Ghim Moh Market & Food Centre: 10 best hawker stalls to try

Located a short stroll away from Buona Vista MRT station, Ghim Moh Market & Food Centre is the dining spot of choice for the area’s residents and office workers looking for a hearty and affordable meal.

It was founded in 1978 and underwent a facelift in 2015, but still retains much of its old-school, neighbourhood charm.

The next time you’re in the mood for Michelin -certified chwee kueh, tender and aromatic braised duck rice or colourful teacakes, consider making the trip to check out this foodie gem. Be sure to come with a healthy appetite: we promise you won’t leave disappointed.

Ghim Moh Market & Food Centre | 20 Ghim Moh Road

1. Jiu Jiang Shao La

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One of the hawker centre’s most popular stalls is this roast meat joint, which only opens between 10am and 2pm from Thursday to Sunday. Brave the long queue and you’ll be rewarded with succulent, glistening pieces of roast duck, roast pork and char siew.

The $5 three-meat plate allows you to sample each of the store’s specialties, which are served on a bed of fluffy white rice and topped with a ladle of sauce and a side of spicy chili sauce. The charred, caramelised char siew is worth a particular mention.

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2. Heavens

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For soft, fluffy and crispy appam, make a beeline for Heavens – a popular Indian-food purveyor that sells both appam and thosai. $2.50 gets you two plain appams, which are served with the requisite fragrant grated coconut and orange-hued sugar.

Appams are cooked to order and offer a light and pleasing tang from the fermented rice batter. The centre of each appam is light and spongy, while the browned, lacy edges provide a lovely contrasting crunch, especially when dipped in coconut and sugar.

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3. Ghim Moh Carrot Cake

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Whether you prefer white or black carrot cake, you can get your fill at this crowd-favourite establishment. Prices range from $2.50 to $5, and the stall painstakingly makes and steams the carrot cake by hand before its fried to finish.

Get the best of both worlds by ordering a half-and-half plate. The white carrot cake is fried with pungent garlic, chai poh and a generous amount of egg. Meanwhile, the savoury-sweet black carrot cake is doused with plenty of black sauce and has a pleasing soft and springy texture.

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4. Chuan Kee Boneless Braised Duck

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This popular store boasts snaking queues regardless of the time of day – and it’s easy to see why. The Michelin Bib Gourmand recipient serves up juicy Teochew-style boneless braised duck atop your choice of rice, noodles or porridge.

The duck rice set consists of flavourful rice topped with sliced duck, half an egg, braised peanuts, tau pok, cucumber slivers and coriander, as well as some herbal soup.

If you prefer noodles, you can opt for the equally moreish duck noodles. A meal here will set you back between $3 to $5.

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5. Granny’s Pancake

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For a sweet end to your meal, check out the lauded min jiang kueh at the original branch of Granny’s Pancake, which now has multiple franchises across Singapore.

Choose from peanut, coconut, red bean and peanut butter varieties, each of which boasts a tasty, not-too-sweet filling encased in a perfectly chewy pancake with a crispy edge.

The standout peanut butter pancake comes with a hefty dollop of peanut butter and smattering of crunchy peanuts. Each pancake is priced around $1.

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6. Yuan Hokkien Fried Prawn Mee (Margaret Drive)

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Formerly situated at the famous Margaret Drive Food Centre, this stall relocated here following the latter’s demolition. And it’s been keeping hungry diners well-fed with sumptuous plates of Hokkien mee ever since.

The dish consists of the classic white and yellow noodles wok-fried in a rich stock made from prawn heads, squid and pork bones.

Succulent prawns, squid and pork belly are added in for good measure, and each plate comes served with fried shallots, spring onions and limes. Prices start from $4.

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7. Guan Kee Fried Kway Teow

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With queues of up to an hour during peak periods, there must be something seriously special about the char kway teow here, which earned Michelin Bib Gourmand recognition in 2019.

Sure enough, each plate of noodles is fried individually and comes loaded with ingredients such as cockles, lard, lap cheong, fishcakes and egg. The process yields a fragrant and saucy plate with a satisfying amount of wok hei.

The stall only opens thrice a week – on Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday – and prices start from $3.

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8. Ghim Moh Chwee Kueh

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It can be hard to find good traditional chwee kueh these days, given the labour-intensive nature of making them. But those in the know frequent this Ghim Moh spot, which was named to the Michelin Bib Gourmand list in 2019.

$2 will get you four discs of freshly steamed rice cakes topped with a helping of savoury cai poh that’s been cooked over a charcoal stove.

The chwee kueh is simultaneously dense and fluffy, with a satisfying bite, and the salty cai poh offers a perfect complement when mixed with a lashing of chili sauce.

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9. Yuan Authentic Thai Stewed Beef Noodle

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Nothing hits the spot when it’s raining quite like a piping hot bowl of soup. If you find yourself here on a chilly day, do make a beeline for this stall that specialises in Thai dishes. The popular Thai Stewed Beef Noodle Soup is available in $5, $6 and $8 servings.

Each portion comes with your choice of noodles submerged in a flavour-packed, hearty and aromatic broth, along with beef balls, beef slices and beef tendons. For a spicy kick, you can opt for the fiery Tom Yam Seafood Noodle Soup, which starts at $5 for a bowl.

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10. The Headless Baker 

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Don’t leave the hawker centre without dropping by this upstart artisanal bakery. It offers colourful teacakes and other sweet treats that are much more affordable than what you’d pay for at a more upscale joint.

The dense and moist teacakes are almost too pretty to eat and come in a range of rotating flavours including Earl Grey Lavender, Chocolate Bundt, Pandan Gula Melaka, Blueberry Lemon and Matcha Red Bean. They’re perfect for tea, or even for breakfast the next day. Prices start from $2.

This article was first published in The Singapore Women's Weekly.