The annual Singapore Food Festival (SFF), a landmark event for avid foodies, is back to celebrate its 30th anniversary from 19th to 30th July 2023.

What Can Visitors Expect? 

The Singapore Food Festival 2023 will be held at the Bayfront Event Space from 19th to 30th July 2023. It will feature the largest Festival Village yet, housing over 100 brands offering traditional classics to new and innovative dishes.

This year, Festival Village zones include:

1. SG Food Walk:

A nod to Singapore’s diversity of flavours, this zone will feature festival-exclusives such as curry chicken fried popiah (thin crepe-like roll) from Mr. Popiah and calamari nachos with a remoulade made from belimbing (a fruit native to Malaysia and Indonesia) – a collaboration between sustainability-focused restaurant Kausmo and local fish farm Ah Hua Kelong. Other festival-only options include papachos (North Indian crackers), veggie bajji (fritter) and prawn mee (yellow noodles) roll by The Black Hole Group; and bakmi hae bee hiam (wheat noodles with dried shrimp chilli paste) from Kulon.

Indulge in savoury flavor bombs from the likes of the Black Hole Group and Ah Hua Kelong as you stroll along the Food Walk.

2. Food Cartel:

From pop-ups to bar concepts and masterclasses, foodies can catch their favourite chefs and personalities in action at Food Cartel.

• Participate in hybrid masterclasses conducted by renowned chefs including Ivan Yeo of Blue Smoke; Eric Neo of the Singapore Chef’s Association; Paul Longworth of Rhubarb Le Restaurant; and Shen Tan of Ownself Make Chef. Alongside them will be chefs participating in four-hands collaborations: Dylan Ong of The Masses and Linh of Bon Boocha Vietnam; and Zulfadil Normedi and Muhammad Fadzil of The Black Hole Group
• Prepare to get hands-on as granola café Dearborn and Sourbombe Artisanal Bakery join forces to offer food enthusiasts the chance to curate their own customised indulgence – a personalised granola bag or bespoke bombolini, put together from a selection of the brands’ best-selling items.

Build your own bombolini at the Sourbombe x Dearborn booth! Choose from Chef Chris' Peanut Butter and Jelly or Chef Gen's Blue Planet donut, and top with your own customized granola mix.

3. Café Boulevard

A tribute to Singapore’s thriving café culture and the passion of local coffee artisans, Café Boulevard features fine coffee and bakes from homegrown names such as oat milk brand Oatside, Le Matin Patisserie, and Hapi Café in collaboration with Pourabucha kombucha.

Snack on sweet treats like this Ispahan Pate de Fruit from Le Matin Patisserie at the Cafe Boulevard!

4. Sweets Alley

Offerings in this zone are sure to satisfy sugar cravings with a mix of traditional and modern sweets such as Chinese desserts from traditional dessert shop Yat Ka Yan; Nonya-style handmade ang ku kueh (glutinous rice flour skin encasing a sweet or savoury filling) from Ji Xiang Ang Ku Kueh; and artisanal local ice cream company Creamier with exclusive flavours such as sesame tang yuan (glutinous rice balls) and waffled putu piring (palm sugar-filled rice flour cake).

Bite into these silky handmade Hae Bee Hiam ang ku kuehs and purple yam ang ku kuehs from Ji Xiang Ang Ku Kueh at the Sweets Alley!

Another Festival Village highlight is SG Mama Shop, a collaboration between local ecommerce platform Food Culture Singapore and Easygo AI Vending Machine. Marrying old and new, modern brands – including the world’s first sustainable soy wine Sachi and Made with Passion1 brands Hook Coffee and Mekhala cooking pastes and sauces – line the shelves in the iconic setting of a recreated mama shop, an important element of Singapore’s rich cultural heritage. 

Fringe events, tours, and workshops

Hands-on gourmands can pick from a curated line-up of workshops including Indie Singapore Tours’ Market, Mingle, Mixology tour, which brings participants to Tiong Bahru market for fresh herbs for their own concoction.

Those looking for a sugar rush can join pastry chef Yeo Min of Pastories in Joo Chiat for a heritage shophouse cake workshop (above); or make traditional min jiang kueh (peanut pancake) with Halal-certified Munchi Pancakes at Lau Pa Sat.

The spotlight shines brighter on the beverage segment at the festival this year, a reflection of the rising trend of microbreweries and distilleries in Singapore.

While at the Festival, be sure to guzzle down the Pandan Gin & Tibicos from Papa Doble - a refreshing blend of redistilled pandan Roku Gin and fermented chin chow.

Apart from the thirstquenching offerings by the likes of Papa Doble, Archipelago Brewery and The 1925 Brewing Co at the Festival Village, SFF fringe event Brewnanza Fest by Brewlander will showcase over 100 unique craft beers at the same spot from 3 to 6 August 2023.

What Do My Tickets Get Me?

Visitors can choose from multiple ticket options, including:

• Entry Pass ($8++): Offers single-entry to the following zones: SG Food Work, Sweets Alley, Cafe Boulevard, The Grounds, SG Mama Shop, Durain BB Park and Tiger Food Street. Note that this ticket is only for single-entry (re-entry is not allowed) and does not include entry to the air-conditioned Food Cartel. 
• Premium Pass ($18++): Offers multi-entry access to all the zones in Entry Pass, as well as the air-conditioned Food Cartel. Pass-holders also receive 1x Sure Win Gift from SG Mama Shop and 1x Free Drink.
• Drinking Pass ($28++): Offers multi-entry access to all the zones in Entry Pass, as well as the air-conditioned Food Cartel. Pass-holders also receive 1x Free Drink, 1x Free Beer and 1x Free Cocktail.

Do note that tickets will not be available for purchase onsite, and can only be purchased online here! 

For more information, visit the Singapore Food Festival official website here! 

Kanpai!

88 Bamboo Editorial Team