Maxwell Food Centre

Devout foodies flock to the hawker stands in Singapore, one of the world’s cleanest cities. Check out the tasty Hainanese Chicken Rice at the famous Maxwell Food Centre; you’ll want to find the Tian Tian stall. Explore the other stands and salivate over the combination of Malay, Chinese, Indian, and European flavors with such items as barbecue pork, steamed pork buns, fish cakes, and Hokkien mee (seafood pasta infused with special flavors). —Susan Sparks This appeared in the August/September 2013 issue.

Escape the heat and come into this massive semi-inside building housing kiosks serving delicious and cheap food. Each stall specializes in a few dishes. Try the chicken rice, maybe one of the greatest dishes ever made, and wash it down with a ice cold lime juice. Just don’t be surprised if a local comes over to show you the best way to eat it. When in doubt get in the longest line and eat what the locals are having. A must do in Singapore.

You can easily knock off half of the things on most Singapore-must-eat lists at Maxwell Food Centre. This very popular hawker centre is easily one of Singapore’s most well known and popular among tourists and locals alike. One of the main attractions at Maxwell is Tian Tian’s Hainanese chicken rice, which many say is one of the best Hainanese chicken rice in Singapore. Other popular Singaporean dishes include rojak, carrot cake, banana fritters, sugar cane juice, etc. All the dishes are delicious and cheap. Finding a table might be difficult, so your best bet is just to find a family that looks like they’re about done and stake it out. Sharing tables with strangers is also a good way to see what the locals are eating.