Eating at the Hawker Market

Noodles? Rice? Bread? How spicy?

People are traveling again. Some of you might end up in Malaysia or Singapore in the coming year. Where is the best place to eat? In the Hawker Markets, of course. You will find them on the ground floor of most of the housing centers or in multi-stories buildings in the business areas of the town. Just ask around.

What is a hawker market? The term hawker originated with early migrants to the area who would cook and sell on sidewalks or where they could find space to cook and sell. Gradually, these have come together in hawker market centers where the people have their own stalls where they cook and sell each day.

Everyone eats at the hawker stalls. When we lived in Malaysia and Singapore, we regularly ate at the stalls because the food was delicious, everyone could choose what they wanted to eat, and the price was reasonable.

When we were in Singapore last June, our friends Pat and KL took us to the stalls that were their current favorites. What fun to be back sampling hawker food again with them.

Don’t be shy or reluctant to try something new. How do you know what food is available in the market? You can read the signs above the windows of each stall area. Walk around looking at the choices and deciding what you want to eat. There will be loads of choices with various styles of noodles and others with rice/meat/veggie combinations. Then step up to the stall window to purchase and receive your food.

You may have a short wait while they cook your food, but it won’t be long. The fact you may have to wait while they cook your food is another reason why they are good places to eat. It is quickly cooked with fresh ingredients while you wait.

If you’ve never eaten in these stalls before how do you know what is the best food to eat? As Linda Ng said in one of her stories, look for lines of people. A long line usually means the local people have decided that a stall has the best food and they are willing to line up to get it. Otherwise, just stop to smell the aromas and view the samples other people are buying. What appeals to you?

Where do you eat? The large open area in the market has tables and chairs for people to sit alone or in groups. You can rearrange the chairs as you need them as long as you tidy up the area and restack the chairs before you leave.

You can also ask that the food be packaged to carry home to eat. We sometimes did when we were visiting with Pat and KL.

We are currently living in St. Pete, Florida. Guess what one of our favorite restaurants is here? It is Hawker’s, and yes, it has typical food that might be sold in a hawker stall in Singapore or Malaysia. They cook Asian style too. Yesterday they cooked and brought my bowl of noodles to the table and then went back to cook Gerad’s bowl of noodles because each bowl is freshly cooked for each person. Deliciousness in a bowl.