Page 55 - Our Hawker Stories

Chinatown Food Centre is one of Singapore’s most
famous hawker centres and has a long history. It was
built in 1981 when the government wanted to give street
hawkers a proper place to sell food. Before that, many
hawkers sold their food on the streets of Chinatown,
which sometimes made the area messy.

The building has two floors. The ground floor is a
wet market where people buy fresh meat, fish, and
vegetables. The second floor is where all the food stalls
are - more than 260! This innovative design means the
hawkers can easily get fresh ingredients from downstairs
to cook their dishes upstairs.

The same families have run many stalls here for
generations. Parents teach their children special recipes
so the food tastes the same as it did many years ago. In
2016, something amazing happened - one chicken rice “At Chinatown Food Centre, recipes are
stall got a Michelin star! This showed the world how passed down from parent to child —
good Singapore’s hawker food is.
every dish is a taste of history, cooked
Even though the building looks old, it is always full of fresh each day.”
life. In the morning, older people come to buy groceries.
At lunchtime, office workers queue for their favourite
dishes. In the evening, families gather to eat together. Du Yixuan
The prices are still affordable so that everyone can enjoy P6.3
the food there. North Spring Primary School

Chinatown Food Centre is more than just a place to eat.
It is where we keep our food traditions alive, where
different generations meet, and where visitors can taste
authentic Singaporean culture. That is why it is so special
to all of us.

Our Hawker Stories 51