Hawker centre — BrandWiki

A hawker centre, or cooked food centre , is an often open-air complex commonly found in Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia. They are intended to provide a more sanitary alternative to mobile hawker carts and contain many stalls that sell different varieties of affordable meals. Tables and chairs are usually provided for diners.

Such centres are typically managed by a governing authority that maintains the facility and rents out stalls for hawkers to sell their goods.

By countries or regions

Hong Kong

In Hong Kong, most cooked food centres (熟食中心; or cooked food markets, 熟食市場) are either located in market complexes of residential districts, or as a standalone structure (this being the case in most industrial areas), with only a few exceptions (e.g. Mong Kok Cooked Food Market is located in the lower levels of Langham Place Hotel). Cooked food centres are managed by Food and Environmental Hygiene Department.

Most of the stalls from hawker centres are converted from former dai pai dong (cooked food stalls) by strict regulations and management; the Hong Kong Government regarded the provision of cooked food centres as a way to eliminate traditional dai pai dongs from local streets in the 1970s. During the industrial boom in the 1960s and 1970s, the government also built cooked food markets in industrial areas to serve the catering needs of the working class in major industrial centres such as Kwun Tong, Tsuen Wan and Fo Tan.

Stalls in cooked food centres usually provide local cuisine, with those selling exotic delicacies a minority.

While many cooked food centres in Hong Kong are open-air, many others are indoor air-conditioned complexes, owing to Hong Kong's periods of extreme humidity.

Malaysia

External links

https://www.nlb.gov.sg/main/article-detail?cmsuuid=d30b9e62-9e71-4e1e-9f5e-a6573380f4b6 – article in the Singapore Infopedia published by the National Library Board of Singapore
Public Markets and Cooked Food Centres in Hong Kong – fehd.gov.hk

References

Leam Seng Alan Teh. Tracing our hawker roots New Straits Times, 17 March 2019, retrieved 29 June 2021^
Norhaslina Hassan. Accommodating the Street Hawkers into Modern Urban Management in Kuala Lumpur 2003, retrieved 3 July 2021^
Khoo Gaik Cheng. The Cheapskate Highbrow and the Dilemma of Sustaining Penang Hawker Food

Singapore

Hawker centres sprang up in urban areas following the rapid urbanisation in the 1950s and 1960s. In many cases, they were built partly to address the problem of unhygienic food preparation by unlicensed street hawkers.[9] In Singapore today, besides hawker centres, there are also increasing numbers of food courts, which are indoor, air-conditioned versions of hawker centres located in shopping malls and other commercial venues.

In the 1950s and 1960s, hawker centres were considered to be a venue for the less affluent. They had a reputation for unhygienic food, partly due to the frequent appearance of stray domestic pets and pests. Many hawker centres were poorly managed by their operators, often lacking running water and proper facilities for cleaning. More recently, hygiene standards have improved, with pressure from the local authorities. This includes the implementation of licensing requirements, where a sufficient standard of hygiene is required for the stall to operate, and rewarding exceptionally good hygiene.[10][11] A score of 85% or higher results in an A, and the lowest grade is a D, which ranges from 40 to 49% passing standards. These grades are required to be displayed on hawker stalls. Upgrading or reconstruction of hawker centres was initiated in the 1990s in Singapore.

In 1987, a point demerit system was introduced to measure stands' food and hygiene. Six demerit points result in a high fee. Individual fines will be imposed for larger violations such as putting unclean materials in contact with the food. Failure to display issued license will result in a S$200 fine.[11]

The hawker centres in Singapore are owned by three government bodies, namely the National Environment Agency (NEA) under the parent Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment (MSE), Housing and Development Board (HDB) and JTC Corporation. All the centres owned by HDB and NEA, in turn, are regulated by NEA with the individual Town Councils managing the HDB owned centres. JTC owned centres are self-managed.[11]

In 2011, Singapore announced plans to develop 10 hawker centres, which equates to 600 stalls in the next decade. It was expected to stabilise food prices and reduce rent of hawker stalls over time.[11]

As of 2016, two Singaporean food stalls, both located in hawker centres, became the first street food vendors to be awarded a Michelin Star for excellence in eating. The two stalls are Hong Kong Soya Sauce Chicken Rice and Noodle and Hill Street Tai Hwa Pork Noodle.[12][13] Hawker Chan later lost its star in 2021, so only one hawker in Singapore has a Michelin Star as of 2025.[14] As of 2019, more than 40 hawker stalls were awarded Michelin Star and Bib Gourmand in Singapore. In 2023, they already constituted the majority of the list.[15]

In 2019, Singapore submitted its nomination to inscribe its hawker culture on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.[16] Inscription was announced on 16 December 2020, when UNESCO described the hawker centre as "'community dining rooms' where people from diverse backgrounds gather and share the experience of dining over breakfast, lunch and dinner."[17]

Since 1 September 2021, it has been illegal to leave behind food trays, crockery, used tissues, wet wipes, drink straws, food wrappers, drink cans, plastic water bottles, food remnants and any other litter at hawker centres under Singapore's Environmental Public Health Act with this law being extended to food courts and coffeeshops from 1 January 2022. Prior to 1 June 2023, first time offenders were merely advised to clean up after themselves. Since 1 June 2023, first-time offenders will be issued an immediate written warning, second-time offenders will face a composition fine of SGD$300 and subsequent offenders may face court fines under Singapore's Environmental Public Health Act.[18][19][20]

Urban Hawker (New York City)

On September 21, 2022, Urban Hawker, a Singaporean-style hawker centre opened in Manhattan, New York City. The idea was suggested in 2013 by American chef Anthony Bourdain after visiting Singapore, and he collaborated with Singaporean chef K.F. Seetoh, who completed it after Bourdain's death in 2018.[21] The market consists of traditional Singaporean dishes, with most of the vendors hailing from Singapore.[22][23][24]

By countries or regions

Hong Kong

Malaysia

See also

External links

References

Singapore

Urban Hawker (New York City)

Urban Hawker (New York City)

Indonesia