Cost of Food at Newton Circus

[Fishhead]

How much should I pray for those huge prawns at Newton Circus ?  I am wary of getting ripped off.

[The Raw Prawn]

For about 25 years now, I've been watching loads of expats and a few locals go to Newton Circus get ripped off and loving it.

I've always wondered why - the food is crap, overpriced and underportioned and yet people go like the blazes to get ripped off.

In the day time during lunch, sanity prevails and the food and prices go "local" but people who go "tourist" at night and have been going to Newton deserve to get ripped off (and seem to love it). It's a ripoff joint, it's filthy - always will be.

[Fishhead]

OK - what should I expect to pay somewhere else for those big prawns ?  Are all hawker centres dirty ?

[Falling Fruit Roundabout]

Newton doesn't have to be a rip off, but make sure you know what you are getting and how much you are paying.

It is likely to cost more than most non tourist places, but not necessarily massively more. No doubt the stall holders have to pay a premium for their stalls because of the location.

If you look at the signs on the stalls closely they quote prices for fish, crab, prawns etc. by weight of 100gm.

I think a lot of disatisfaction comes from people who see the prices on the signs, but do not realise how little you get in 100gm, especially when a lot of it is shell.

If you eat chicken rice instead of tiger prawns, you won't get such a big hole in your pocket.

[skank]

Those big prawns come in to Singapore dead on ice or already flash frozen so actually they're not that nice

Better go for smaller, fresher prawns, taste better too.

Same deal on lobsters.

Everything else there is pretty fresh

[NE]

regards being dirty - depending on your standards the answer is likely to be yes, in your own country they would probably be closed down and fined but then you must remember you're not at home

[Know your price]

When you select your food, ask them to weigh it in front of you and to advise the price. This way, you should see what you are getting and how much you are paying. I have seen some tourists ask for a crab, and it never went on the scales, straight to the board to be cut and cooked.

[Skin Deep]

Newton Circus is for Japanese (who will pay any price) and stupid tourists who think it is quaint.  Fact is it is a rip and always has been.  There are many other much better and much cheaper places to have a good meal.

[skank]

Actually if you go to Newton on any given day you will see a great number  of Singaporeans mixed in w/the tourists. Yes it is a tourist joint but loads of Singaporeans go there regularly.

The only time I ever saw a huge groundswell of popular opinion move the govt here is when after a some pretty messy killings due to late night drunken rumbles & the opening of Lau Pa Sat. The govt announced it was going to close Newton (& put the land for sale for more Newton condo's as we now had Lau Pa Sat for the tourists to go to). The letters to the editor, chat rooms, Radio DJ's all went into overdrive & that plan was scuttled pretty quickly.

Anyhow just look around & you will see a lot of locals also patronize Newton. We don't go there much anymore even though we live closeby, we go to cheaper hawker centres with equal or better food, but Newton is OK if you've sussed your regular vendors out.  There still is some mighty good eats available there & hey the Newton Show is better than MediaCorp stuff..

What bothers me is the touts, I want to punch em out, you see them trying to claim a comission for "leading" me to vendor I've been going to for around 10 years.

As for whether the hawker centres are "dirty" , this is Singapore compared to the rest of Asia this is sterile. They check the stalls quite regularly all over Singapore & close the true offenders, the problem w/hawkers is that the whole cooking & cleaning operation is visible to all, trust me some of the "clean" restuarants you patronize have kitchen & cleaning habits much worse than you can imagine. At least w/Hawkers what you see is what you get.

[Aliya]

Yes, the prawns are such a ripoff!!  Agggghh!  .

Went there once, never again.  Tend to go to East Coast hawker centre on ECParkway (very local which is great and the trick is to take a bottle of wine and blanket and sit on beach) or other local places.  Most hawker centres do prawns, maybe not that big.  They are v. v. v. jolly nice though.

Anyone else know where to get the big prawns without going to East Coast?

I dont find hawker centres that dirty, used to it now I suppose, and after a while you get used to all the bugs, our heightened immunity is supposed to stand us in good stead when we all go back to where we came from (if we ever do!  

[cs]

Why is everyone being so stingy?

Surely if you are earning $10k or $20k a month, you don't have go around Singapore hunting for the cheapest prawns ...

Just go eat and be happy !

[Aliya]

Oh!!!!  If only I was.....

But no one likes to be horrendously overcharged do they...

[cs]

Well I heard one of restaurants at the Fullerton charges $500 for a dinner for 2 and yet no one complains they are overcharging ...

Why pick on Newton?

Just like Fullerton, you are paying for the ambience and the experience which you don't quite get eating at say a hawker centre in Ang Mo Kio Ave 3.

Come 2-3 am in the morning when a lot of the bars and pubs close, you can see lots of pple go there and chill out. It is therefore nicest pple watching spots in Sg.

If you really want to do it on the cheap, you could of course go there, nurse a $0.80 cup of coffee and hang out.

But then that wouldn't be nearly as much fun as doing it in style with a huge plate of perfectly barbecued prawns would it?

[This message has been edited by cs (edited 21-01-2003).]

[Gone]

I have attended weekly Newton Circus for more than a year, and I have seen there much more locals than tourists !! So when you don't know, please shut up.
Regarding prices, yes, for sure they will try to sell you for 2 kg a crab that fits in your hand. Too bad for you if you do not have any idea about prices, you will get ripped off wherever you go on the planet !!
And regarding cleanliness, do not even think about one of these eating places in touristic rivieras of France or Spain, you will scream and fly back to Newton Circus straight away.

[Sir Issac Newton]

Live nearby and have been three times. suffered the next day (everytime). Hygiene isnot the most important thing on the menu at NC. Good if you fancy a beer at 2 or 3am and are near orchard. On the three time I have been I have never paid the same price for the same dishes.
Lots of tourists and lots of locals but mostly tourists. Locals are usually with overseas friends. I won't be going again eve for a beer. The place needs a good jet wash and steam clean!