By Juls. H

Good food is the essence of quality bonding time – after all, Singapore is known as a food paradise, and it would be a pity not to savour the delights this foodie’s haven brings. But where do the hungry go for yummy food and a couple of drinks? Eschew the restaurants for our local food centers. Here are three places to head for when you need your meals cheap and shiok (Singlish for delicious)!

It’s worth making a trip to Newton Food Center, conveniently located just a traffic light away from the Newton MRT Station. The food center is newly renovated, and its spacious layout means no need to ‘chope’ (Singlish for reserve) places. There is a variety of delicious authentically Singaporean dishes here – think fish soup, chicken rice, rojak (fruit salad tossed in dark sauce). For the adventurous, one can try the barbecued seafood – Singaporeans love eating barbecued food and so expect to find barbecued fish, vegetables and all sorts of exotic, edible, seafood.If you’re looking for something fancier, try Timbre+. As hipster sounding as the name is, Timbre+ has stalls hawking local food with a fusion twist. The stalls are housed in a graffiti-sprayed container building, upping the modern vibe. Here, expect to find sliders with beef rendang, or layered food with different flavours – a take on the local ‘kueh’ (a dessert of Malay origins), with layers of dishes heaped tidily and then squared. A history buff will find the food court located below the Singapore Flyer a nostalgic trip into 1950s Singapore. The food court is deliberately designed to look like a blast from the past, with its retro wooden stalls, as well as murals of people from the past. Short wooden stools and marble tables are a nod to the colonial past of the country. Traditional delights as such as tutu cake, a white steam cake filled with coconut flakes are sold here to keep up the time travel experience.

With so many places to get your fix of local food, give yourself a break and eat out this weekend instead!