Singapore is the food city against which other food cities should be measured. Four serious cuisines (Chinese, Malay, Indian, Peranakan) layered on top of each other in 280 square miles, hawker centres that have produced two Michelin-starred stalls, and a national obsession with eating that means literally every Singaporean you meet will give you opinions on the best chicken rice. Forty-eight hours is too short. Forty-eight hours is also enough to do real damage.
Friday morning: Where to eat breakfast in Singapore
Mr and Mrs Mohgan's Super Crispy Roti Prata in Joo Chiat. The institution since 1965. Roti kosong (plain) with a side of curry, $1.20/piece, and the egg and cheese version. Wash down with a teh tarik (pulled milk tea, $1.50). They open at 6am and run out by 11. Total breakfast: $8 for two.
Mid-morning kopi at any kopitiam. The order: kopi-c (coffee with evaporated milk and sugar), kaya toast (two thin slices with coconut jam and cold butter), and two soft-boiled eggs over which you crack salt and white pepper. The institution is Killiney Kopitiam, founded 1919. $5.50 for the set. This is the Singapore breakfast ritual you'll want every day for the rest of your life.
Friday lunch: What is the best chicken rice in Singapore?
Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice at Maxwell Food Centre. The place Anthony Bourdain ate at and never stopped talking about. Yes, you queue. Yes, the queue moves. The chicken comes poached, the rice is cooked in chicken stock and ginger, the chilli sauce on the side is the secret weapon. $5 a plate. Also try Zhen Zhen Porridge for the cheapest, best congee in the city ($3.50).
Friday evening: Where to eat chilli crab in Singapore
Newton Food Centre for chilli crab. The drill: order the crab to share, get the mantou buns (steamed bread, perfect for soaking up sauce), wash with Tiger beer. Around $80 between two for a Sri Lankan crab and the buns. Singapore at full volume. Alternative: black pepper crab, which is the locals' choice over chilli.
Pre-dinner cocktails at Kakure, a hidden Japanese cocktail bar in a colonial bungalow on Scotts Road (ring the bell, $28 cocktails, the kohaku-ume shochu cocktail with Japanese plum-bath was the best cocktail of 2025).
Saturday morning: Best nasi lemak in Singapore
Selera Rasa Nasi Lemak at Adam Road Food Centre. Coconut rice, fried chicken wing, sambal, ikan bilis (crispy anchovies), egg, cucumber. $5.50. The queue at 8am is twenty minutes. Worth it.
Mid-morning: Tanuki Raw in Orchard Road for the Truffle Yakimeshi ($24, rice with shaved black truffle and butter, more luxurious than it should be at lunch).
Saturday lunch: What should I eat at Old Airport Road?
Old Airport Road Food Centre is the centre serious eaters call the best in the city. Nam Sing Hokkien Mee (yellow fried noodles, prawns, pork, charred edges, $5) and Lao Ban Soya Beancurd ($1.50, silky, cold, perfect).
Saturday dinner: Fine dining in Singapore
Singapore's serious scene: Zen (3-Michelin, $400/person, the Sasayama beef course), Burnt Ends (1-Michelin Australian, the wagyu sandwich), Restaurant Fiz (1-Michelin SE Asian, $250/person).
We did Zen for Friday. Saturday was Beo Crescent Curry Rice in Tiong Bahru: $6 a plate, old-school curry rice institution. The contrast was the point.
The Singapore food ranking
| 1 | $5 |
| 2 | $40/person |
| 3 | $24 |
| 4 | $5.50 |
| 5 | $5 |
| 6 | $1.20/piece |
| 7 | $1.50 |
| 8 | $28 |
| 9 | $6 |
| 10 | $5.50 |
Budget version (skip Zen and cocktail bars): $250 between two for 48 hours. With Zen: $700.
Frequently asked questions
Two months minimum. Same for Burnt Ends and Restaurant Fiz.
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