Maxwell Food Centre Guide: Hawker Stalls to Try at One of the Most Popular Hawker Centres in Singapore!

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This article is part of the Singapore Food Trip 2024 series Check out the installments in this series: Maxwell Food Centre (Hawker Centre) | Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice

You can’t do a Singapore food trip without visiting a Hawker Centre!

Hawker centres are open-air complexes of hawker (vendor) stalls offering affordable food (compared to airconditioned food courts or restaurants). Here, you can find a wide variety of food, from classic Singaporean dishes such as chicken rice, fish ball soup, and hokkien mee, to international cuisines such as Japanese and Western food.

One of the popular hawker centers (or maybe even the most popular one for tourists due to Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice) is Maxwell Food Centre.

Maxwell Food Centre is one of the hawker centres located in Singapore’s Chinatown. It used to be a wet market (called Maxwell Market) until it transformed into a hawker centre in 1987. Today, it is home to many hawker stalls that feed people from different walks of life.

Here are some stalls that we’ve tried and recommend:

Ah Tai Hainanese Chicken Rice

Hainanese Chicken Rice (or simply “Chicken Rice”) is accepted as the national dish of Singapore. It has 3 main components: The chicken (which is boiled), the rice (which is cooked using the chicken stock), and the soup (which is also the stock). It’s usually served with 3 dips: Chili sauce, ginger puree, and a soy-based sauce.

While Tian Tian (more on this later!) is the reigning king in Maxwell Food Centre, a worthy alternative is Ah Tai. Funnily, its namesake owner is formerly the head chef at Tian Tian!

So how does Ah Tai compare to its competition? I think their chicken is more tender and its sauce saltier than Tian Tian. The rice is okay (Tian Tian is better), and the soup is on the plain side.

Hainanese Chicken Rice (SGD5/6/7; Set: SGD6/8)

But if you want to skip the queue and want the best bang for your buck (you can get a set with vegetables for as low as SGD6), then go for Ah Tai.

Stall No.: #01-07 | Operating Hours: Wednesday-Monday, 11AM-7:30PM | Facebook

Alimama Green Chilli Chicken Rice & Prawn Noodle

Alimama, as its name suggests, is known for its Green Chilli Chicken Rice and Prawn Noodles, as well as other Indonesian dishes. Since I’m allergic to the latter, I tried the former.

The chicken, if I remember correctly, is fried. It’s also moist and tender, and has strong turmeric taste. The chili is salty and spicy.

It comes with vegetables on the side, which is cooked in coconut and is on the spicy side.

Stall No.: #01-09 | Operating Hours: Daily, 11AM-8:30PM

Coffee Queen

Hawker centres always have stalls dedicated for beverages. There are several in Maxwell, in which Coffee Queen is one.

Coffee Queen specializes in Singaporean drinks, such as Kopi (local style coffee), Teh (pulled milk tea), and Yuan Yang (mix of coffee and tea). I tried their Iced Coffee, which is so refreshing in the Singapore heat.

Stall No.: #01-88 | Operating Hours: TBA

Fortune Popiah

Popiah is the Teochew (a Chinese ethnic group in Singapore) version of a fresh spring roll. It’s similar to the Filipino-Chinese lumpia, which is nice with a thick sweet sauce made with brown sugar and soy sauce. You can try this at Maxwell’s Fortune Popiah.

But we weren’t able to try it there because we ordered another dish—Kueh Pie Tee, a Peranakan (Chinese-Malay) dish made with a crispy shell formed like a cup and filled with Chinese turnips, among many others ingredients.

Next time, we’ll try their popiah!

Stall No.: #01-101 | Operating Hours: Daily, 8AM-7PM

Fu Shun Shao La Mian Jia

Fu Shun Shao La Mian Jia serves Cantonese roast meats. We tried their Mixed Duck Noodle, which has Char Siu (Cantonese barbecue pork), Roast Pork, and, of course, Roast Duck.

While the char siu is fatty and tender, the roast pork is underwhelming. But the roast duck is one of the most tender ducks I’ve ever had! It’s perfect with the springy noodles.

Stall No.: #01-71 | Operating Hours: Daily, 11:30AM (When I researched its closing time, different sources offer different times. So just come earlier.)

Hu Ru Beverages

Sugarcane Juice with Lemon is my staple drink whenever I’m at a hawker centre. You can try this at Hu Ru Beverages, which sells fresh fruit juices and other Singaporean drinks such as Barley and Bandung (Rose).

Stall No.: #01-71 | Operating Hours: Daily, 24 hours

Maxwell Fuzhou Oyster Cake

This stall serves traditional Oyster Cakes are made with rice-based batter filled with oysters, prawns, minced pork, and coriander. Then it’s shaped like a flying saucer, deep-fried, and topped with a peanut or two.

It’s crisp outside while soft and juicy inside. I like the coriander flavor, and it’s good to be dipped in sweet chili sauce.

Stall No.: #01-05 | Operating Hours: Monday-Saturday, 9AM-8PM

Mr. Appam

Appam is a South Indian/Sri Lankan snack made from fermented rice batter and coconut milk. Interestingly, Mr. Appam is helmed by a Vietnamese auntie!

Its owner, Nguyen Thi Kieu Kanh, initially wanted the sell Vietnamese food. However, she mistakenly won the bid for the stall and couldn’t change the stall’s assigned cuisine. But determined, she learned how to make appams. What a pivot!

Anyway, I tried the Original Appam. It has a crisp edge and a dense middle. As expected, it has a sour, fermented taste. But it’s balanced by the coconut cream and sugar on the side.

Mr. Appam also offers modern twists, such as Chocolate Appam and even Durian Appam. I’ll be trying them when I return!

Stall No.: #01-99 | Operating Hours: Wednesday-Monday, 9AM-8PM

Nyonya Chendol

Chendol (also spelled as Cendol or Chendul) is a shaved ice dessert popular in Malaysia and Singapore. It’s usually composed of worm-like green pandan(screwpine) jellies, red beans, coconut milk, and gula melaka (palm sugar) syrup. Some varieties even have durian on it.

My favorite chendol hawker is Nyonya Chendol, which is a chain present in many hawker centres across Singapore. To me, their version has the right creaminess and sweetness.

Stall No.: #01-02 | Operating Hours: Wednesday-Monday, 10AM-9PM

Sisaket Thai Food

Eat Thai food in Singapore? Why not?!

This stall is helmed by a Thai auntie so you know that food is authentic. We tried their Basil Beef with Rice (or Beef Krapow), which has tender and juicy beef slices. It’s also saucy, with crunch from onions and chopped string beans.

I upgraded it to a Set Meal, which comes with a bowl of Mango Salad and a bowl of Tom Yum soup. The salad is crisp and has peanuts, covered in sweet and tangy dressing. The soup is sweet, sour, and spicy, with lemongrass and cilantro flavors. It’s very good, even in the hot Singapore weather!

With the few items I tried in Sisaket, I can already say that they make good Thai food (and even better than most Thai restaurants in the Philippines!).

Stall No.: #01-85 | Operating Hours: Daily, 10AM-8:30PM

Somerset Delicacies

This stall specializes in stir-fried dishes such as fried rice and noodles.

We tried their Mee Goreng (stir-fried noodles) and Salted Fish Fried Rice. Both have a nice wok hei (literally “breath of a wok”) or smoky aroma. Each dish is prepared upon order.

Stall No.: #01-60 | Operating Hours: Sunday-Friday, 11AM-9PM

Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice

Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice is probably the main reason tourists flock to Maxwell Food Centre. It’s the most popular stall in Maxwell and maybe in all of Singapore. It has even earned the praise of celebrity chefs Anthony Bourdain and Gordon Ramsay, and even of the MICHELIN Guide, awarding it with a Bib Gourmand recognition.

Chicken Rice (SGD5/6/7) with Chicken Gizzard (SGD0.80) and Braised Egg (SGD0.80)

So how did we find Tian Tian’s version of Singapore’s national dish? Find out in my upcoming article!

Stall No.: #01-10/11 | Operating Hours: Daily, 10AM-7:30PM

Tong Xin Ju Special Shanghai Tim Sum

This stall specializes in dumplings, noodles, and hot & sour soup. I tried both their Fried and Steamed Dumplings.

It’s one of the best dumplings I’ve had! It has a juicy and tasty filling with a nice chive flavor, wrapped in a thin wrapped.

Stall No.: #01-92 | Operating Hours: Tuesday-Sunday, 11AM-8PM | Facebook

Uncle Louis Famous Chicken Rice

This is another hawker stall for chicken rice. However, we ordered their char siu and roast pork instead. It’s ultra tender!

Uncle Louis Famous Chicken Rice is not on our list to try. But we’re glad we discovered it, thanks to my wife who loves roast pork!

Stall No.: #01-36 | Operating Hours: Daily, 9AM-10PM

Ye Lai Xiang Tasty Barbecue

Hainanese-style Western food is a common cuisine in Singapore. This was a result of Hainanese immigrants working as cooks and waiters for hotels, restaurants, and European and Peranakan households. Nowadays, you will see this fusion food sold in hawker centres.

In Maxwell, Ye Lai Xiang Tasty Barbecue is the only stall that offers Hainanese-style Western food. We tried their Chicken Cutlet, which is huge, crisp, juicy, and tender. It comes with a sauce that’s sweet and tangy, which I think is Eastern in origin.

It also comes with fries, which are crisp. However, in true Western style, it needs salt.

Stall No.: #01-94 | Operating Hours: Monday-Friday, 12-2:30PM & 6-8:30PM

Of course, there are other Maxwell Food Centre stalls that I still need to try. These include Heng Heng/Xing Xing Ondeh Ondeh & Tapioca Cake, Hup Kee Wu Xiang Guan Chang, and Zhen Zhen Porridge, among many others. So I’m excited to return!

Maxwell Food Centre is crowded by locals and tourists alike. But that’s a testament that its stalls serve good Singaporean food. Needless to say, I highly recommend it to you!

Address: 1 Kadayanallur St., Singapore | Website

Check out the other hawker centres I have visited so far: Chinatown Complex Food Centre | Old Airport Road Food Centre (link coming soon!) | Tekka Market and Food Centre