I ended up at ABC Brickworks Market & Food Centre on a weekday morning because of one very specific craving: hot soup, proper rice, and that comforting hawker centre noise that somehow makes food taste better. You know the sound lah. Metal trays clanging, aunties shouting order numbers, someone dragging a plastic chair across the floor like a construction project. Very Singapore.
ABC Brickworks Market & Food Centre is not flashy. It does not need to be. It has the kind of food confidence that comes from decades of feeding office workers, retirees, families, taxi uncles, and hungry people who just want something steady and satisfying.
First Impressions of ABC Brickworks Market: Heat, Steam, and the Morning Crowd
The first thing I noticed was the rhythm. ABC Brickworks feels like it has different moods throughout the day.
In the morning, it is calmer. You see kopi cups, kaya toast, economic bee hoon, and older folks sitting with newspapers like they have solved life already. By lunchtime, the whole place wakes up. Queues form fast, tables disappear faster, and suddenly everyone becomes slightly more kiasu but still polite enough not to start war.
The air carries a mix of smells that only proper hawker centres can produce:
- Roasted meat glaze dripping into trays, especially from Fatty Cheong’s famous char siew and roast duck
- Wok hei from fried noodles like penang fried kway teow
- Herbal soup steam rising from claypots filled with double boiled soups such as tonic ginseng chicken soup and cucumber pork ribs soup
- Fried shallots and garlic oil
- Kopi, sugar, and toasted bread
Wah, if you are feeling hungry, this place will attack you from all sides.
What ABC Brickworks Food Centre Is Known For
ABC Brickworks sits along Jalan Bukit Merah and is often associated with old-school hawker favourites, serious lunch crowds, and a few stalls that have gained wider attention over the years. Many people come here for hearty local food rather than fancy plating.
The big pulls are usually:
- Double boiled soups like those from Ah Er Soup, a Michelin Bib Gourmand hawker stall offering nourishing bowls with ingredients such as fish maw, buddha jumps, and ruby goji berries
- Fried Hokkien mee and bee hoon dishes, including the crowd favourite huat teochew satay beehoon from Soon Huat Teochew Satay
- Roast meats and char siew rice from Fatty Cheong, known for its signature char siew bao and generous portions of pork slices and chinese sausage
- Western food like chicken chop and pork cheese sausage from hawker stalls offering affordable prices and classic dishes
What I like is that the food centre has range. You can come alone for a simple bowl of tonic ginseng chicken soup, come with colleagues for a messy lunch table full of plates featuring cuttlefish kang kong, salted fish, and french beans, or tapao dinner for the family without feeling like your wallet has been bullied.
Michelin-Recognised Stalls at ABC Brickworks Market, Explained Calmly
Let me say this carefully, because Singaporeans are very sharp about food claims. ABC Brickworks is often talked about in connection with Michelin-recognised hawker stalls, especially those that have appeared in the Michelin Bib Gourmand selection or Michelin Guide coverage over the years.
This does not mean every famous stall here has a Michelin star. A Michelin star and a Bib Gourmand mention are different things. Bib Gourmand generally points to good food at good value. For hawker food, that matters a lot because value is part of the whole experience. If a bowl makes you happy and still leaves money for kopi, that one deserves respect.
Ah Er Soup: Comfort in a Bowl at ABC Food Centre
One stall many locals associate with Michelin attention is Ah Er Soup, known for double boiled soups. I have always found soup stalls interesting because they look quiet compared with louder wok stations, but the work behind them is serious.
This is the kind of food I order when I am tired or when my body is quietly telling me, “Bro, enough fried stuff for one week.” Add rice or noodles and maybe a side dish like tau pok or ikan bilis, and suddenly lunch feels very sensible. Cannot lie, sometimes sensible food is the most shiok.
Fatty Cheong at Brickworks Food Centre: Roast Meats and Char Siew Cravings
ABC Brickworks is well known among many locals for roast meat options, especially char siew rice. The best versions have that caramelized edge, slightly sticky glaze, and fatty bits that melt instead of chew like rubber.
When I see char siew hanging behind glass, I always look for the shine. Too dry, sian already. Too red and artificial looking, also suspicious. The good ones have a deep, roasted color and a smoky sweetness that hits before you even sit down.
Fatty Cheong’s signature dish is the Bu Jian Tian char siew, a cut from the pig’s underarm, glazed with dark sauce and oyster sauce for an umami boost. The stall offers generous portions of marinated chicken, roast duck, and chinese sausage as well.
My advice: Order it with rice, cucumber, and sauce over everything. Not too much sauce until the rice drowns, just enough to coat each spoonful. Simple lunch, maximum satisfaction.
The Bowl Story: Affordable Japanese Donburi at ABC Brickworks Food Centre
Husband-and-wife duo Calvin Lee and Elena Ngian run The Bowl Story, a hawker stall offering affordable Japanese rice bowls like chicken katsu don and pork katsu don, served with miso soup and onsen egg.
The chicken is brined overnight to keep it juicy, then tenderised, coated in panko and fried till golden. Finished with Japanese mayo and a sweet-savoury brown sauce, it’s seriously addictive. Each bowl comes with Japanese rice and pickles.
At the same price, the ebi fry don is another hit, with crisp batter giving way to a fresh prawn bite. You can also opt for the signature curry dishes topped with mild, slightly sweet Japanese curry that complements without being too cloying.
Soon Huat Teochew Satay and Huat Teochew Satay Beehoon: Traditional Dishes at ABC Market
Satay bee hoon may be a fading dish in Singapore, but at Soon Huat Teochew Satay, it remains a crowd favourite. The dish features bee hoon, kang kong, cuttlefish, tau pok, and bean sprouts all smothered in a thick, nutty peanut sauce made with dried shrimp, chilli padi, and belachan.
The ABC Brickworks food centre outlet is where the elderly couple have been preparing this traditional dish from scratch every day, preserving a culinary expertise that is rare to find.
Other Stalls That Deserve Love at Brickworks Market
Michelin recognition is nice, but hawker centres survive because of the whole ecosystem. The famous stalls bring people in, but the everyday stalls keep people returning.
Jason Penang Cuisine: Authentic Penang Flavours
Jason Penang Cuisine serves classic dishes like penang assam laksa, penang fried kway teow, and pork slices with salted fish. Chef Jason’s culinary expertise shines through the wok hei and balanced flavours, making it a must-try at ABC Brickworks Market.
Jin Jin Dessert: Sweet Treats and Gangster Ice
For dessert, Jin Jin Dessert is a must-visit hawker stall offering over 40 varieties of hot and cold desserts. Their gangster ice, or liu mang bing, cleverly named after the Chinese word pun combining durian and mango, features fresh mango cubes, durian puree, and a drizzle of condensed milk over shaved ice.
The power chendol, drizzled with gula melaka and coconut milk, is another crowd favourite, as is their radiant mulan drink loaded with peach gum, snow fungus, and ruby goji berries.
Yuan Claypot Rice: Classic Claypot Rice with Generous Portions
Yuan Claypot Rice is synonymous with ABC Brickworks, cooking claypot rice over charcoal with marinated chicken, chinese sausage, salted fish, and dried shrimp. The signature curry and double boiled soups like old cucumber pork ribs soup pair perfectly with this traditional dish.
Cha Mulan: TCM-Inspired Drinks at ABC Market
Cha Mulan offers traditional Chinese medicine-inspired drinks featuring ingredients like snow fungus, peach gum, and ruby goji berries. Their radiant mulan and cleanse mulan drinks are both nourishing and refreshing, a unique addition to the hawker centre’s drink stall offers.
Practical Notes From My Visit to ABC Brickworks Food Centre
Opening Hours and Best Time to Go
Most stalls start opening from early morning, with some like Nusa & Tara and Swee Kee Wanton Noodles opening at 5:30 am. Peak lunch is from 12 pm to 2 pm, so if you want choice without stress, aim for 11 am to 11:30 am.
Dinner can be pleasant too, though some popular stalls may sell out or wind down earlier. Always check stall opening hours if you are going for one specific dish.
Queue Strategy and Seating Reality
My simple approach:
- If you come with friends, split the queues.
- One person finds seats, one person orders mains, one person handles drinks.
- Do not hover too aggressively beside a table. Subtle table hunting, can. Full predator mode, a bit paiseh.
- Bring tissue, but use chope culture responsibly lah.
During peak lunch, seats are precious. Be ready to share tables. This is normal hawker life. If you sit with strangers, just give a small nod and keep your tray tidy. Very simple, very civilized.
Why I Keep Coming Back to ABC Brickworks Market
What makes ABC Brickworks Market & Food Centre worth revisiting is not just one stall or one famous name. It is the feeling that this place still belongs to everyday people.
There are office workers eating fast before meetings. Aunties comparing vegetable prices after marketing. Uncles drinking kopi slowly like time is not chasing them. Hawkers calling out order numbers, wiping counters, moving nonstop through the heat.
Go Down Hungry, Leave Happy at ABC Brickworks Food Centre
ABC Brickworks Market & Food Centre is the kind of place I would tell a friend to visit without making a big drama out of it. Go on a weekday before the lunch rush if you can. Bring one makan kaki so you can share more dishes. Order soup, something smoky from the wok, maybe roast meat, then finish with a cold drink like cha mulan or power chendol.
Do not overthink it. Walk around, look at what people are eating, join a queue that feels right, and trust your nose a bit. That is half the fun.
If you have not been in a while, save this for your next makan plan. And if you go, tell me what you ordered. Especially if you found something underrated. Don’t bojio, can?
If you're looking for Singapore restaurants to explore and eat be sure to visit our currated list of restaurant in Orchard Plaza at Tasteourtraditions.com
