If you haven't heard – Singapore is all set to nominate our hawker culture to the UNESCO intangible cultural heritage list. And we couldn’t be prouder…
It’s no secret, we love our local fare. And we’re psyched to see it possibly join UNESCO’s intangible cultural heritage list. You don’t have to ask us twice – we think our hawker culture deserves to share the spotlight with China’s dragon boat festival, India’s yoga, Turkey’s whistled language and other global cultural phenomenons. You can pledge your support to this nomination on Our SG Heritage like we did.
Where else can you find more than 6,000 hawkers across 110 odd hawker centres dishing out the most delicious grub. Hawker centres are more than just an organised shelter with food stalls – it’s woven into the very laksa-stained fabric of our island city. Crazy rich Asian or regular normal folk, we’re all the same to the hawker aunty who’ll serve us with a smile (almost always). It sees more people every day than an H&M sale – it’s where we meet our family and friends for scrumptious meals, peanut sauce slathered satay, the cheapest Michelin-starred food in the world, kopis that can wake the dead and #cheatday curry puffs. From Chomp Chomp to Amoy and everything in-between, we all have our regular haunts where several generations of a hawker family work together like pros.
Does it scare us that hawker culture might fade away with young generations choosing to move away from the family business? Yes, it does! So, we’re rooting for this UNESCO listing for selfish reasons – it’s gotta live on. Let’s be honest, this iconic cultural movement makes Singapore a foodie para-para-paradise.
Like this story? Here’s more you should check out:
Char kway teow stalls that’ll make you forget your diet
La Pau Sat calling: Everything you need to know about this heritage hawker centre
Underrated local dishes that deserve a shoutout
How to do breakfast like a local
Let’s take things to the next level: invite us into your inbox!
