Singapore-style Food Center Opens in New York
2022-10-02
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1For the first time, a Singapore-style cooked food center has opened in New York.
2It brings flavors from the Southeast Asian island's mix of Malay, Chinese, Indian and other cultures to an American food court.
3Urban Hawker, in midtown Manhattan, has 17 food sellers that were chosen by KF Seetoh, the food center's curator.
4Eleven of the sellers come directly from Singapore.
5Each seller has a well-known dish such as crab chili, oyster omelet, Hainanese chicken rice or nasi lemak, a rice dish.
6Seetoh said, "I came across Singaporeans who had been living in the United States in New York for like 20, 30, 35 years, and they still miss Singapore food."
7He added, "Street food in Singapore is not something you burn or deep fry. It's fairly complex. They take six hours just to prepare a meal to get it ready at 10 a.m. or 11 a.m."
8The idea for the food hall was born when Seetoh met the famous U.S. cook Anthony Bourdain in 2013 at a street food event in Singapore.
9Bourdain liked the idea of a cooked food center, also called a hawker center, in New York.
10Seetoh later discussed the idea with Eldon Scott, president of Urbanspace.
11Scott, a property manager who curates public markets, quickly agreed.
12"The amazing thing about him saying yes was that he's never been to Singapore," Seetoh said.
13Seetoh hopes that this hawker center will be the first of many in the U.S.
14"It's just like exporting grandmother's deliciousness, the food that I grew up with," he said.
15Magdalene Sim, a Singaporean, said on social media about the new hawker center:
16"Food was good but something was missing without plastic plates, cutlery, and sweltering heat."
17Sweltering is a term that means very hot. Sim added that the lines of people "were the same though."
18Julie Lee, on her third visit, praised Hainan Jones' chicken over rice.
19"Everyone should give it a try. So much flavor, so tender," she said.
20I'm John Russell.
1For the first time, a Singapore-style cooked food center has opened in New York. It brings flavors from the Southeast Asian island's mix of Malay, Chinese, Indian and other cultures to an American food court. 2Urban Hawker, in midtown Manhattan, has 17 food sellers that were chosen by KF Seetoh, the food center's curator. Eleven of the sellers come directly from Singapore. Each seller has a well-known dish such as crab chili, oyster omelet, Hainanese chicken rice or nasi lemak, a rice dish. 3Seetoh said, "I came across Singaporeans who had been living in the United States in New York for like 20, 30, 35 years, and they still miss Singapore food." 4He added, "Street food in Singapore is not something you burn or deep fry. It's fairly complex. They take six hours just to prepare a meal to get it ready at 10 a.m. or 11 a.m." 5The idea for the food hall was born when Seetoh met the famous U.S. cook Anthony Bourdain in 2013 at a street food event in Singapore. Bourdain liked the idea of a cooked food center, also called a hawker center, in New York. 6Seetoh later discussed the idea with Eldon Scott, president of Urbanspace. Scott, a property manager who curates public markets, quickly agreed. 7"The amazing thing about him saying yes was that he's never been to Singapore," Seetoh said. 8Seetoh hopes that this hawker center will be the first of many in the U.S. "It's just like exporting grandmother's deliciousness, the food that I grew up with," he said. 9Magdalene Sim, a Singaporean, said on social media about the new hawker center: "Food was good but something was missing without plastic plates, cutlery, and sweltering heat." Sweltering is a term that means very hot. Sim added that the lines of people "were the same though." 10Julie Lee, on her third visit, praised Hainan Jones' chicken over rice. "Everyone should give it a try. So much flavor, so tender," she said. 11I'm John Russell. 12Roselle Chen reported on this story for Reuters. John Russell adapted it for VOA Learning English. 13_____________________________________________________________________ 14Words in This Story 15style -- n. a particular way in which something is done, created, or performed 16curate - v. to select and organize (artistic works) for presentation in (something, such as an exhibit, show, or program) 17deliciousness - n. the quality of having a very pleasant taste 18cutlery - n. forks, spoons, and knives used for serving and eating food 19_____________________________________________________________________ 20We want to hear from you. 21We have a new comment system. Here is how it works: 22Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.