Food

Singaporeans are passionate about food and eating. Almost in every corner of the island, you will find an endless variety of food, served hot or cold, at any hour of the day (or night)! In this cosmopolitan and multicultural city, you can expect nothing less than a melange of flavours from around the globe. It is more than just East meets West when it comes to feasting in Singapore. It is a tasty tale about a country’s unique cultural tapestry woven in with its distinct influences to capture the essence of Singapore’s multicultural heritage.

Dinner at a Hawker Centre

With such a wide variety of local and international cuisines here, you will certainly be spoilt for choice. Imagine you can have “roti prata” (Indian pancake) for breakfast, “nasi padang” (Malay mixed rice) for lunch, “spaghetti” (Western) for dinner and “Teochew Mueh” (Chinese porridge) for supper! You can also sample some of our world famous local dishes, like the ‘Chilli Crab’ and the ‘Singapore Chicken Rice’.

Peranakan Food

As a large portion of the population are muslims, halal food is available everywhere. There are Malay Muslim and Indian Muslim food, you will know when you see one as there's always a sign written in Arabic prominently displayed.

While you may find at least one Chinese or Indian vegetarian food stall in every food centre, you are not likely to come across fine elaborate dishes, especially Chinese vegetarian food. Good Taoist / Buddish vegetarian food seems less easily available. One simple reason is the complexity in vegetarian food preparation.

Durians, a pungent but tasty fruit

Unlike Indian vegetarians and vegetarians in the West, Taoist / Buddish vegetarians do not eat garlic, onion, leek and those related vegetables. Vegetarian food, in this case, does not mean cooking with only vegetables, but rather, the art of shaping and texturing flour into mock meat and fish dishes. It is worth the trouble to give it a try, for good Chinese vegetarian food is rare, even in Singapore. If you are lucky, you may come across a Chinese temple that serves vegetarian food (only on certain days).

Enjoying a Seafood Meal with Crabs

Seafood is of course a social food that tops many people’s list. Seafood eaten the local style is a noisy and cosy affair. Chilli crabs, black pepper crabs, drunken prawns and deep fried baby squids are just some of the endless yummy dishes that one shouldn't miss. Lobsters, glamourous as they may sound, are not as popular among locals as Chut Chut (a kind of cone shaped sea shell that has to be sucked) or raw cockles. Eating barbequed sting ray from a piece of banana leaf at a food centre should also not be missed. If you do not know where to begin, the East Coast Seafood Centre is worth a visit.

For more information you can visit Uniquely Singapore Cuisine and Makansutra.