The best hawker stalls at Amoy Street Food Centre

It’s one heck of a meal over at Rayyan’s Waroeng Upnormal with a supersized plate of Indonesian smashed fried chicken. This hawker stall prides itself on Balinese-Japanese fusion fare, all the while offering classic dishes like ayam penyet (from $5.50) and more unique ones like the tempura pollock fish ($6.50). They also have rice bowls like Balinese Gyudon ($6.50) and Eggbowl Cheesesteak ($8).

You’ll notice the long, snaking lines before you even see this humble fish soup stall. But don’t be deterred – the 40-odd queue of hungry diners at Han Kee Fish Soup moves relatively fast and the hawker auntie is as efficient as it gets. There’s only one order you should get here: the sliced fish soup (from $5). It’s a comforting bowl of soup, and you can choose whether to have it with thick bee hoon or rice. The star of the show? It’s a toss-up between the clean, white peppery soup itself or the generous chunks of fresh Spanish mackerel.

Unlike your typical kopi or teh, a brew from coffee stall Mad Roaster is one worth trying for the specialty roasted beans. There’s an inspiring tale behind this coffee joint too, with the owner having first started Mad Roasters as a social enterprise to help asylum seekers in Thailand – a portion of the proceeds from each cup of joe is given to the refugees. Prices range from $2.80 for an espresso to $5.20 for a dirty matcha. The crowd flocks over for the babka ($2.20) too, a fluffy brioche bread that’s breaded with chocolate.

A flaky curry puff makes for an excellent mid-day snack, and J2 Famous Crispy Curry Puff doesn’t disappoint. It’s also been on the list of Michelin Bib Gourmand eateries for a number of years, namely for its thin but crispy curry puff shell. Plus, each puff comes with a hefty load of curried filling with everything from sardine ($1.60) to black pepper chicken ($1.80). It’s the latter we most enjoyed – its savoury, peppery sauce made for a nice contrast to the delicate pastry.

It’s a staple of every worthy hawker centre: char kway teow, one that’s thoroughly stir-fried with wok hei and a heap of plump blood cockles. Simply named as “Fried Kway Teow”, this noodle stall does just one dish – and they do it darn well. This particular stall was originally along Boon Tat Street in the 60s, meaning that the uncle has been frying up this char kway teow recipe for more than half a century. While it’s still evidently a dark plate of noodles, with ample dark soy sauce, it’s still “wetter” with a sweeter taste than most will assume. A plate starts from $4.

Zi char hawker stalls, aka ready-to-cook joints, are easy choices in any hawker centre. Cantonese joint Quan Ji is no different, since they’ve got a hearty range of family faves from har cheong gai (prawn paste chicken, from $13) to sambal clams (from $15). But it’s the wong po lou meen (yellow cloth noodles, from $20 to share) that everyone flocks over for, fried noodles heavy with wok hei under a fluffy blanket of fried prawn omelette. Interestingly, this is an off-the-menu dish but it’s one of the more popular orders. They do open for dinner as well, so no need to rush to join frantic lunch queues.

It doesn’t just have to be a pasar malam treat, with The Original Vadai having set up one of their famed vadai stalls in Amoy – they’ve got five outlets around Singapore. Try the Ikan Billis Vadai ($1.20) for a twist on the classic. Even when eaten hot, the batter leans towards chewy, but with a satisfying crunch when biting down on the deep-fried exterior. We’ve also done up a list of the best vadai in Singapore, since we’re all fans of this savoury snack.

For simple but satisfying fare, a bowl of springy wanton mee does the trick. At Wah Kee Noodle, it’s one of those hidden gems that you wouldn’t want to share – but they certainly deserve the recognition. The noodles (from $3.50 a bowl) are seasoned lightly with a soy sauce, and it’s done perfectly – in that, it’s neither overly mushy nor is it undercooked. Each bowl comes with char siew and wanton dumplings. You can also order other variations like the wanton mushroom noodle (from $3.50) and shredded chicken hor fun (from $3.50). They do sell out early though, so make sure you’re there before 2pm or so.

Hor fun might be common in most hawkers centres, but what’s particularly challenging is finding one with full-fledged wok hei aroma. That’s not at all an issue at hawker stall Pepper Bowl, with its black pepper hor fun and rice bowls. You can choose between chicken, beef, or pork – a bowl starts from $5.50. Add a runny onsen egg for $0.80 or if feeling particularly hungry, a double serve of meat for an additional $3.50.