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Heritage of Our Hawker Centres

The National Environment Agency and the National Heritage Board have embarked on a joint project to conduct research on 12 selected hawker centres. The research covers the heritage and architecture of the hawker centres, as well as the social significance in relation to their neighbourhoods.

Look out for heritage boards at the following hawker centres to find out more! For more detailed information, visit https://www.roots.gov.sg/stories-landing/stories/Hawker-Centres/singapore-hawker-centres.

Did you know...

Adam Food Centre was a popular lunch stop in the 1980s for policemen on patrol, students from nearby schools, and hired drivers on duty.

Blocks 2 & 3 Changi Village Road was built as part of the redevelopment of Changi Village estate after the departure of the British military.

Chinatown Complex Market was built in 1981 to house the last of Chinatown’s street hawkers. With around 700 stalls, it is Singapore’s largest hawker centre and market today.

Chomp Chomp Food Centre opened in 1972 and its unique name is an English adaptation of the older Teochew name Tiong Tiong, meaning “loyalty and righteousness”.

East Coast Lagoon Food Village was built on reclaimed land and opened as a hawker centre in 1978 to complement the beach-front activities of Singapore’s largest seaside resort.

Geylang Serai Market was opened in 1964 by then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew. Rebuilt in 2009, its architecture is inspired by the Malay community’s cultural heritage.

Maxwell Food Centre was one of the sites for the former Singapore Social Welfare Department’s initiative to provide cheap meals for the poor and the displaced after World War II.

Newton Food Centre was Singapore’s first hawker centre designed and built with a garden setting that complemented Singapore’s “garden city” image.

Block 51 Old Airport Road was considered a modern hawker centre with the latest architectural designs when it was completed in 1973. Its large flat-roofed structures mirror the flat tops of the apartment blocks from the surrounding housing estate.

People’s Park Food Centre started as a hawker shelter in 1923 at a public park near Pearl’s Hill. By 1940, it had become Singapore’s largest fresh produce and fruits market.

Tekka Market, built in 1915, was also known as Kandang Kerbau Market. The name, Kandang Kerbau, means “buffalo enclosure” in Malay, referring to the area’s cattle trade. The Chinese called it tek kah because of the wild bamboo found in the area.

Tiong Bahru Market opened in 1951 as Seng Poh Road Market. The old market also functioned like a town centre for public meetings and political rallies.

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Heritage of Our Hawker Centres