Singapore Reinvests in its Famed Food Hawker Centers

SINGAPORE—It’s lunchtime at the Ghim Moh hawker center, and scents of wonton noodles, mutton biryani, and other Chinese, Malaysian, and Indian fare hang in the hot and sticky air. Lines have formed at the most popular stalls, and the tables between the rows of eateries are filling up. “What you want?” calls out a hawker in Singlish—Singaporean English, an often abbreviated form of the American or British tongue—and I order the beef hor fun, stir-fried beef with flat noodles, bean sprouts, and greens. It’s delicious, and it costs little more than $3.

The Ghim Moh center is one of 112 hawker centers on the island city-state; each features dozens of food and drink stalls, many of which pay subsidized rent to the government and consequently sell inexpensive food. In October, Singapore’s government announced that it will construct ten new centers over the next decade—26 years after it built the last one. In doing so, it’s continuing an urban innovation that aids the poor and provides a space for cultures—and classes—to mix.