Of the many things Singaporeans are famous for—chewing gum fines, caning, et cetera—a particularly proud cornerstone of our national identity is queueing. We’re so good at it! We do it all the time, whether it’s for Hello Kitty tchotchkes to the advent of Krispy Kreme in Singapore. Here are some of our proudest moments.
1. Salted yolk croissants
Most recently, we have lined up dutifully for
salted egg yolk croissaints in January 2016. The trend originated in Hong Kong, and was a hit at the Le Bread Bakery in Kuala Lumpur. Local eateries like Flavour Flings and Paris-style tea salon Antoinette are getting in on the trend. But it’s not just croissaints that are taking centre-stage. Anything else that can be filled with salted egg yolk. For the full list, click
here.
2. In and Out Burger
Back in November
2014, In and Out burger had a pop-up, and although the first burger was to be sold at 9:30am, people were queuing as early as 7:30am. Sadly, the fast food chain trolled us, leaving with no promises to open up shop here. Heartbroken? Here are some
other delicious burgers you can already find here.
3. Roti Boy
The original article of Roti Boy’s short stay in Singapore is probably buried within the internet somewhere, but this shop originated to Malaysia and came to Singapore in around 2004. Sadly, Roti Boy didn’t last very long and closed shop in 2006. It was a bit gross after the first few times anyway.
4. Hello Kitty and Dear Daniel plush toys from MacDonalds
On Jan 1, 2000, McDonald’s had a Hello Kitty and Dear Daniel promotion, which gave diners a pair of pairs for its $4.50 Extra Value Meals. Queues started before sunrise and sometimes, people even went to queue in the middle of the night. The crowd also brought down the glass doors at the Boon Keng outlet, and resulted in some fist fights, too. Proud day it was.
5. Krispy Kreme
In October 2013, the first Krispy Kreme outlet was supposed to open at Tangs, with Singaporeans queueing up to get the first taste. The first person in line, Ng Weily, 41, was given a Golden Ticket (a la Charlie and the Chocolate Factory style) that entitled him to a dozen of their original glazed doughnuts every week for a year. Wah, so jealous.
6. Tim Ho Wan
Tim Ho Wan
opened in 2013, and has since become one of the most popular Cantonese restaurants in Singapore. Their Michelin-blassed dim sum was/is so sought after that there were queues well into the afternoon or night, depending on whether you were there for lunch or dinner. It can still get a bit hairy.
7. Llao Llao
The Spanish frozen yogurt outlet
opened in 2013 and is no stranger to queues, especially ones full of teenagers with bagpacks. The queues have somewhat died, but it still takes a while to get your yogurt.
8. Churros
This year it’s salted egg, last year it was, for some reason, churros, with so many cafes and specialty outlets opening here to sell them. Churro 101 opened last year to a lot of fanfare, and there were meandering queues of people going to get some weeks after opening day.
10. SG50 notes
What can we say about SG50 that hasn’t already been said? From the nation’s biggest celebration to baby packages and more, this phenomenon left the whole nation crazy. Enter the SG50 commemorative notes.
Queues started forming as early as 6am in August last year.
11. This brand of bak kwa in particular:
It’s totally a thing to queue up at Kim Joo Guan to buy bak kwa during Chinese New Year, or Lim Chee Guan, if you prefer. It’s a battle to buy the best brands to impress your relatives, after all.
12. H&M
Back in 2011, after hours of queuing and anticipation, H&M opened its doors in Singapore. The first five shoppers received $250 gift cards, while the next 10 received a $100 one.
13. Every kind of new ramen
More recently, Keisuke Takeda’s 10th ramen outlet opened on Saturday, with many people clamoring for more of his lobster bisque-style ramen. If you want to head to his other outlets, be warned; people start queuing at his Orchid Hotel outlet as early as 5:30-6pm.
