When I first moved to Singapore over a decade ago, Chinatown was already a tourist hotspot with hawker stalls galore, heritage shops, and the usual street market stalls hawking snacks and trinkets.
Having lived in Singapore for over a decade now, I’ve seen this part of town change. Some might argue it’s also become gentrified, with a boom in local and international brands standing shoulder to shoulder with stalls that have been here for decades. I still visit Chinatown almost every week, and there’s always something new popping up. For first-time visitors, the sheer number of options can be overwhelming.
This is the itinerary I wish someone had handed me back then, one that separates the overhyped from the classic must-visits.
Without further ado, here’s all the best food in Chinatown to try if you only have 12 hours to spare.
As a Sarawak native, I’d be shamed by my own family for saying this, but I actually prefer Singapore laksa over Sarawak laksa. Sarawak laksa leans tangy and herbal, built on a tamarind-based broth infused with sambal belacan and a mix of spices. Singapore laksa, on the other hand, features a thick gravy that’s heavy with coconut milk.
Maybe it’s personal bias, but I’ve always been a sucker for a good coconut broth. It also helps that Famous Sungei Road Trishaw Laksa is listed on the Michelin Guide’s Bib Gourmand, so my loyalty isn’t entirely misplaced.
The stall’s Asia Delight Laksa ($7) is a crowd favourite. It also comes with an upsized option with crayfish for $12 if you’re feeling more indulgent.
Instead of coconut milk, the broth is made from fresh coconut water, simmered for two hours with scallops, dried oysters, and dried prawns. The coconut juice gives it a lighter, more refreshing quality that I’ve genuinely found myself craving on hot mornings. You get a generous amount of fish cakes and cockles thrown in too.
But if there’s one dish to order while you’re here, it has to be the Fruit Juice Mee Siam ($6), which swaps out the usual assam paste for fresh fruit juice in the gravy. Ask the stall owner what fruit juice they actually use, and you’ll get the same answer every time: “secret.”
I’ll admit I was sceptical the first time; it sounded more like a gimmick than anything else. One spoonful in, though, and it clicked: without the tamarind, the gravy turns smoother and loses that sharp, tart aftertaste that can sometimes overwhelm a bowl of mee siam. Even the smallest portion comes with a fair spread of prawns, tau pok, bean sprouts and a hard-boiled egg, and the bee hoon soaks up all that fruity tang remarkably well.
Read our Famous Sungei Road Trishaw Laksa review.
Address: 531A Upper Cross Street, Hong Lim Market & Food Centre, #02-66, Singapore 051531
Opening hours: Mon-Sat 9am to 3pm
Tel: 9750 8326
Famous Sungei Road Trishaw Laksa is not halal-certified.
By midday, I’m usually hungry, and Rise Bakehouse‘s Chinatown outlet fits the bill nicely. It’s tucked inside a conserved shophouse along South Bridge Road, and the moment you step in, you’re greeted by Good Morning tea towels, vintage-looking cabinets, and Peranakan-style motifs dotted throughout the space.
As a cafe girlie, my gripe with most cafes in Singapore is that they’re pretty, but the food doesn’t quite live up to the looks. That’s where Rise Bakehouse differs. My go-to dish is the Soft Shell Chilli Crab Rigatoni ($23.90+), which sees rigatoni tossed in a dry, sweet-spicy chilli crab sauce and topped with a crispy whole soft shell crab.
The easiest way to describe this dish is that it resembles a chilli crab pasta, but with a spice level of one. The sauce is punchy enough to make your lips tingle a little by the last few bites, and it coats every strand of rigatoni generously.
Don’t skip dessert either, since their cakes were what made Rise Bakehouse go viral in the first place. The Kaya Pistachio Cake ($9.20+) is one of the outlet’s signature bakes, which I love for being moist without being overly sweet, with the pistachio adding a subtle nuttiness. If you’re after something with more of a local nostalgia factor, the Chinatown Yuanyang Cake ($8.20+) riffs on the classic Singaporean drink, giving you that familiar bittersweet kopi-teh flavour.
Read our Rise Bakehouse review.
Address: 273 South Bridge Road, Singapore 058822
Opening hours: Sun-Mon, Wed-Thurs 11:30am to 8:30pm, Fri-Sat 11:30am to 10pm
Tel: 8928 9111
Website
Rise Bakehouse is not halal-certified but uses no pork or lard.
NearesTTen‘s three-storey new Chinatown flagship is the perfect place to disappear into for an hour or two. Shelves and racks are stacked with affordable branded finds—think Levi’s and Abercrombie & Fitch—all thoroughly washed and checked before hitting the floor. The store stands firmly behind its promise that everything’s 100% authentic, so there’s no need to worry about counterfeits, and prices mostly hover around $50 and under.
Self-photobooths are all the rage now, and NearesTTen also houses six themed rooms designed by Kyok Studio on the second floor, including one set up like a wet market stall and another with a mahjong table.
The third level features a rooftop cafe serving drinks and ice cream, plus a small Paris love-lock bridge-inspired corner where you can slip your photobooth strips into a keychain and lock them onto the railings—a cute touch if you’re visiting with someone special.
If you’ve still got the energy and budget left to continue shopping after all that, it’s worth swinging by Chinatown’s street markets along Pagoda Street, Trengganu Street, and Smith Street. This is the perfect stretch for those who wish to stock up on souvenirs, traditional snacks, fabrics, and trinkets. It’s a good contrast if you want a taste of what shopping in Chinatown looked like before the trendier stalls moved in.
Address: 57A Pagoda Street, Level 2, Singapore 059216
Opening hours: Daily 12pm to 9pm
Tel: 635 0275
Website
If you’ve got tummy space before dinner, I recommend dropping by Bunnies. While its slightly tacky pink rabbit logo gives off tourist-trap vibes, it’s actually one of the best bakeries in Chinatown I’ve visited for traditional mini buns, priced at just $2.20 for six pieces.
Bunnies’ Butter Sugar is their most popular flavour, and tastes like an old-school sugar doughnut, crunchy on the outside with melted butter inside. Just a heads up, it can get messy, so keep wet wipes on hand!
My favourite, though, is the Sweet Potato bun. You don’t see this flavour often at local bakeries, and Bunnies nails it. The bread’s stretchier than the Butter Sugar bun, and the filling is naturally sweet and smooth, almost like a silky red bean paste.
Beyond the buns, the bakery sells tubs of peanut butter, margarine, and kaya, plus old-school treats such as green bean cake and kueh lapis, if you want something to bring home as a gift.
Read our Bunnies Chinatown coverage.
Address: 1 Park Road, People’s Park Complex, #01-K99, Singapore 059108
Opening Hours: Daily 8am to 9:30pm
Tel: 6536 4113
Website
Bunnies is not halal-certified but uses no pork or lard.
Yum Cha‘s dim sum buffet has been my go-to answer whenever anyone asks where to bring visiting family or friends. Every time I walk into their Chinatown outlet, it feels like stepping into a dim sum restaurant in Hong Kong, right down to the old-school Chinese restaurant interior, but the real draw is the rolling dim sum carts weaving between tables.
These carts make their scheduled appearance during the Dinner Buffet ($30++ per person). Each cart is organised by category: steamed dim sum on one, fried on another, and sides for sharing, so you just flag down whichever has what you’re craving, and it gets served on the spot.
I always go for the Custard Bun with Salted Egg Yolk—you could call it a dessert item, but I always treat it as a starter because of how good it is. The custard inside is thick and viscous, hidden within a pillowy bun, and the balance between sweet and savoury comes through clearly thanks to the generous amount of salted egg yolk in the filling.
Yum Cha is also famed for their pastries, so I recommend getting the Baked Mini Egg Tart. Unlike Portuguese egg tarts, which come with a caramelised, slightly burnt top and a flakier, more buttery crust, these traditional egg tarts feature a sweet custard with a light eggy taste, and a smoother, more delicate pastry shell that’s lighter on the palate.
And of course, it’s a sin not to order the Xiao Long Bao—soup dumplings that burst with juices in every bite. I also appreciate that their meat filling carries little pockets of fat for extra richness.
Read our Yum Cha review.
Address: 20 Trengganu Street, #02-01, Singapore 058479
Opening hours: Mon-Fri 10:30am to 9pm, Sat-Sun 9am to 9pm
Tel: 6372 1717
Website
Yum Cha is not halal-certified.
There’s no better way to end a day off in Chinatown than heading to a traditional Chinese dessert shop. There are plenty, but the OG is Mei Heong Yuen, a dessert shop that’s been around since 2002 and is recognised as one of Chinatown’s official Heritage Brands.
It can get pretty crowded, especially after dinnertime, but I believe good things come to those who wait. Walking into Mei Heong Yuen’s Temple Street flagship truly feels like I’ve stepped back in time with its old-school wooden furnishings, plastic stools, and vintage signage out front. A quick reminder to bring cash or have PayNow ready, since that’s all they accept.
The Cheng Tng ($4) is an item you can’t skip here, packed with lotus seeds, longan, barley, white fungus, and dried longan. It’s a touch sweeter than I’d personally like, but if you’ve got a sweet tooth, this one’s right up your alley. If I’m craving something creamy, I’d usually order the Almond Black Glutinous Rice ($4.50) as I’m a huge fan of their paste—it’s thick, smooth, and pleasantly nutty with a faint cherry-like note.
Another personal favourite is the unique Mango Roll ($5). This gets you thick mango slices wrapped in silky coconut meat, kind of like a mango burrito.
Read our Mei Heong Yuen review
Address: 63-67 Temple Street, #63-67, Singapore 058611
Opening hours: Tue-Sun 12pm to 9:30pm
Tel: 6221 1156
Website
Mei Heong Yuen Dessert is not halal-certified.
And that’s 12 hours in Chinatown done right, at least by my standards! There’s always more ground to cover in this part of Singapore, but this loop hits the essentials for first-time tourists visiting Chinatown.
If you’ve got more days to spare, our Chinatown food guide has plenty more to explore, from cheap hawker gems to heritage bakeries and hidden cafes. And if you’re crossing the border to Johor Bahru for a quick stop, check out our JB food itinerary too, packed with cafe and hawker recommendations of its own.
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