As every neighbourhood has its little specialities, we set out to discover more about the long stretch of Joo Chiat Road. Reaching from the Geylang Serai Market all the way to East Coast Park, the street offers heritage, furniture shops, and plenty of food. Making any neighbourhood really special, we went to talk to the people who live in the area.
George, 44, works in the oil and gas industry, lives for 3 years in the neighbourhood
Q: What do you like about this area in general?
First of all, we live here – it’s our home. We like the different kinds of food. It’s also an old part of Singapore and not a high-rise area, which makes it a very good neighbourhood to live in. That’s why we ended up buying a house here.
Q: What is your favourite place for food and what do you normally order?
Chili Padi is one of the best Peranakan places to eat in the area and just around the corner from where we live. We love eating local food, but also like Eurasian dishes. Besides that, my wife can also make very good Nasi Lemak.
Q: Why would you recommend the neighbourhood?
I definitely recommend coming to the neighbourhood – not only for the food. There used to be some ‘different’ corners, but slowly everything has been cleaned up. Now you have all kinds of restaurants, while five years ago there was hardly anything here. Now you have Chinese, Malay, Thai, Indian food, and more.
Brian, 30, works in healthcare, lived in the neighbourhood since he was 6 years old
Q: What do you like about this area in general?
Joo Chiat is renown for good food. There are a lot of old shops around here, such as for furniture, which are all very pretty. Most of the buildings are from the early 20th century. I simply like it because it’s my home – I live here. Everything is really convenient and accessible, including shops, food, transport, and cinema. If you are working in the CBD, you even have buses that take you there in 20 minutes.
Q: What is your favourite shop and why?
Although I live here, I never thought about doing my shopping here. I usually do it elsewhere. If you are looking for old and good quality furniture, there is a shop that makes and sells weaved pieces, which you can’t buy from any shopping centre.
Q: What is your favourite café and bar? What do you normally order?
There are not many cafes here on the street. There are a few in the wider neighbourhood, but when I want to go to a café, I usually go elsewhere. There are a few bars that are good, such as the Cider Pit.
Q: What is your favourite restaurant and why? What is your favourite dish there?
There is a really good Hokkien Mee café called Alibabar just down the street. If you are looking for good Vietnamese food, you just go up the street. Right here at the corner is a Prata store, which serves the definition of what a Prata is like for me.
Q: What else do you find interesting about the neighbourhood?
There are many beautiful Peranakan houses, which you don’t find anywhere else. There are even some wonderful landed houses that are available via the SLA (Singapore Land Authority). These kinds of houses, which have beautiful white and black blinds, you would normally only find in Bukit Timah or near the Henderson Waves.
Jerome, 19, studying aerospace engineering, has been coming to the neighbourhood for 18 years
Q: What do you like about this area in general?
I like this place because of all the old buildings. What’s not to like about?
Q: What is your favourite shop and why?
I usually don’t do any shopping here, as I don’t stay here but come every weekend to my church. For shopping, I usually go to the city area, such as Suntec City. Otherwise, there is also the Parkway Centre and the 112 Katong shopping centre.
Q: What is your favourite food around Joo Chiat? What do you normally order?
I really like the food over at Fat Boys. My favourite dish there is their fish and chips because in the way they make the fish they use a little alcohol, which gives it a lot of extra flavour. The alcohol taste combines really well with the fish.
Along the street, you can also have very good chicken rice with a lot of fragrance.
Q: What is the best part about the neighbourhood?
It is a very accessible place – it’s close to the city, it has shopping malls, and is nearby the beach. There are also more cafes opening up. I really like the mix of modern and old.
Imran, Software Engineer, for two years in Singapore and Joo Chiat
Q: What do you like about this area in general?
Here are a lot of good places for food. It’s also a nice Kampong with religious food.
Q: What is your favourite shop and why?
Right now there is the big market on the upper end of Joo Chiat. There you can get a lot of good food, very cheap clothes, and items for your house.
Q: What is your favourite food around Joo Chiat? What do you normally order?
I like all the different rice dishes. I usually eat Kampong food, because it is more natural and tastes better – no fast food. The Muslim food around here is very good. One of my favourites is still Nasi Lemak, but I also eat Nasi Briyani very often.
Q: Why would you recommend Joo Chiat?
The food is still one of the best reasons to come here. It is also a very cosy and quite neighbourhood.
Elizabeth Heng, the owner of the Barkery, moved to the East in her teens (over 50 years ago)
Q: What do you like about this area in general?
I like it here because I live here and it’s my home. It’s very convenient and close to all amenities, such as banks and shopping centres.
Q: What is your favourite shop and why?
If you want everything in one place, you have to go to the Parkway Centre or 112 Katong. Otherwise, there are different kinds of speciality shops for furniture and household items.
Q: What is your favourite food around Joo Chiat? What do you normally order?
You can also get a wide variety of food that caters to everybody’s needs – there is Hawker, Western, Vietnamese, Indian, and Thai food.
I normally eat local food. So I go either to the Hawker Centre or have some Indian food. My favourite dishes is always curry, though, as I really love spicy food. Glory Catering has quite a variety of Malay curries. There are also good Indian curries in the local coffee shop as well as in the Village Hotel Katong.
Q: Why would you recommend Joo Chiat?
The east is the best place to live in. First of all, you are very close to the beach and East Coast Park, offering plenty of activities for you and even for your pets. Everything is very close and accessible – no matter whether shops or food.
Travelling, eating, and drinking his way through life, Peter is continuously hungry for more. Always looking something new and exciting every single day, his day starts before the sunrise and ends longer after the sunset.
