Hawker centre

I think that it's very hard for us here in Singapore.

First of all, Maybe actually food divorce, quote unquote, is suited to our lifestyle because when we go to the Hawker Center, we can each get whatever we want anyway.

You could just sit and eat.

So maybe there's less of a need for us to do the food divorce thing.

I returned to Singapore after 35 years of living abroad.

On my first visit to a hawker center, I found myself carrying a bowl of fishball noodle soup with nowhere to sit.

Worried that the hot soup might spill, I just stood there for about 10 minutes.

Wow.

And, you know, you can actually see that they went to buy food and come back.

That's fair.

But we have seen this chope culture expand beyond the Hawker Center, expand beyond just dining places.

I believe there was a story out of NUS.

You'll never hear giggling girls say, oh, he had big bulging toenails.

You're never going to hear that.

So why do people think we want to see their feet in public places, whether it's buses, MRTs, hawker centres, coffee shops? Why? Put your feet away.

That's an instant fine.

Shout out to our listeners having a lovely breakfast.

Something I've been talking about in my books for nearly 30 years.

Even then, we needed the government.

to intervene to put our trays back at hawker centres.

In Laos.

Yes, in the Hawker Centre.

Okay.

We had to find, we found you the most appealing chocolate.

Hello, and welcome to ET Deep Dive, ET's deepest reported stories on audio.

[upbeat music] Today's episode is based on Liji Philip and Nirmal John's report that looks at India's 8,000 crore a day street food economy, the real hygiene risks, why regulation without infrastructure backfires, and what Singapore's hawker centers might teach us about keeping street food safe and visible.

It's Sunday the 20th of September.

I'm Anirban Chaudhuri.

It instead moved vendors into regulated, purpose-built centers with water, drainage, waste management, and other basic facilities.

As Andrew Tam wrote in an article in Gastronomica, "Hawking in Singapore was initially seen as a nuisance that had to be tolerated and later regulated by both the colonial administration and newly independent government.

The relocation of hawkers to centralized food centers marked the imposition of order and hygiene into a squalid industry." Malaysia has similarly developed hawker centers and food courts, while Vietnam has experimented with designated areas and food safety oversight.

Street food in many of these cities is a legit tourist attraction, so much so that the purveyor of great grub, the Michelin Guide, has a specific recognition for such eateries, Bib Gourmand.

Like, what do you think that, that thread of erotica is that Singaporean writers are writing?

Uh, Hawker Center beer lady.

[laughs] I think, uh, uh, don't speak from your own-

[laughs]

And one hawker said that his lease has been extended until September 2027. and believes this could be the final extension.

But we do want to reiterate that this Hawker Center's closure has not been confirmed.

Tender information indicates that its site may still be used for F&B purposes in the future.

But this is something that people have pointed out as well because it's been around for so many years.

So after this show, maybe Audrey and I have a little bit of a chat, but then the rest of the day is kind of quiet.

Something I really, really look forward to is going down to the...

There's a hawker center just... across the street from my block.

And one of my favorite things to do is have a little bit of a chat with the drink store uncle.

It's just it's the tech.

The one thing I didn't get to do, which is crazy to not do when you're in Singapore, is actually go like have a big meal with a bunch of people at like a hawker center, which is something I really wanted to do.

But with the the time of all of the events and the fact that we just didn't do it on the first day, so much was closed and so much was like time to go to bed because all the days were ending at like midnight, which was crazy.

A bit crazy.

It was a bit much.

These were like some very, very long RQ days.

Hawker Center, for those who don't know, it's like very famous in Singapore where it's basically just like a ton of different food stalls and you would just be able to go walk up to whatever stall and get whatever you want.

You can just get like anything.