Queenstown is an estate we Singaporeans hold dear in our hearts. After all, it’s home to five iconic hawker centres: ABC Brickworks, Margaret Drive Food Centre, Mei Ling Market, Tanglin Halt Market and Alexandra Village. This year, Queenstown is celebrating its 70th birthday and as part of the festivities, the estate is holding its first-ever Queenstown HawkerFest from Nov 18 to Dec 17.
The month-long extravaganza will celebrate the estate’s hawker culture through multiple exciting events. Here’s what you can expect at Queenstown HawkerFest.
1. THE GREAT QT HAWKER FEAST
This event marks the opening of Queenstown HawkerFest and they are going big – literally. After a speech by Mr Eric Chua, Senior Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth & Ministry of Social and Family Development, organisers will unveil Singapore’s largest plate of chicken rice.
Once the record has been confirmed by the Singapore Book of Records, popular food blogger Zermatt Neo will attempt to finish the entire plate of chicken rice.
And mind you, this is all happening within the first hour of the event.
A competitive eating competition will also be open to the public which will see the person who finishes a plate of chicken rice in the fastest time walking away with S$700 worth of vouchers. Interested applicants can register here.
Free chicken rice will also be given out to lower income families and individuals.
Date: Saturday (Nov 18)Time: 11am to 1pmLocation: ABC Brickworks Market & Hawker Centre, 6 Jalan Bukit Merah, Singapore 150006
2. QT HAWKER HERITAGE TRAIL
At this trail, you’ll learn more about the history behind Queenstown’s five iconic hawker centres. To make things more fun, each participating hawker centre will have an official Heritage Trail Booth where participants can collect trail cards and specially designed stamps.
Those who collect all five stamps from the hawker centres will stand a chance to win up to S$300 NTUC vouchers.
3. QT HAWKER CAFE REMIX
From Nov 18 to Dec 17, you can indulge in reimagined hawker classics at the following well-known cafes: KEK Seafood, Abundance, Sin & Savage and Creatr.
Each cafe will feature reimagined dishes, created in collaboration with Queenstown’s hawkers from the five hawker centres.
4. QT’S GREATEST HITS
With so many iconic hawkers at Queenstown, this event will allow everyone to vote for their favourite simply by filling up this form. Participants can share a story of their favourite memory at the featured hawker centres and the top three entries will each be awarded with a S$100 NTUC voucher.
In a statement to the press, Mr Eric Chua said: “Queenstown has come a long way, from being Singapore’s first satellite town to the mature and vibrant estate it is today.
“We hope that through this inaugural HawkerFest, we can connect both young and old to celebrate and commemorate Queenstown’s rich 70-year history, through our collective love of our local fare, heritage and community.”