Where to Eat in Singapore: My 13 Favorite Foodie Spots

Is Singapore as expensive as what you saw on Crazy Rich Asians? Yes and no.

While the fanciest meals in Singapore can cost over $200 per person, you can also get Michelin-approved food here for less than ten dollars at hawker stalls.

Apart from the fancy Coconut Club, I didn’t plan any of my meals for this half-month trip to Singapore. I left most of them to improvisation, so I could go chasing local spots and ask the locals where they like to eat.

Among the spots I became obsessed with are LiXin Fishball Noodles, Janggut Laksa, Ji Ji Wanton Noodle, and the fancy chicken rice place, Chatterbox.

If you’ve been wondering where to eat in Singapore, but you don’t want to follow the herd on the internet and end up looking like a basic tourist, you’ve come to the right place. Keep scrolling.

I had to go on a serious diet after this trip, so trust me when I tell you that the time I spent hunting food had to be worth the ruin.

Local Places to Eat in Singapore

The list you’re about to read is made up of two separate vetting processes.

• My pre-trip research for what the foodie travelers thought was good, and
• A rigorous hunt for places where locals lined up for (or recommendations I got from local friends).

As I usually do with my lists of best restaurants, the famous ones are out unless they really knock my socks off with their food. You’ll find a few of those later down this list.

Jump to these categories: Breakfast, Hawker Stalls, Mid-Range Restaurants, High-End Restaurants

Breakfast Spots in Singapore

There are a handful of breakfast foods in Singapore, depending on which community you’re in. Roti Prata is one, Fried Carrot Cake is another, and Congee is a classic.

The most popular option, and most unique to Singapore, seems to be the Kaya Toasts. They’re toasts eaten with butter and the local “kaya” paste, made of coconut, palm sugar, and pandan.

1. Ya Kun Kaya Toast

• Price Range: S$5-7
• Opening Hours: 7:30 AM – 9:00 PM (Some branches open at 8 AM.)
• Location: Multiple branches
• Must-try: Kaya Toast with Butter (Set A)

This is my absolute favorite spot to get breakfast. During the 15 days I spent in Singapore, I had breakfast here 12 times. I know, insane, but I was addicted.

Their bread has this perfect toasty smell with a crispier texture than the kaya toasts you get at other places. I can’t put a finger on what bread it is, but you won’t get the same thing at Toast Box, Fun Toast, or Nanyang.

Try the traditional kaya toast with butter first, but their butter sugar toast is delicious as well.

Each set comes with two poached eggs. Grab a dark sauce and pepper from the counter and put some on the eggs. Yum!

2. Nanyang Old Coffee

• Price Range: S$7-14
• Opening Hours: 7:00 AM – 6:30 PM
• Location: 268 South Bridge Rd, Singapore 058817
• Must-try: Hot Coffee, Toast & Egg Set

For a less “pop” and more traditional vibe to accompany your Singaporean breakfast, Nanyang Old Coffee is another great spot.

Granted, their toasts are not the unique, toasty-tasting ones like at Ya Kun, but they’re delicious as well.

If you want to try many traditional snacks with your breakfast, the snacks set comes with eggs, smaller toast, and small bites of Kuehs and Chee Cheong Fun.

A few other branches exist, but I’ve only been to this one in Chinatown.

Hawker Center Stalls I Love

Hawkers are street food vendors who sell only a few menus that they’ve perfected.

It took me a hot second to realize that they’re similar to peddlers, only that they may go about the streets with a cart or vehicle instead of carrying smaller baskets to sell food.

In the 1960s, the Singaporean government relocated hawkers into buildings, constructed specifically to house the street food stalls, in an effort to improve public health and keep the streets cleaner.

So there you have it. The famous hawker centers are simply where you get “street food” in Singapore. Also, only cash is accepted at these stalls.

3. LiXin Teochew Fishball Noodles

• Price Range: S$6-10
• Opening Hours: 9:30 AM – 9:30 PM
• Location: 18 Raffles Quay, Singapore 048582 (Stalls 32-33)
• Must-try: Fishball Noodle (dry)

How do I even start to explain this… I was walking around Lau Pa Sat to see why it’s so popular, and approached this place because it had a Michelin logo (Hah).

The basic fishball noodle, if you order it dry, comes with a spicy sauce so delicious that you’ll just end up slurping the whole bowl in a few minutes.

Ah, the bouncy, super-smooth fishballs come separately in a bowl of steaming hot soup.

Growing up where there are fishball noodles, too, I wasn’t expecting any fishball noodles to excite me so much. But this place…

Please don’t skip it. You have to try, or you’ll never know what I’m talking about.

4. Thunder Tea Rice x Thunder Spize

• Price Range: S$7-10
• Opening Hours: 10:00 AM – 10:00 PM
• Location: Raffles Quay, Stall #25 18, Singapore 048582
• Must-try: Thunder Tea Rice

I could say that Thunder Tea Rice was my favorite food in Singapore.

We’re not gonna talk about the fact that it’s the food of my ancestors (I’m 1/4 Hakka, see…), but even though I usually prefer spicy food, this was the grand exception.

Stall no. 25 at Lau Pa Sat sells a variety of Thunder Tea Rice and spicy Sambal dishes. I loved sitting right by the counter and smelling all the food they’re making as I devoured mine.

There’s another stall in Chinatown that sells Thunder Tea Rice, but it closes at 3 PM and is not open on weekends. I prefer this one because I can get a bowl whenever I want, all the way to 10 PM.

5. Ah Heng Curry Chicken Bee Hoon Mee

• Price Range: S$7-9
• Opening Hours: 8:45 AM – 9:00 PM
• Location: 531A Upper Cross St, #02-58/59, Singapore 051531
• Must-try: Curry Chicken Mee with yellow noodles

Located in the less touristy side of Chinatown, Ah Heng, on the second floor of Hong Lim Market, sells delicious Curry Chicken Noodles.

I owe thanks to a good Singaporean friend of mine who introduced me to this menu and this stall.

The stall sells Curry Chicken Mee and nothing else, but that’s how you know someone’s amazing at what they do, right? You get to choose between a few types of noodles, though, and I loved it with the yellow noodles the most.

Have I mentioned? This is another Michelin stall. Where else would you pay less than ten bucks for a Michelin meal, if not in Singapore? Am I right or am I right?

6. Ji Ji Wanton Noodle

• Price Range: S$5-9
• Opening Hours: 9:30 AM – 3:00 PM, 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM
• Location: 531A Upper Cross St, #02-48/49, Singapore 051531
• Must-try: Char Siew Wanton Noodle (dry)

There’s one of these in every city you go to.

A long line of locals waiting to get food at a restaurant or a street stall, and you wonder, “Hell… How good must that place be?” and then you hop on the waiting train (or not).

This is another stall inside Hong Lim Market that I got to try, thanks to my local friend (who also told me to sit while she stood in line for 3 years 😭).

Again, because I grew up where wanton noodles run rampant, I was curious to see how I’d feel with this one.

Friend, you need to get a dry signature bowl here ASAP. The aromatic, crispy lard mixed with Bok Choy, pork, and perfectly-cooked yellow noodles is just… *chef’s kiss*

Yes, this one’s also a Michelin stall.

7. Janggut Laksa

• Price Range: S$5-7
• Opening Hours: 10:30 AM – 4:30 PM
• Location: 50 E Coast Rd, #01-64 Roxy Square, Singapore 428769

Here’s another stall that literally sells one thing and has spent 50 years perfecting the recipe. There are three sizes of Laksa to choose from. I got a small, and I think a medium would’ve been perfect.

Janggut Laksa’s brand signature is the use of cut noodles (Italians would cry, but at least it’s not pasta) and freshly-made coconut milk in their soup.

It leans sweeter than what I had at other places, but that fresh coconut-y aroma was hard to beat, and the spiciness helped balance it out.

This branch of Janggut Laksa is part of a coffee shop with a few other vendors.

The stall next to them sells the best kopi (traditional coffee) I’ve had in Singapore to date, so get one to enjoy with your Laksa.

Mid-Range Local Restaurants in Singapore

When I call the following sit-in restaurants “mid-range,” I mean that they might feel a bit pricey if you’re used to cheaper food in Asia.

If you’re visiting from the US, however, they’ll feel totally manageable. So they’re technically mid-range, aren’t they? Not too expensive, but not cheap either.

8. Ng Ah Sio Bak Kut Teh

• Price Range: S$8-20
• Opening Hours: 9:00 AM – 10:00 PM
• Location: 6 Eu Tong Sen St, #01-07, Singapore 059817
• Must-try: Bak Kut Teh, Braised Pig’s Skin, Chrysanthemum Tea

Bak Kut Teh here is basically heaven in a bowl, just the perfect ratio of saltiness and peppery aroma.

I got to have it here as my very first meal in Singapore, thanks to this food tour I took on my first night, so I could be a bit biased.

But then I went back a few more times, and it still tasted as good as it did on the tour.

Their braised pig’s skin was perfectly chewy and delicious as well. Have it on the side of your rice and Bak Kut Teh. I recommend closing it off with a pot of steaming hot Chrysanthemum Tea.

9. Guan Hoe Soon

• Price Range: S$20-40
• Opening Hours: 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM, 5:30 PM – 9:30 PM
• Location: 200 Joo Chiat Rd, #01-01, Singapore 427471
• Must-try: Babi Asam Pedas, Chap Chye

This is an important one to list for a few reasons. First, Peranakan food is usually cooked at home for family members, so it’s hard to find Peranakan cuisine in restaurants.

Second, this particular Peranakan restaurant is the oldest in the country, operating since 1953.

Their mission is to preserve the flavors of home-cooked Peranakan meals, and for customers to enjoy them with their family and friends.

What stood out to me the most was their Babi Asam Pedas, a spicy stir-fried pork dish.

The flavors hit me like a train, and as the masochistic Thai person that I am, I loved it. Having a milder dish like Chap Chye to balance things out is a good idea.

10. Quentin’s Eurasian Restaurant

• Price Range: S$15-40
• Opening Hours: 11:30 AM – 2:30 PM, 5:30 PM – 9:30 PM
• Location: 139 Ceylon Rd, Level 1 Eurasian Heritage Gallery, Singapore 429744
• Must-try: Corned Beef Fried Rice

I didn’t plan to have a meal at Quentin’s. I got lazy after seeing the Eurasian Heritage Gallery, so I decided to have lunch right there in the same building.

It was my first and only Eurasian meal in Singapore, too.

Their corned beef fried rice tasted like a home-cooked dinner on a stormy winter night, if that makes sense. It was so cozy and so well-seasoned.

Not to mention how well it paired with the shrimp crackers and spicy sauce, the restaurant’s complimentary appetizer.

High-End Dining Options in Singapore

Don’t worry, I didn’t include the S$200+ option on the list. I wasn’t mentally ready to pay that much for a meal. I may once or twice on my future trips, though.

The price tags on the last few places feel similar to having a non-budget meal in a big city in the US. While they’re not “fine dining” level crazy, eating there too often could leave you going home half-broke.

But do the taste and curation account for the higher prices at these restaurants? Yes. Yes, they do.

11. The Coconut Club

• Price Range: S$40+
• Opening Hours: 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM, 5:00 PM – 10:30 PM (Closed on Mondays)
• Location: 269 Beach Rd, Singapore 199546
• Must-try: Seafood Laksa, Kueh Bingka

Is paying S$26 for a bowl of Laksa a good idea when you have places like Janggut Laksa that sell an equally delicious one for S$5?

If you want the vibe and service along with it, then it doesn’t hurt to do it once, wouldn’t you agree?

I actually read from somewhere that they make amazing Laksa here, so I went just for the Laksa, while completely ignoring the “Signature Nasi Lemak” section.

The Laksa was worth the hype! The rounder, less sweet spin on the original Laksa was soul-warming. Kueh Bingka (Tapioca Cake) with ice cream was the perfect way to close out the course.

I recommend reserving your table in advance. I don’t think I would’ve gotten in if I didn’t. There’s also a minimum required spending of S$40 per person if you decide to book a table.

12. Chatterbox

• Price Range: S$25-50
• Opening Hours: 11:30 AM – 4:30 PM, 5:30 PM – 10:30 PM
• Location: 333 Orchard Rd, #05-03 Hilton, Singapore 238867
• Must-try: Heritage Set Meal

If a day comes when I’m ridiculously rich and have tried all the other restaurants in Singapore, I’d love to eat at Chatterbox for maybe five days straight.

How it isn’t included in the Michelin Guide is beyond me.

It’s just chicken rice, sure, but the Heritage Set Meal isn’t just chicken rice. The curation of their appetizers and the presentation on a dish as simple as chicken rice was divine.

I won’t talk about the coconut milk ice cream. You really have to go and try it yourself.

Oh, and yes, the chicken rice was insanely delicious. Worth every penny.

13. Bonding Kitchen

• Price Range: S$30-50
• Opening Hours: 11:30 AM -9:30 PM
• Location: 277 Orchard Rd, #02-18 Orchard, Singapore 238858
• Must-try: Kueh Pie Tee, Sambal Bendi, Gula Melaka Panna Cotta

While Guan Hoe Soon takes the trophy for being the oldest Peranakan restaurant in Singapore, I secretly love Bonding Kitchen a bit more.

It might just be a personal taste, so don’t take this to heart.

Unlike Guan Hoe Soon, this place takes the Peranakan concept of home-cooked meals and turns it into a classy, modern space where the cozy flavors still thrive.

If you think I’m exaggerating, go and order their signature Kueh Pie Tee set and tell me that’s not freakin’ yummy.

I also just wanted to swim in the Gula Melaka Panna Cotta. Make sure you get that!

Honorable Mention: True Blue

• Price Range: S$30-85
• Opening Hours: 11:30 AM – 2:30 PM, 5:30 PM – 9:30 PM
• Location: 47/49 Armenian St, Singapore 179937

This is another place I found by accident because I wasn’t on a hunt for Michelin places.

I found it on my walk to the Peranakan Museum, and realized that this beautiful little shophouse is a restaurant. And a Michelin one.

It isn’t on the proper list of my recommended restaurants for a few reasons.

I think it’s overpriced without any presentation added to the dishes. A soup is a soup, a stir-fried dish is just a stir-fried dish, if you know what I mean.

They also don’t serve pork, which makes them Halal-friendly, but not cooking with pork is considered blasphemous in Peranakan cuisine.

As my food guide told me very early on, “If a Peranakan place tells you they don’t serve pork, it’s not authentic.”

That said, the heavenly Nyonya Achar and Pulut Hitam I had at True Blue, I haven’t found any other place that could top them. Hence, the honorable mention.

Average Cost of Dining in Singapore

Singapore is strange. It is in Southeast Asia, and you get the same cozy street food culture at hawker centers. But it also has a luxurious side that reminds you, “Ah, I’m in a developed country.”

This interesting contrast, you’ll see in the wide range of prices you’re expected to pay for a meal, depending on where you eat. Below is a quick breakdown of dining costs per person.

• Hawker Stalls: S$5-10
• Regular Restaurants: S$10-40
• High-End Dining: S$40-200+

Even among high-end restaurants, the divide exists. While you can expect to pay somewhere around S$50-60 for a massively satisfying meal at Chatterbox, a tasting menu at Labyrinth costs S$200+

So… It’s definitely a great idea to plan where you want to eat first, and then calculate your budget.

Want to Try a Lot at Once? Join This Food Tour!

I went on this food tour in my first week in Singapore. Although it won’t take you to a lot of the places I mentioned on this list, you’ll get to learn so much about the dishes and cultures.

Want more information? Read my full review of the tour!

Interested in coffee and desserts, too? I have my list of top cafe picks as well!

Check out my Singapore Cultural Travel page for more ideas you can use!

Resources For Your Trip to Singapore

Below are some of the resources to help you get ready for your time in Singapore.

Don’t forget to check your visa requirements, and fill out the Digital Arrival Card no more than 3 days before you land.

Read up on the local laws and my top travel tips before you get there, and a bit about how to get around as well.

• Get your trip covered with Safety Wing Insurance
• Stay connected in Singapore with this eSIM
• Must-have Apps: Grab, City Mapper

Find a Place to Stay in Singapore

Still looking for somewhere to stay? Read my guide on the most convenient neighborhoods to stay in and use the map below to find the best hotel for you!

Grab My Singapore E-Checklist

To make sure you don’t leave anything important out of your preparations, I’ve made a digital checklist to help you get ready. I leave 2 pages blank for you to customize your own checklist, too!

FAQs About Eating Out in Singapore

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