind to earn a Michelin star. Chef Malcolm Lee certainly has before coming to international attention. The now high profile chef admits to having considered giving up in the face of adversity. Our stomachs and pallets should collectively be grateful he didn’t because his food is of course, superb. Lee serves up fresh fins on the traditional cuisine of his Peranakan heritage, which blends Chinese and Malay cooking, all the while elevating each dish to new heights of complexity, delicacy and innovation. Our second option for dinner is cornerhouse, a restaurant where the flavors of the dishes are rivaled only by the beauty of the space. In which it’s located Cornerhouse lies within Singapore Botanic Gardens, which is appropriate since Rising Star chef and owner Jason Ton is a student of Gastro Botanica, the cuisine that champions the use of unexpected and often overlooked plant translation. He gets creative with botany to bring you new and exciting flavors and textures. Fans’ edible works of art have landed Corner House on the list of the top 50 restaurants in the world. Last but not least is the open farm community, a restaurant and food initiative that lives up to its name.
It’s a farm to table eating establishment with almost all its ingredients sourced from within the limits of the island city state, if not from the restaurant’s very own backyard, Singapore as a city is known for the remarkable way in which it incorporates greenspace into its otherwise cutting edge modern density. Even so, the urban farm immediately surrounding the restaurant nonetheless inspires awe. Fresh meat and seafood is sourced from around Singapore, while the veggies, herbs and edible flowers come from the farm itself. Many restaurants prioritize local ingredients. But few showed this level of commitment. The end result is delicious dishes that will give you a whole new appreciation for where your food comes from. Of course, you can’t go to Singapore without experiencing the city’s famous nightlife. And when you’re having a big evening out on the town, well, late night eats are a no brainer. You may have noticed that one of Singapore’s most famous and cherished food markets was missing from the list.
That’s ’cause we’re saving it for later Lau Pawsat. Located in the financial district, has long been a favorite. Go to the spot for those needing something tasty and satisfying. Especially after dark. What sets it apart from other food markets is that it has a wonderful ambiance in no small part thanks to the stunning architecture of the building in which it’s housed. You get to eat in a big, open, airy space, and if that’s too crowded, there’s plenty of outdoor seating in a picturesque setting. Honestly, in terms of which stall to order from, you really can’t go wrong. And on the off chance that you somehow still have room for more food at the end of your edible odyssey, or that you’ve got a bit of a sweet tooth, you can always end your night at the aptly named. 2:00 AM dessert bar. This romantic late night spot offers up a variety of mouthwatering treats and drinks that are sure to leave you satisfied and thinking. Sweet thoughts of your day in Singapore with only one day in Singapore, there’s only so many places you can visit and only so much you can eat so we know we’ve left off a ton of great places. A return visit is most definitely in order.
