Hawker Culture in Singapore is the soul of the everyday people. In a nutshell, hawker culture refers to the community shared by hawkers and diners. It is a communal dining space where a wonderful array of stalls coexist under one roof!
Decoding The Hawker Centre Lingo
A hawker centre is the best reflection of Singapore’s multicultural identity where different ethnic groups and cultures come together. This gave rise to a unique hawker lingo that only Singaporeans are privy to. It is a mixture of Mandarin, Tamil, Malay, English and other local dialects. Or what is affectionately known as Singlish.
Foreigners wandering into hawker centres may be confused by the chatter that is going on, because the locals communicate in a mashup of languages. Here is a basic but essential guide to decoding the Hawker Centre Lingo, so that you can order food like a local too.
1.Greet Everyone As Aunty Or Uncle
It may sound strange to other cultures, but calling someone who is older by the terms “Aunty” or “Uncle” in Singapore is an endearing form of respect. Expats who are not used to this may get a slight culture shock because strangers in a hawker centre are obviously not family.
However, the catch here is that you only call someone “Aunty” or “Uncle” if they look older than you. You may get some hostile stares if you try to do that to a lady who is younger. So, what happens if you need to address someone who is younger? Just say “Hello” with a smile!
2.Understanding The Local Lingo
Just like Starbuck’s own coffee jargon, Singapore has our original set of phrases dedicated to coffee! It is actually part of the local language - Singlish. Besides coffee and drinks, there are other important words that will make ordering food easier as well.
Let’s take a look at some of the commonly used ones.
|COFFEE & OTHER BEVERAGES|
Kopi [pronounced 'ko-pee’]
Black coffee with condensed milk, which is a thick and sweetened milk.
Kopi-O [pronounced 'ko-pee O’]
O means black. This is black coffee with sugar and no milk.
Kopi C [pronounced 'ko-pee see’]
C means fresh. This is black coffee with sugar and evaporated milk (a lighter unsweetened milk that was considered fresher in the past).
Kopi O Kosong [pronounced 'ko-peeh oh coh-soh-ung’]
Kosong means empty. This is plain black coffee.
Kopi Siew Dai [pronounced 'ko-pee see-ew die’]
Siew Dai means less sweet. This is black coffee with lesser condensed milk.
Kopi Pok [pronounced 'ko-pee pok’]
Pok means diluted. Black coffee with condensed milk, made with less coffee and more water. (a lighter brew)
Kopi Gau [pronounced 'ko-pee g-ow’]
Gau means thick. Black coffee with condensed milk, made with an extra shot of coffee. (a stronger brew)
Kopi Peng [pronounced 'ko-pee peh-eng’]
Peng means cold. This is Iced Coffee made by adding ice cubes to black coffee with condensed milk.
Teh [pronounced 'tay']
Teh means Tea. If you want to order tea instead, just replace the above phrases with "Teh" instead of 'Kopi'.
Yuan Yang [pronounced 'yuan young’]
A mixed of coffee and tea, with condensed milk. This is derived from the chinese language that means "to pair up".
|OTHER USEFUL SINGLISH TERMS FOR ORDERING FOOD|
Dabao [pronounced 'da-paw’]
To take away the food/drink order, so that they will pack in takeaway containers.
Makan [pronounced 'ma-kahn’]
To dine in for your order.
Mai Hiam (pronounced my-hee-um)
Do not add chilli.
And, here are some examples on how to use the collaquial lingo to order in Singapore’s hawker centres:
“Hi Auntie, 1 Kopi Peng Siew Dai” - I want an iced coffee that is less sweet. Usually when you don’t say that you want to takeaway, the hawker will assume its to dine in.
“Hi Uncle, 1 Kopi O Kosong, Dabao” - I want a hot black coffee, with no milk and no sugar, to take away.
“Hi Uncle, 1 fishball noodles, Mai Hiam” - I want a bowl of fishball noodles without chilli.
You also have to know the term Chope, a fascinating concept of reserving your seats with tissue paper. If you have never heard of Chope, check out this step-by-step Hawker Centre 101: Guide For Beginners for some local tips before heading down to a hawker centre!
"Hawker Centre 101"
https://wak-wak-hawker.com/en/read/12
3.When In Doubt, Just Point And Nod
A hawker centre contains a mind-boggling selection of food and drink stalls that are manned by hawkers from various ethnic groups. Some are straightforward such as chicken rice, roast meats and herbal soups. Others may have strange names which might baffle non-locals, with some examples being Fried Carrot Cake (savoury radish cake fried with egg) and Tissue Prata (a flatbread that is made so thin it resembles tissue paper).
Fortunately, most stalls display a simple menu that comes with pictures and prices. If you are unsure of what to order, just choose from the pictures and point. Yes, it’s that simple!
Items that have a higher level of ordering difficulty are the noodle dishes. There are several types of noodles available in Singapore’s hawker centres and most noodle stalls offer a variety. No idea what type of noodle to choose? No problem! Most of them display the types of noodles that are available as well. Once again, all you have to do and point to the noodle that you want.
A quick tip to remember - the white-coloured noodles are rice-based and the yellow ones are most likely made from flour and egg.
One other interesting food stall that you can practice this 'point-and-nod’ technique is the Economy Rice stall. Every hawker centre definitely has at least a few of these and they can be easily identified by the tantalising rows of dishes laid out at their storefront. From the mouthwatering selection of meats, vegetables, seafood and fried items, point to any dish you want and they will stack it on top of hot steaming rice. Yums!
Let The Queues Be Your Guiding Light
Now that you have mastered the basic hawker culture lingo, you are all ready to hit the food stalls. But, there are so many and some even sell the exact same dish. How do you choose? Easy-peasy, just follow the queues!
Singaporeans love queuing up for food, some might even argue that it is the national past-time of the locals. If you see a snaking queue in front of a hawker stall, chances are high that the food served is of gastronomic quality.
Another foolproof way to gauge the food quality of the hawker stalls would be through the WAK WAK app! The good people at WAK WAK have braved the heat and combed through various hawker centres to bring you a curated list of good-tasting hawker food stalls.
You are now all set for an authentic hawker experience. Dig in!
