Geylang Serai is one of our favourite places to host a food tour. The area is one of the main Malay enclaves of Singapore. As such it is full of wonderful sights, smells and tastes. The beating heart of Geylang Serai is the wet market.
Geylang Serai wet market is the only market in Singapore that is 100% halal. There is no pork on offer anywhere here. Instead you will find the shoppers spoilt for fresh Malay influenced produce. Bananas in all shapes and sizes, coconuts, palm sugar, tempeh, kampong chicken, the list goes on.
From a lemongrass plantation
Geylang Serai is located on the east side of Singapore. If you have done our Katong food tour, Geylang Serai is the area at the top of Joo Chiat road where the tour begins. The word “serai” means lemongrass in Malay. And is a nod to the early Malay settlers who harvested lemongrass there.
In the early 1960’s Geylang Serai was transformed thanks to the introduction of HDB’s. HDB’s are our version of public housing. With these new apartments also came the market. In 2004 the market and some of the older apartments were demolished. It wasn’t until 2010 that the new market opened up. The design of today’s Geylang Serai market reflects the architecture of an old Malay house. The high sloping ceilings and the ornate Malay motifs make it an instantly recognisable landmark.
Geylang Serai wet market today
On the ground floor you’ll find the wet market. This is always busy in the mornings. Popular with house cooks as well as professional chefs. You’ll also find a lot of Singapore’s Thai community here. Southern Thai cooking is similar to Malay cooking in many ways. Upstairs there is another market, this time for clothes and gadgets. And of course there’s a hawker centre. If you like Nasi Lemak, or Otah come here. You’ll also be able to find the famous Putu Piring stall here.
It is common for us in Singapore to view Geylang Serai as just an area for Malays. As a result when we hold our corporate team food tours here we find a lot of locals know very little about the place. It’s one of the friendliest places in Singapore and well worth a visit.
You can find out more about Singapore’s food and markets on our food tours. Go to www.singabites.com/tours or email us at info@singabites.com
