Live in the north-east? There's a new dining venue option for you to check out — Punggol Coast Hawker Centre. 

The 576-seater space, located within Punggol Digital District, opened its doors to the public last Friday (July 25), announced Kopitiam, which manages the venue. 

Out of the 40 food stalls, there are a few notable brands to check out. 

One would be South Buona Vista Braised Duck, which has been around for more than five decades. 

The establishment, which specialises in braised duck, shuttered in early 2024 and has made its comeback at Punggol Coast Hawker Centre. 

Some hawkers in the Michelin Guide have also called the new food centre home, such as Michelin Bib Gourmand Singapore Fried Hokkien Mee and Michelin Selected Hock Hai (Hong Lim) Curry Chicken. 

Apart from that, there are young and emerging hawkers to look out for. 

This includes What The Puff, which specialises in unconventional curry puff flavours; Hakka Leipopo, which sells hearty bowls of thunder tea rice; Hee Hee Hee Steamed Fish & Seafood, which sells steamed Hong Kong-style seafood; and One Soy, which specialises in Soya Milk. 

Other stalls at the newly opened hawker centre are Pin Wei Hong Kong Style Chee Cheong Fun, Whampoa Traditional Fried Oyster, Kedai Salima, SJ Sickander and Ammal Muslim Food. 

Looking to save money? Every food stall has value meal options from $3.50 and below.

Set meals under the Rice Garden Community Project at the hawker centre's Mixed Rice stall are priced at $1.50 for ComCare cardholders and $2.70 for other concessionary cardholders. 

Diners can also enjoy $1 kopi-o and teh-o, as well as Kopitiam Signature Breakfast Sets from as low as $2.20.

Smarter dining with AI 

Punggol Coast Hawker Centre also integrates AI solutions to improve dining and operational experiences for both stall holders and patrons, according to Kopitiam.

These infrastructure and AI-powered video analytics provide real-time insights, ranging from footfall traffic mapping and service queue management to comprehensive safety monitoring across the hawker centre.

The data allows Kopitiam to deploy staff for crowd flow management or cleanliness upkeep during peak hours. 

With this, hawkers can also understand customer patterns, which will help them make informed decisions regarding manpower planning and to improve service efficiency. 

melissateo@asiaone.com