Singapore Restaurants

Food of Singapore

The national pastime of the people of Singapore is eating! From Michelin-starred restaurants to cheap hawker centres, Singaporeans are obsessive gourmands who love to makan ("eat" in Malay). Being a true cosmopolitan, the cuisine of the Lion City is one of the world's most diverse and piquant. Hawker centres, coffee shops (kopitiams) and food court dominate the scene, serving palatable food at pocket-friendly prices. For the lovers of luxury, there is no dearth of celebrated restaurants in Singapore. One will find quality Chinese, Malay, Indian, Japanese, Thai, Italian, French, American and other food in this city-state.

The most identifiable cuisine in Singapore is Peranakan or Nonya cuisine, a unique fusion of Chinese and Malay cooking styles prepared by the Peranakan community. Chilli crab; Satay with peanut sauce, onions and cucumber; Katong laksa (white noodles in a creamy, immensely rich coconut-based curry broth, topped with cockles or shrimp) with chilli paste and chopped laksa leaf in a spoon are some of the most popular local delicacies of Singapore.

Read more about must-try food in Singapore

Vegetarian Food in Singapore
For the best vegetarian food, head to Little India. The food stalls and hawker centres teeming the area offer decent vegetarian options. However, while ordering vegetarian food (anywhere in Singapore), be specific about the preferences (say "no meat, no seafood"). This is because the interpretation of vegetarian food varies at places with prawn and chicken served as vegetarian at some food stalls.

Food for Indians in Singapore

Indian food in Singapore is available in abundance and that too at quite an affordable price. Especially if you are visiting Little India, it is lined up with great options ranging from street food to casual and posh restaurants. South Indian food like idli, dosa, vada as well as North Indian is served at almost all the eating joints in Little India. Other than Indian vegetarian dishes, one can also go for vegetarian delicacies in other cuisines such as Chinese, Middle East, and European located within and outside Little India. Few restaurants and eating joints (Kailash Parbat, Namastaey India, Annalakshmi Janantha) serve delicious Jain food as well. Some of the Singaporean vegetarian dishes are noodles with tofu, orange carrot soup, white curry jackfruit and sweet eggplant stew. The Indian style street food costs around SGD 6 and overall it costs SGD 8 - 9 per meal. However, the casual restaurants cost around SGD 20 and after that, there is no limit.