12 best stalls in Chinatown Complex Food Centre for the ultimate hawker feast

Singapore is the furthest thing from being short of amazing places to eat, and Chinatown is the crown jewel of our vibrant food scene. Nestled in the heart of this culinary haven is Chinatown Complex Food Centre, which sees throngs of locals and tourists alike.

Home to over 200 stalls, this bustling hawker centre offers a little bit of everything — from crowd favourites to tried-and-true hawker staples.

With so much in store, narrowing down the must-tries can be a challenge. Well, we’ve done the legwork for you. Here’s our list of 12 best stalls in Chinatown Complex Food Centre for the ultimate hawker feast!

1. Chef Leung’s Authentic Hand-milled Rice Noodle Rolls (#02-096)

The lengthily-named Chef Leung’s Authentic Hand-milled Rice Noodle Rolls will be any savoury chee cheong fun fan’s go-to breakfast spot. The stall is helmed by native Hong Konger Chef Leung, an ex-Raffles Hotel chef of 19 years, his wife, also a former chef, at Hilton Shanghai, and their son Lucas. 

Chef Leung serves up 5 types of cheung fun: Plain (S$3.20), Egg (S$3.70), Pork (S$4), Char Siew (S$4.50) and Prawn (S$5). The rice rolls are made fresh on the daily with rice that’s milled by hand, giving it a distinct, clean rice flavour.

Don’t underestimate the Plain variation; the silky cheung fun is doused in plenty of their umami-laden soy sauce and, interestingly, a peanut sesame sauce that enhances the dish with a creamy nuttiness. It’s then finished off wonderfully with some savoury chye poh, crispy shallots and spring onions.

If you’re down for some tasty, creamy porridge, you can also find 4 types of Hong Kong-style congee here, including the likes of the classic Pork Ribs and Century Eggs Congee (S$5) and Watercress and Fish Congee (S$6.50).

Price: S$3.20 – S$11.50 per pax

Key highlights: Freshly milled rice rolls with peanut sesame sauce; congee also available

Wed to Sun: 6.30am – 12pm
Closed on Mon & Tue
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2. Canton Steamed Rice (#02-132)

Manned single-handedly by 67-year-old retiree Mr Ng, I really am puzzled to why Canton Steamed Rice doesn’t have a queue when the food is really delicious and executed well, in my opinion. His menu features 9 steamed rice options with meats like beef, pork ribs, chicken and pork patties. He does all the preparation, including crafting his in-house chilli.

The Steamed Scallions & Ginger Chicken Rice (S$4.80) is hearty and comforting just like a home-cooked meal. The chicken is succulent, tender and perfumed with the light fragrance of the scallions as well as ginger. There’s at least 6 to 7 decent-sized pieces of meat along with green vegetables and rice for the Canton Style Steamed Beef Rice (S$6). Even though the beef may appear considerably thick, each morsel was actually soft like a down feather pillow, perfectly seasoned. My favourite is the Steamed Pork Patty with Preserved Vegetable (S$4.80) where fine bits of chopped-up preserved vegetables are embedded within the pork patty, giving it a special but yummy flavour that grew on me.

Price: S$4.80 – S$6 per pax

Key highlights: Chicken, beef and pork patties served with rice and vegetables

Tue to Sun: 11.30am – 6pm
Closed on Mon

3. Zhong Guo La Mian Xiao Long Bao (#02-135)

Zhong Guo La Mian Xiao Long Bao finds itself on just about every Chinatown Complex Food Centre guide — and for good reason, without a doubt. Run by an Anhui-born chef and his wife, this Michelin-recognised stall draws long queues for its handmade dumplings and la mian.

Xiao long bao at nearly half the price of Din Tai Fung’s? Sign me up. 10 pieces here set you back S$8 — a little pricier than several other dumpling stalls but still works out to be less than a dollar per piece. These morsels explode with savoury broth when torn into, and are chock-full of delicious pork filling studded with fresh chives.

Now behold, the Szechuan Spicy Wanton (S$5.50 for 10 pieces), also known as my personal favourite chilli oil dumplings in all of Singapore. The secret lies in the bits of chye poh that adorn the silky dumplings, which add an addictive umami that complements the tasty filling and tangy mix of vinegar and chilli oil.

Complete your meal with some carbs from the la mian section, including Zha Jiang Mian (S$4.50) and creamy, nutty Dan Dan Mian (S$5.50). The Sour & Spicy Soup (S$2.50) is solid, too.

Price: S$4,50 – S$13.50 per pax

Key highlights: Xiao long bao, chilli oil wontons and la mian

+65 8595 7710
Wed to Fri: 11am – 8.30pm
Sat & Sun: 10.30am – 8.30pm
Closed on Mon & Tue

4. Hainan Gor (#02-154)

Are you a Hainanese curry peng fan? Then swing by Hainan Gor, owned by 2 childhood friends, Rocky and Mike. Rocky used to be a PHV driver while Mike owns another food business. Since Mike’s father owned a curry rice stall, he wanted to open a curry rice stall of his own, but had no one to run the stall for him. Thankfully, due to rising petrol costs, Rocky was forced to look for other job opportunities and that’s when he decided to give Mike a hand and went ahead to learn the ropes of running a Hainanese curry rice stall at Mike’s dad’s shop.

You can savour the ultimate Signature 4 Treasure Set (S$6.50) that comes with a mound of rice topped with lu rou slices (braised pork), pork chop and your choice of 2 vegetables. It’s then slathered with a blend of curry and sauces before a fried egg is crowned as the final touch. The lu rou here doesn’t follow the usual 50:50 meat-to-fat ratio. Instead, it’s stringy and flavourful, reminding me of a meaty version of a vinegar pork trotter dish. The pork chop is also crispy and scrumptious without being oily. I do recommend the house-made Meatball (S$2) which is larger than a golf ball. It’s tasty, soft, and sufficiently moist.

Price: S$3,50 – S$10.50 per pax

Key highlights: Signature 4 Treasure Set with braised pork, pork chop, vegetables and egg

Thu to Tue: 10.30am – 4pm
Closed on Wed
+65 9007 9280
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5. Hakka HamCha & Yong Tou Fu (#02-123)

I can’t think of a better way to get your daily dose of veggies than with a solid bowl of lei cha, and Hakka HamCha & Yong Tau Foo is where it’s at. The stall is helmed by a talented couple who entered the culinary realm in 2018 and never turned back since. And hey, they even won NEA’s Promising New Hawker Award!

The Hakka HamCha (S$5 for white rice, S$5.50 for brown rice) is value-for-money in a bowl. It’s loaded with 10 ingredients, including peanuts and a medley of vegetables freshly prepared fresh every morning.

You’ll also notice that the tea soup bears a darker green hue, as the stall-owners use a larger proportion of leaves and herbs among other ingredients. The product is a dense broth with a rich bitterness that complements the umami mix of vegetables and hae bee.

Don’t forget to give the Hakka Style Yong Tou Fu (S$0.90 per piece) a try as well. Each piece is stuffed to the brim with their tasty house-made pork and fish paste and deep-fried to a perfect crisp. 

Price: S$5 – S$10.50 per pax

Key highlights: Lei cha with 10 ingredients and handmade yong tau fu

+65 9092 2123
Daily: 11am – 3pm
No fixed off day (updates on Facebook)
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6. Kazan Cuisine (#02-01)

Kazan Cuisine, run by 50-year-old Mr Lim Kwok Seong, used to be a Japanese bento stall for over a decade but had rebranded to selling ban mian instead due to rising operational expenses. The menu offers a choice of flat noodles (ban mian), thin noodles, mee hoon kueh, and yee mee. Mr Lim adopts Japanese cooking methods which include running the noodles with cold water.

The Dry Pan Mee (S$5.50) is topped with savoury minced meat, crunchy ikan bilis, a silky poached egg, unctuous pork lard, earthy mushrooms, fresh spinach, and a generous dollop of his piquant house-made sambal. It comes with a small bowl of broth that, to me, tastes like it’s simmered with daikon and dried squid. There’s also Mee Hoon Kueh Soup (S$5.50) that almost has the same suspects as the previous dish, with handmade meatballs replacing the minced meat and no mushrooms. The broth is savoury yet easy to drink, without being too heavy on the palate.

Price: S$5.50 – S$12.50 per pax

Key highlights: Dry pan mee with house-made sambal or mee hoon kueh soup

+65 8455 5229
Sun to Fri: 10am – 7pm
Closed on Sat
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7. Uma Haus (#02-118)

Uma Haus is one of the few Japanese stalls around Chinatown Complex and it offers a variety of Japanese dishes like dry ramen, normal ramen and tempura tendon that doesn’t burn a hole in your wallet. For its regular ramen, you won’t find the miso and shoyu variants here. Instead, it’s served with a tonkotsu soup base and you can choose if you prefer Original, Spicy, or Black Garlic Oil.

The Abura Dry Ramen (S$3.90) is an ideal option for those who dislike soup versions. It comes with half an onsen egg, minced pork, fried shallots, and spring onion slivers. Otherwise, there’s still 6 regular ramen varieties that will tickle your fancy. The Signature Tonkotsu Ramen (S$6.90) comes with slices of melt-in-the-mouth cha shu together with chewy noodles, sliced wood ear mushrooms, and spring onions. The broth is robust and is slightly spicy. Rice lovers, you can go for the Black Tiger Prawn Tendon (S$9.90) that comes with 3 prawns, salmon, and pumpkin.

Price: S$3.90 – S$12.50 per pax

Key highlights: Dry ramen from S$3.90, tonkotsu ramen and tempura tendon

Daily: 11am – 8pm
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8. Hong Kong Mong Kok Tim Sum (#02-097)

It’s never a bad day for dim sum, and Hong Kong Mong Kok Dim Sum is the place for your fix. This humble stall offers restaurant-quality dim sum at an affordable S$3.50 per serving across its menu. Each item is meticulously handmade, and you’ll be able to watch (in awe) as the stall-owners work their magic on the spot.

A must-get is the Char Siew Bao (S$3.50 per tray of 3), which delivers on value for money in both portion size and flavour. Each cloud-like steamed bun is packed with juicy meat filling that oozes with an addictive sweet-savouriness that’s honey-like yet not overpowering.

Another solid choice is the Char Siew Rice Flour Roll (S$3.50), which stars an equally-delicious combination of that char siew filling and silky chee cheong fun doused in savoury soy sauce.

Those with a penchant for chicken feet will love the peppery Steamed Chicken Feet (S$3.50), while those who prefer to lean on the classics can opt for the Shao Mai (S$3.50) and Xia Jiao (S$3.50).

Price: S$3.50 – S$10.50 per pax

Key highlights: Char siew bao, rice flour rolls and other dim sum at S$3.50 per serving

+65 9735 6312
Wed to Sun: 11am – 5pm
Closed on Mon & Tue

9. Lian He Ben Ji Claypot Rice (#02-198/199)

Lian He Ben Ji Claypot Rice is one of Singapore’s most famous claypot rice stalls, with plenty of devotees and a MICHELIN Bib Gourmand to boot.

Don’t be deceived by the seeming lack of a queue at the stall; each patron places their order and sits down to wait. You can expect a waiting time of about 45 minutes due to the stall’s popularity and how each individual claypot is prepared from scratch and charcoal-fired for 25 minutes.

Lian He Ben Ji offers 3 types of claypot rice: Mixed Rice, Sausage Rice and Chicken Rice, which are all available in 5 sizes ranging from S$8 to S$20.

Their most popular Mixed Rice is a loaded pot that features chicken, lup cheong, salted fish and vegetables. Add in a dash of dark soy sauce, give the dish a thorough stir and you’ll get spoonful after satisfying spoonful of tasty rice complemented by the sweet lup cheong and tender, juicy chicken.

Don’t forget to scrape the burnt rice bits from the sides of the pot for a little added smokiness and textural contrast!

Price: S$8 – S$15.50 per pax

Key highlights: Charcoal-fired claypot rice and waits of around 45 minutes

+65 6227 2470
Tue & Wed, Fri to Sun: 3pm – 9pm
Closed on Mon & Thu
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10. An Ji (#02-193/194)

Boasting an array of about 43 dishes, An Ji is a stalwart in the zi char scene where the current 3rd-generation owner’s grandmother was already peddling as a street vendor back in the 1960s.

I will recommend the Beef Crispy Noodle (S$6/S$8/S$12/S$15) that comes with smooth, tender slices of beef slathered in a mild peppery gravy. The noodles are able to maintain their crunch despite spending some time getting soaked in the sauce. For something light yet satisfying, the Salted Fish & Pork Floss Beancurd (S$10) comes as a huge slab of silky tofu topped with generous pork clusters, salted fish bits, and pork floss, all doused in a thick, cornstarch-like gravy.

Price: S$6 – S$18 per pax

Key highlights: Beef crispy noodles and salted fish and pork floss beancurd

+65 8307 8162
Mon & Tue, Thu to Sun: 11am – 2pm & 4pm – 8.30pm
Wed: 11am – 2pm & 4.30pm – 8.30pm

11. Ann Chin Popiah (#02-112)

You must be living under a rock if you’ve never heard of the famed Ann Chin Popiah. The stalwart of popiah stalwarts, this establishment has been serving up solid handmade popiah since 1958 and is a Michelin Guide regular. You’d want to make space for a roll (or two).

Like I said, the Popiah (S$2.40) is a must-try. A piece of popiah skin is slathered with some sweet spicy sauce, topped with a myriad of ingredients — juicy turnips, egg bits, crushed peanuts, lettuce, tau geh and crispy flour bits — before it is rolled up, chopped and served. Each piece is a wonderful amalgamation of flavours and textures lent by each element.

I strongly recommend the Kueh Pie Tee (S$3.80 for 4 pieces), too. Each shell is stuffed with the same savoury stewed turnip filling and crispy flour bits, garnished with egg and a dollop of sweet chilli sauce. I can almost guarantee that the plate will be polished in no time.

Price: S$2.40 – S$8.60 per pax

Key highlights: Handmade popiah and kueh pie tee

+65 8189 4699
Daily: 8am – 8pm
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12. Old Amoy Chendol (#02-008)

Old Amoy Chendol is the definition of no-frills goodness. There are no bells and whistles to this stall, just an ice machine and its one signature item: Traditional Chendol (S$3). The poster child of local desserts, this simple treat is the perfect ending to any meal and few spots do it as well as this establishment.

A mountain of powdery shaved ice is doused with creamy cold-pressed coconut milk, followed by a dollop of premium azuki beans, a generous scoop of pandan noodles and a drizzle of gula melaka. The winning combination of cold shaved ice with fragrant coconut milk and sweet, mildly smoky gula melaka is all you’d ever want on a blistering hot day in Singapore.

Price: S$3 – S$10.50 per pax

Key highlights: Chendol with coconut milk, azuki beans, pandan noodles and gula melaka

+65 8748 7590
Daily: 10.30am – 6pm
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How to choose what to eat at Chinatown Complex Food Centre

For an affordable breakfast, head to Chef Leung’s Authentic Hand-milled Rice Noodle Rolls for freshly made chee cheong fun, or Hong Kong Mong Kok Tim Sum for handmade dim sum. Hakka HamCha & Yong Tou Fu suits those after a vegetable-rich meal, while Hainan Gor serves a hearty curry rice set with pork and vegetables. For noodle lovers, Uma Haus offers dry ramen from S$3.90, while Zhong Guo La Mian Xiao Long Bao is worth considering for dumplings and la mian. If you prefer a shared meal, Lian He Ben Ji Claypot Rice offers larger pots, though expect a wait of around 45 minutes.

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