Tekka Centre Food Guide: Best Hawker Stalls

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Tekka Centre combines a wet market on the ground floor with a hawker centre upstairs, right next to Little India MRT and Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple. This Tekka Centre food guide covers the stalls worth queuing for. It runs from a Michelin-recognised briyani stall to Sri Lankan rice sets you won’t easily find elsewhere in Singapore.

Allauddin’s Briyani: The Michelin-Recognised Stall

Allauddin’s Briyani, at #01-229, holds a Michelin Plate for its mutton briyani. It’s generally treated as the single most popular stall in the centre. Expect a queue at lunch. The briyani rice itself, cooked in the meat’s own stock, is usually what people come back for as much as the meat.

Heng Gi Goose and Duck Rice: Michelin Guide, Teochew Style

Heng Gi, at #01-335, serves Teochew-style braised duck rice. It has been mentioned in the Michelin Guide. It’s one of the few non-Indian stalls in the centre with a genuine following, alongside the briyani and prata stalls that dominate Tekka’s reputation.

Zam Zam Muslim Food: Nasi Padang and Egg Prata

Zam Zam, at #01-217, runs a nasi-padang-style counter alongside egg prata and chicken briyani. It’s a good option if you want to pick from a spread of curries and side dishes rather than order a single fixed plate.

Sri Aachi Aappakadai: Fresh Appam

Sri Aachi Aappakadai, at #01-219, specialises in appam, the South Indian fermented rice pancake, made fresh in a range of flavours. It’s a lighter option than briyani or duck rice if you’re grazing across several stalls rather than eating one full meal.

Neha Tiffin Centre: Thosai, Samosa and Putu Mayam

Neha Tiffin Centre, at #01-274, is known for cheap thosai, samosa and putu mayam (steamed rice noodles). It’s a reliable stop for breakfast before the rest of the centre gets busy.

Raja Bojun: Sri Lankan Rice Sets

Raja Bojun, at #01-280, serves Sri Lankan rice sets and pol roti, a cuisine that’s genuinely hard to find elsewhere in Singapore’s hawker centres. If you’ve already tried the Indian and Chinese stalls nearby, this is the stall to seek out for something different.

545 Whampoa Prawn Noodles: Old-School Hae Mee

545 Whampoa Prawn Noodles, at #01-326, serves old-school prawn noodles (hae mee). It’s a combination of yellow noodles and bee hoon in a sambal-spiked prawn broth, topped with fresh prawns. It’s one of the better non-Indian options if you want noodle soup rather than rice.

Using This Tekka Centre Food Guide to Plan Your Visit

Go hungry enough to split a few dishes between two or three people. Portions at most stalls are priced and sized for one, but the point of a hawker centre is trying several things. Lunch (roughly noon to 2pm) is when Allauddin’s queue is longest, so an earlier or later visit saves time if that’s your priority stall. Tekka Centre sits directly above Little India MRT (NE7), so it works as a lunch stop before or after visiting Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple next door.

FAQ: Eating at Tekka Centre

Is Tekka Centre air-conditioned?
No. Like most Singapore hawker centres, it’s open-air with fans, so expect it to be warm, especially around midday.

Do the stalls take cards or only cash?
It varies by stall. Many now accept PayNow or card payments, but carrying small cash notes is still the safer default at a hawker centre.

What’s the difference between Tekka Centre and a sit-down Indian restaurant nearby?
Tekka Centre is faster and cheaper per dish, with stalls specialising in one or two items each. For a full sit-down meal with table service, see our guide to the best Indian restaurants in Little India instead.

Bottom Line

Allauddin’s Briyani and Heng Gi are the two stalls worth planning around, but Tekka Centre rewards grazing across several counters in one visit. Pair it with a stop at Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple next door, or see our full Little India travel guide for the rest of the district. For a full list of Singapore’s hawker centres and their operating hours, the National Environment Agency’s NEA.gov.sg maintains the official directory.