GastroBeats 2025 food guide: 9 stalls to check out at the festival

Excited to check out GastroBeats 2025 and looking for a food guide to navigate the event? Singapore’s biggest music and food festival is back once again at Bayfront Event Space. The festival runs from May 29 to June 22, and is pet friendly, so bring your furry friends along for the ride!

This year’s edition of GastroBeats features an exciting mix of returning crowd favourites and first-time vendors, with many home-based businesses joining the lineup. Expect an eclectic range of street food, from local favourites to creative fusion dishes, alongside live music performances, carnival games, and plenty of spots to chill. 

The 2025 festival also introduces its new themed character — Jelilo, a character designed by Singaporean creative Lester Lim. Keep an eye out for Jelilo throughout the grounds, from art installations and photo ops, to exclusive merchandise drops and interactive corners.

Admission is free, so come for the food, stay for the music, and don’t forget to explore everything in between!

Without further ado, here’s our curated GastroBeats 2025 food guide to help you along:

1. Kai Udon (Stall F42)

Inspired by his love for global flavours, first-time F&B entrepreneur Clive brings a nostalgic touch to every bowl of udon at Kai Udon, bringing across comforting flavours familiar to him from his childhood.

Mala lovers should make a beeline for the mala Mayhem (S$16). It’s a hearty bowl of stir-fried udon tossed in bold, fiery mala sauce, generously loaded with shrimp, pork belly slices, and crab sticks. It was spicy, savoury, and satisfying — we found ourselves scraping the bowl clean.

For something milder, try the Bangkok Heat (S$12). This non-spicy option features tender pork belly in a rich Thai fish sauce, served over its chewy udon — a savoury Thai-inspired treat. 

2. Slurp Your Oysters (Stall F21)

If the name sounds familiar, it’s because Slurp Your Oysters has been making waves at events such as Artbox earlier this year, and now it’s back at GastroBeats with its signature slurpy oysters.

The chilled oysters (from S$16) were incredibly fresh and are served with zesty sauces such as mango salsa or Thai chilli — or you can opt to enjoy them simply on their own, for purists.

If raw isn’t your thing, go for the grilled oysters, which come in mentaiko and grilled cheese flavours — lightly torched, while still retaining a juicy texture.

Another standout was the negitoro pie-tee with ikura (S$18) — delicious negitoro (minced tuna) resting atop wasabi cucumber, crowned with bursts of umami-rich ikura. It’s a creative and flavourful twist on traditional pie tee, that’s sure to satisfy.

3. What The Puff (Stall F37)

What The Puff! was founded by a 23-year-old SUSS finance undergraduate who chose to pursue his passion — a love for curry puffs. Despite his father’s advice to skip university, he made the bold decision to run the business at Changi Village Hawker Centre while managing his studies. Now, he’s bringing his bold and unconventional curry puffs to GastroBeats, with flavours such as chilli crab, mentaiko tuna, and char siew.

Founder Yuan Ming recommended the truffle mushroom chicken (S$6) — savoury and full of umami. The 2 Cheesy 4 U (S$5) was another highlight: Warm, cheesy goodness topped with a drizzle of condensed milk that added a surprisingly sweet-savoury combo.

Its cheesy curry puffs are a true crowd-pleaser — the stretchy cheese pull is no joke! We took on its cheese pull challenge at the booth and managed a 35cm stretch. With weekly giveaways throughout the festival period for the longest pull, this is your chance to snack and score!

4. Warabimochi Kamakura (Stall F20)

Satisfy your sweet tooth at Warabimochi Kamakura, the viral Japanese dessert brand known for its chewy, smooth mochi treats.

Look forward to GastroBeats exclusives such as the black sesame warabimochi (S$19.90), each piece generously dusted with aromatic roasted black sesame powder. Alongside this are its drinks such as the kinako strawberry Royale (from S$13.90), a creamy Hokkaido milk drink infused with thick chunks of strawberry-flavoured warabimochi — adding a delightfully chewy bite to every sip.

Returning crowd favourites such as the matcha strawberry warabimochi drink (from S$11.90) are also on the menu, making this a must-visit for anyone curious about the warabimochi craze — or just in need of a refreshing dessert fix.

5. Tato Thoughts (Stall F27)

When we first came across the home-based business Tato Thoughts, we assumed that it was just tater tots on the menu. But to our surprise, they were actually loaded baked potatoes that were chock-full of fillings. 

We tried its GastroBeats-exclusive flavours, such as the Tato mala chicken (S$14.50) and the Tato smoked salmon (S$16). The latter was our favourite — loaded with fluffy scrambled eggs, smoked salmon, and a generous drizzle of mentaiko sauce, all piled atop a steaming hot baked potato. 

6. Umami (Stall F38)

If you’re not looking for any of the exotic food choices at GastroBeats, head over to Umami for comforting local favourites. Founded by a software engineer, this home-based business serves up a classic hearty bowl of Hokkien mee (S$16) as well as items such as grilled pork or sotong (S$10).  

While the flavours hit the mark, we thought it could use a bit more wok hei to satisfy our cravings for that smoky, charred taste. Still, it’s a familiar and satisfying option, with plenty of pork lard, that will not go wrong. 

P.S. Dog lovers, keep an eye out — you might just spot an adorable pup lounging near the stall!

7. Aunty Siam (Stall F40) 

Hakka cuisine — often overshadowed by more familiar foods from other dialect groups — goes beyond dishes such as thunder tea rice or preserved vegetables with braised pork.

At Aunty Siam, the mother-son duo behind the brand are on a mission to shine a light on lesser-known Hakka classics, and make them more approachable to the public. The menu includes staples such as abacus seeds (S$15), Hakka-style fried pork belly (from S$12), and Hakka fried yong tau foo (from S$8). 

We especially loved the abacus seeds, which tasted delightfully authentic as well as the Hakka-style fried pork belly, which was savoury, slightly sweet, with a tender texture. Pair it with its homemade chilli sauce, the kick of heat complements the richness perfectly. Shiok doesn’t even begin to cover it.

8. The Meatmen (Stall F39) 

You might have seen videos from The Meatmen Channel — a Singaporean recipe platform that features classic, comforting recipes that are easy to whip up. You can now enjoy some of its highlight dishes at its very own stall at Gastrobeats 2025. 

Don’t miss its well-loved dishes such as its Iconic sio bak (S$16) and SG hawker BBQ chicken thigh (S$10), and GastroBeats-exclusive dishes such as the mi goreng beef rendang rice paper roll (S$12).  

When we visited, the queues were snaking, so skip the long queues and pre-order The Meatmen’s dishes via this form to cut the wait. 

9. Iichiko Bar by Makoto-Ya (Stall S14)

Alcohol lovers out there should keep your eyes peeled for the eye-catching green booth — The Iichiko Club near the performance stage. This year, leading supplier of Japanese products, Makota-Ya, teams up with five local F&B brands throughout the festival period to serve up exclusive cocktails infused with Iichiko shochu. Expect a rotating lineup of bars such as Neon Pigeon and FLNT each bringing their own flair with their cocktail creations.

We tried the two crowd favourites: The refreshing Iichiko Uji matcha (S$15), gently sweet with a subtle matcha flavour and the Iichiko Calpis highball (S$15) — a fizzy mix of cultured milk and shochu, topped with a juicy blueberry garnish. 

Save this food guide for when you head to GastroBeats 2025! It’ll help you avoid long queues and underwhelming bites. 

After you’ve had your fill, take some time to explore the other activities and enjoy the live performances around the festival grounds. There’s also a diner-themed photobooth by Solace Studios — they’ve got mega strips and a range of exclusive frames to snap a fun shot or two.

Stuck in line at GastroBeats 2025? Pass the time with our latest feature on a modern, Chinese restaurant, Yanhuo or the viral udon dishes from Tokyo at the new Kyo Kamachi.

Enjoy 10% off your bill at all F&B stalls at GastroBeats 2025 exclusively with Grab Dine Out.

Planning to head down with your furkid? You can also 15% off your GrabPet ride (capped at $3) to and fro GastroBeats 2025, taking place at the Bayfront Event Space!