“Really took his time to give us context about the places we were eating at and the neighborhoods we were in.”
— Nicolas, 2026
01 Food tours
Original food tours, curated with our local tastemakers to showcase the neighbourhood kitchens, markets and family-run eateries that define Singapore.
02 Meet the tastemakers
The local food experts who help us research, refine and lead every A Chef's Tour.
Hainanese chicken over broth-steamed rice, chilli crab cracked open at the hawker table, laksa katong thick with coconut and belachan, bak kut teh peppery in white broth. Four cuisines — Chinese, Malay, Indian, Peranakan — share the same hawker wok.
04 The pantry
- Belachan, dense fermented shrimp paste at the base of Malay + Peranakan cooking
- Sambal, chilli paste with a hawker's version for every stall
- Gula melaka, dark palm sugar melted into kaya, cendol and Nyonya sweets
- Pandan, screwpine leaves knotted into every rice pot and pandan chiffon cake
- Kecap manis, sweet Indonesian-style soy drizzled over noodles and rice
- Ikan bilis, tiny fried anchovies scattered onto every nasi lemak plate
05 In the kitchen
- Wok-tossing char kway teow over pork-fat flame until it carries the smoke of wok hei
- Simmering laksa broth from a hand-pounded rempah and coconut milk
- Poaching Hainanese chicken in ginger stock then oiling the skin taut
- Grilling satay skewers over open coconut charcoal at hawker stalls
- Stretching and slapping roti prata dough thin on the buttered griddle
06 Eat this first
- Hainanese chicken rice, silky poached bird over rice steamed in the same broth
- Chilli crab, whole mud crab wok-tossed in sweet-tangy sambal, cracked open with mantou to mop the sauce
- Laksa katong, Peranakan coconut-curry noodle bowl with fish cake, cockles and prawns
- Bak kut teh, Teochew peppery pork-rib broth with white rice and dark soy on the side
- Char kway teow, flat rice noodles tossed with cockles, prawn and Chinese sausage over wok fire
Singapore's old-school bakeries worth knowing
They may not be Instagram-worthy, but these have substance over style.
09 Recipes
A collection of authentic recipes we couldn't leave behind.
Silky poached chicken, chicken-fat rice cooked in the poaching broth, dark soy, ginger-scallion and chili sauces. Singapore's most-photographed hawker plate.
Long-simmered white rice porridge, silky as cream, topped with poached chicken, thousand-year egg, soy-fried peanuts, spring onion and a drizzle of sesame oil.
Flat rice noodles wok-fried hard with beef slices, kai lan and dark sweet soy — the Teochew-Chinese Singapore hawker classic.
Fresh crepe wrappers filled with braised turnip, lettuce, prawn, sweet Chinese sausage and a slick of sweet-hot sauce. Peranakan Singapore's party-food centrepiece.
Deep-fried disc of rice-flour batter studded with whole oysters, minced pork and dried shrimp, served with a squeeze of chili sauce. Old Chinatown Singapore's snack.
Cantonese roast pork belly with shattering crackling skin, served on rice with a splash of dark soy, spring onion and chili sauce. Singapore's hawker essential.
10 Field Notes
Quick field notes to help you get accustomed to Singapore.
Weather
Tropical. Hot and humid year-round (26–32°C), with rain possible any day, heavier November to January. The city is fully air-conditioned indoors.
Currency
The Singapore dollar (SGD). Cards accepted almost everywhere including hawker centres. Small cash for older shops and taxis is useful. PayNow is the local mobile payment.
Language
English is the working language. Mandarin, Malay, and Tamil are all official; Singlish (a rich local blend) is the informal glue.
Etiquette
Orderly and safety-conscious. No eating on the MRT, jaywalking is fined, chewing gum is restricted. Bargaining is not the norm in most shops.
Getting around
The MRT is fast, clean, and reaches everywhere. Get an EZ-Link card or use your bank card directly. Buses cover the gaps; taxis and Grab are cheap and easy.
Prayer
Every faith is represented and highly visible. the Sultan Mosque, Sri Mariamman Temple, Kwan Im Thong Hood Cho, and St Andrew's Cathedral all sit within short walking distance of each other.