US Ambassador enjoys first hawker experience at Tiong Bahru Market

SINGAPORE: The United States Ambassador to Singapore, Anjani K Sinha, shared on Wednesday (Dec 31) that he had his first experience at a local hawker centre just before 2025 ended.

In a Facebook post on the US Embassy Singapore page, it can be seen that the Ambassador visited Tiong Bahru Market. Tiong Bahru Hainanese Chicken Rice, a Michelin Bib Gourmand awardee, is tagged in the post.

“Feeling grateful to be able to share my first hawker experience in Singapore with my family and Embassy colleagues as the year comes to a close. We had a wonderful time visiting one of the city’s iconic hawker centers, tasting amazing food, meeting locals, and celebrating the holidays together. Cheers to a joyful end of the year and looking forward to what’s ahead in 2026!” he wrote.

In the photos the Ambassador shared, a variety of dishes such as carrot cake, fried sotong prawn mee, and Hainanese curry rice were part of the meal he shared with his family and colleagues. Additionally, to make it a truly Singaporean experience, there were tissue packets with labels that read “CHOPE! Table taken” along with the dishes.

For dessert, he appeared to enjoy ice kacang, a popular shaved ice treat with colourful sweet syrups.

What netizens are saying

In the comments on the post, many Facebook users wished the Ambassador a Happy New Year and invited him to visit other parts of Singapore.

“Singapore hawker food is one of its kind in the world. It’s good to see H.E.Ambassador Sinha enjoying it. Have a blessed 2026,” wrote one.

“Happy New Year, Sir! Your first visit to the hawker took quite some time to finally happen. Hopefully, you will get to taste more Singapore delicacies during your stint,” commented another.

“Please visit different zones for different feels of Singapore to get a complete picture of the country,” wrote a third, while another chimed in with, “Please try Peranakan / Nonya cuisine next time if you can.”

“Thanks for visiting Tiong Bahru! I trust you found our market and community a vibrant and welcoming one!” a Facebook user wrote.

Hand-picked for the job

While Ambassador Sinha was handpicked by President Donald Trump for the job, his posting has not been without a measure of controversy.

While he was being vetted for the position last July, the grilling he received from Illinois Senator Tammy Duckworth went viral. Ms Duckworth had asked Dr Sinha a series of questions regarding Singapore’s economy, the US Navy’s work with Singapore, and when the city-state would chair ASEAN, which he visibly struggled to answer.

Early last month, remarks he made in an interview raised more than a few eyebrows, with commenters online critical of his characterisation of the relations between the two countries when it comes to trade. /TISG

Read also: ‘So he is a debt collector, I presume’ — S’poreans react to US Ambassador implying that SG owes US for past help