THE HAWKER CENTRE I WANT
The growing tension between the mounting strain on Singapore’s hawkers and the rising prices of food is often in the public spotlight these days.
Truth be told, the ongoing discourse on this often leaves me feeling conflicted.
There’s a growing call for consumers to be willing to pay more for hawker food, and I have certainly paid a hefty sum for such fare, especially in the central parts of Singapore.
Yet, simply raising prices feels like a stopgap measure that, in the long run, threatens the unifying trait of Singapore hawker food. Can hawker fare remain our “common language” if more people are being priced out of the food that feeds the masses?
I want hawkers to struggle less; I also want hawker food to remain as affordable as possible. Anyone and everyone in Singapore should be able to enjoy a good meal at a hawker centre or a coffee shop.
To truly protect the unique charm of hawker culture, we need to look for ways to make this food affordable while ensuring that those who serve it to us can earn a decent living.
Could we ease hawkers’ burdens by imposing limits on stall rentals, or providing extra grants to bring down their burgeoning costs?
Some may say this is overly idealistic. But to me, these are ideas worth exploring, because what I want is for my future children to hear a coffee shop aunty or uncle greet them as “xiao mei” or “xiao di”, and to know how a delicious bowl of bak chor mee (minced pork noodle) or laksa (coconut-infused curry soup noodles) can sustain one through good times and bad.
I hope it’s not asking for too much to want Singapore’s hawker centres and coffee shops to remain places of comfort, community and gathering for all.
And for my favourite Hainanese curry rice store to stay open long enough for me to celebrate every birthday till I die.
Loraine Lee is a journalist at CNA TODAY who loves to eat chicken rice at Ang Mo Kio, wanton mee at Pasir Ris, congee in Hougang, Hainanese curry rice in Geylang and cai fan in Chinatown.
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