Who’s come out on top in the Grab Foodie Awards 2022? Here’s a round-up

After a month of public voting, the first-ever Grab Foodie Awards has wrapped, with 34 eateries emerging as Singapore’s hot favourites.

Tech company Grab launched the awards this year, with the hope of raising awareness and celebrating the hawkers, cafes and restaurants that helped to feed Singapore through the pandemic’s restrictions. Most importantly, though, it is intended to connect brands with their foodie fans, and help Singaporeans discover new places to eat at. 

The inaugural Grab Foodie Awards comprised three key sections.

The awards

First, the public voting section put 80 of Singapore’s top eateries against one another in a test of popularity. More than 12,000 unique voters weighed in on their favourite food haunts, bubble tea spots, local hawker heroes and more across eight categories, and finally crowned their champions after a month of deliberation.

From these categories, a HungryGoWhere panel of selected judges crowned seven HungryGoWhere Choice awardees. Winners in these categories showcased ingenuity, creativity and careful thought in their dishes, and took home prizes such as Most Creative Dish and Best Spill-Safe Packaging.

Finally, six eateries won in the data-based GrabFood Pros category, which included nominees leading the charge with first-in-class best practices. In this portion, some trophies up for grabs included the Speediest Prep, Most Improved, and Top Sales.

The highlights

Of these, Singapore’s foodies were most interested in the Top Teatime Treat category with almost 11,800 votes in total. 

Putien (Kitchener Road) and Tiong Bahru Bakery were the big winners, with each eatery taking home two trophies.

The one-Michelin-starred Putien won the popular vote in the Gourmand’s Choice category, as well as the HungryGoWhere’s Choice for Best Spill-Safe Packaging.

Meanwhile, Tiong Bahru Bakery had the Best Sweets among the Early Risers eateries, and was HungryGoWhere’s Overall Choice in the same category.

Here’s a quick rundown on the most popular winners in each category.

Gourmand’s Choice: Putien (Kitchener Road)

Homegrown restaurant Putien prides itself on hearty, quality food from the Fujian region in China. Its flagship outlet on Kitchener Road has taken home a Michelin star in the last six editions of the guide.

HungryGoWhere found its set meals affordable, and it provided good quality in relation to its prices. The dishes arrived packed in an aluminium bag to retain heat, and tightly sealed with delivery in mind.

What to order: Fujian seafood lor mee, fried Heng Hwa beehoon
Eligible areas for delivery: North, South, East, West, Central

Early Riser’s Choice — Best Savoury: Two Men Bagel House

There’s nothing better than a hearty breakfast, and our voters found Two Men Bagel House served the best savouries of the lot.

Its signature bagels are freshly baked in-house each day, with carefully curated and creatively named fillings.

What to order: Lox, Personal Best
Eligible areas for delivery: Central, South

Top Teatime Treat — Best Snack: Starbucks

This global beverage chain proved to be a hot favourite among Singapore’s coffee lovers and midday snackers.

Take your pick from a range of handcrafted signature beverages, as well as sweet nibbles and savoury bites if you’re feeling peckish.

What to order: Barista Favourites dessert box, oatmilk cocoa macchiato
Eligible areas for delivery: All

Best Bubble Tea — Best Pearls: Koi The

Koi, as it’s more commonly called, is considered by many to be the OG of specialty bubble tea in Singapore, and those fans truly have come through to ensure their favourite brand came out tops in this category.

What to order: Golden bubble tea, oolong tea macchiato
Eligible areas for delivery: North, South, East, West, Central

Best Late-Night Eats — Best Snack: Swee Choon Tim Sum Restaurant

With its comforting and consistent dim sum offerings, Swee Choon Tim Sum is often the first port of call for many of Singapore’s clubbers and supper snackers.

From fried doughy snacks to steamed buns chock-full of savoury meat or gooey lava centres, there’s truly something for everyone.

What to order: Swee Choon mee suah kueh, Shanghai xiao long bao
Eligible areas for delivery: East, Central

Local Hero — Quick Meal: Crave Nasi Lemak

Crave Nasi Lemak won the honours of Best Quick Meal in the Local Hero category, with its signature nasi lemak combinations and tasty sides.

Its conveniently packaged set meals, be they for solo eating or sharing, make it a comforting yet easy meal to order.

What to order: Nasi lemak with chicken wing, otak
Eligible areas for delivery: North, South, East, West, Central

Lean & Light — Best Light Meal: The Soup Spoon Union

This is a go-to for a fuss-free meal, especially if you’re into clean eating. With hearty soups, sandwiches, salads and wraps, The Soup Spoon Union is a reliable option for a light lunch.

What to order: Tokyo chicken stew, caesar salad
Eligible areas for delivery: North, South, East, West, Central

Party Food Champ — Fried Chicken: 4Fingers Crispy Chicken

Fried chicken is always a good choice for finger food at a party, and 4Fingers Crispy Chicken makes it easy to order in for a big family function or just a meal with some friends. 

What to order: Soy wingettes & drumettes, hot drumsticks
Eligible areas for delivery: North, East, West, Central 

Full list of winners

Here’s the full list of Grab Foodie Award 2022 winners.

Popular vote

Gourmand’s Choice Award

• Overall: Putien (Kitchener Road)

Early Risers Choice Award

• Best Savoury: Two Men Bagel House
• Best Sweet: Tiong Bahru Bakery
• Best Coffee: % Arabica

Top Teatime Treat Award

• Best Snack: Starbucks
• Best Late Lunch: Tsui Wah

Best Bubble Tea Award

• Best Pearls: Koi The
• Best Tea: Chicha San Chen
• Best Flavour Selection: LiHo Tea

Best Late-Night Eats Award

• Best Snack: Swee Choon Tim Sum Restaurant
• Best Late Dinner: Common Grill by Collin’s

Local Hero Award

• Best Seafood: Jumbo Seafood
• Best Meat: Bismillah Biryani
• Best Quick Meal: Crave Nasi Lemak
• Best Full Feast: A-One Signature

Lean & Light Award

• Best Light Lunch: The Soup Spoon Union
• Best Thirst Quencher: Fruce
• Best Dessert: Subway

Party Food Champs Award

• Best Burgers: Shake Shack
• Best Fried Chicken: 4Fingers Crispy Chicken
• Best Pizza: Peperoni Pizzeria

HungryGoWhere Choice Awards

• Gourmand: Boon Tong Kee
• Early Risers: Tiong Bahru Bakery
• Teatime Treat: Ji De Chi Dessert
• Late Night: Takagi Ramen
• Most Creative Dish: Chicken ‘N’ Watermelon ‘N’ Waffles (Yardbird Southern Table & Bar)
• Best-Looking Food/Drink: Hitsumabushi (Unagi Tei Japanese Restaurant)
• Most Spill-Safe Packaging: Putien – Kitchener Road

GrabFood Pros data-based category

• Top Sales: McDonald’s
• Top Sales: Mr Coconut
• Campaign King: Maki-San
• Campaign King: Flash Coffee
• Most Improved: Ishiro Fusion Bowl
• Speediest Prep: Zhen Neng Zhu La Mian Xiao Long Bao – Connexis

Hearty congratulations to all the winners!

Try these eateries for yourself on the GrabFood delivery service. Alternatively, book a ride to these places.

This article was written in partnership with Grab.