Some of Singapore’s best food is its street food—though these days you won’t find it being sold on the streets. In the post-war years up until the 1960s, hawking food on the street was rampant and unregulated, which lead to congested roads and sanitation concerns. That all changed starting in the 1970s when the government began building hawker centers, where the hawkers could cook in more sanitary conditions and be more easily monitored. Today, the best of the more than 100 hawker centers tend to be spotless, with nary a stray paper napkin on the ground. And they’re the best places for sampling authentic local cuisine for only a few dollars. At Maxwell Road Food Centre, a perennial favorite with more than 100 stalls, try chicken rice and fresh fruit juices. The hawker center in Tiong Bahru market is far less touristed though, and great for breakfast. You won’t go wrong with fried carrot cake (a kind of egg omelet with chunks of pillowy radish cake) and warm soya bean milk.