The 50 Cents Fest Singapore Is Coming Back — With Food Inspired By The 1930s Colonial Era

Great news for all you foodies out there!

Back in Singapore from the 28th-29th of July, is the 50 Cents Fest where dish prices start from as low as 50 cents, and cost up to a maximum of $3. (Read: It’s time to feast!)

This year’s 50 Cent Fest takes its cue from the 1930s, and will feature food and an ambience reminiscent of Colonial times when colourful neon sign boards were everywhere and samsui women toiled along the streets.

The food sold by the stalls and vendors are inspired by this era, whether in origin or in key ingredients and spices used in their making.

Held at Chinatown along Smith Street, you can expect more than 40 stalls and vendors to line the 100m street, featuring close to 50 different street bites that run the gamut of desserts to beverages. Here’s where heritage becomes more tangible for feast-goers (quite literally), especially since ethnic cuisines will be featured for the first time ever.

Hungry yet? Here are some prominent must-trys:

Black Pepper Crab

Did you know that pepper was a key source of income for Singapore in the 1930s? You’ll be glad to have another reason when you’re considering a second serving of this well-loved, iconic Singaporean dish. Go ahead. After all, you’d be contributing to nation building (if you lived in that time).

Kopi Gu You

Butter added to black coffee gives the beverage a caramelised flavour. This kopi was rumoured to be the choice beverage of opium smokers as it supposedly smoothed throats.

Uttapam

This dosa-like dish was brought to Singapore by South Indian immigrants in the past. It was well-favoured by labourers because of its affordability, and we’re sure it’s loved even today.

Kerabu Bee Hoon

Cooked in a traditional Peranakan style, this dish consists of tasty ingredients like shallots, belacan, lime juice, toasted grated coconut and ginger tossed together with Chinese vermicelli. Yum. 

Banana balls

Back in the day, Portugese immigrants enjoyed banana fritters for breakfast, and street hawkers localised this into the familiar Pisang Goreng as we know it. Deep fried to a golden finish and complete with the sweet core of banana, this dish packs in both the textures of a satisfying crunch and a soft gooey center.

Fish Molee

A creamy fish curry dish that has Indian and Portuguese roots, this lightly spiced dish is good especially if you’re craving something savoury.

That’s not all! There’ll be Kong Bak Pau, Gula Melaka Ice Balls and Lontong amidst your everyday favourites like Bak Chor Mee and Mee Siam, just to name a few. In short, get excited for a quintessentially Singaporean feast, inspired by our melting pot of culture.

Other than food, you’ll get to experience a little slice of life from what it was like back in those days with the musical performances and activities lined up at Chinatown Food Street.

The 1930s Taxi Girls will be taking the stage, and so will 1023, a local acappella group playing some popular songs of that time. Maybe put a pause on the EDM music just for these two days…and jam to the heady grooves of the 1930s instead.

Besides soaking in the live music, you might want to take a little glimpse into life in those days. Remember the opium smokers, samsui women and gambling dens they write about in History textbooks? You’ll get a little peek into that world with the help of Augmented Reality (AR) technology.

Also, if you miss the good ol’ times, there’ll be back-alley barbers offering haircuts for only $2!

We also love that there will be recycling machines available. Earn yourself a little token when you dispose of your waste in the designated recycling machines on-site. It doesn’t take much to be environmentally-friendly, and we love that the 50 Cents Fest is taking a step in the right direction to help save our earth.


50 CENTS FEST 2018

Address: Chinatown Food Street, on Smith Street.

Dates and timing: 28th-29th July 2018, 11am-11pm. For more information, you can check out the 50 Cents Fest here

Express entry is available at fest attractions when you download the Plus! App. The Plus! App can also be used to plan your journey. Plus! App users will also enjoy priority for the AR 1930’s Walkthrough, the back-alley barber, and redemption of snack rewards at on-site recycling vending machines. 

QR Code payment is available with DBS Paylah!, DBS/ POSB digibank and DBS iWealth®. Download DBS Paylah! to get S$5 with the promo code ‘STEADYLAH’. Download here: dbs.com.sg/dbspaylah

All images taken from 50 Cents Fest