Satay Club
{{Short description|Three open-air hawker centres in Singapore since closed}}
The Satay Club was the name of three open-air hawker centres in Singapore, all of which are no longer operating as of 2005. The first Satay Club ({{circa}} 1940–1970) was located at Hoi How Road, near Beach Road; the second and third were located at the Esplanade (1970–1995) and Clarke Quay (1995–2005) respectively. Food sold at the Satay Club was predominantly satay.{{Sfn|Kaan|2012|p=62}} According to one source, Satay Club sold the "best satay in the region [of Southeast Asia]".{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H4BchmPNmXIC&pg=PA48 |pages=48– |title=Food Culture in Southeast Asia |last=Van Esterik |first=Penny |year=2008 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=9780313344190 }}
History
=1940–1970: Hoi How Road=
The first incarnation of the Satay Club was located alongside Hoi How Street,{{Sfn|Kaan|2012|p=40}}{{Sfn|Kaan|2012|p=32}} near Beach Road. It was flanked by two theatres,{{cite news|url=http://www.asiaone.com/Business/My+Money/Property/Story/A1Story20071213-40899.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080304024206/http://www.asiaone.com/Business/My%2BMoney/Property/Story/A1Story20071213-40899.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=March 4, 2008 |title=Beach Road could be next prime hot spot |date=December 9, 2007 |first=Jessica |last=Cheam |newspaper=AsiaOne }} one of them being the Alhambra Cinema.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4o9uAAAAMAAJ |title=Amber Sands: A Boyhood Memoir |year=1999 |publisher=Federal Publications |edition=2 |last=Kip |first=Lee Lee |isbn=9789810124410 }}
=1970–1995: The Esplanade=
During its time at the Esplanade, it was described as a "romantic spot for many courting couples",{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CVbxKuuXBJQC&pg=PA44 |pages=44– |title=Theorizing the Southeast Asian City As Text: Urban Landscapes, Cultural Documents and Interpretative Experiences |first=Robbie B.H. |last=Goh |year=2003 |publisher=World Scientific |isbn=9789812791283 }} as well as an "iconic waterfront hawker haven".{{cite news |newspaper=AsiaOne |url=http://www.soshiok.com/critic/article/19523 |first=Suan Chiang |last=Tay |title=10 F&B options at Gardens by the Bay |date=June 18, 2012 |access-date=May 27, 2013 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130630083913/http://www.soshiok.com/critic/article/19523 |archive-date=June 30, 2013 |url-status=dead }} Located opposite was the Raffles Hotel,{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lYC0AAAAIAAJ |title=Pacific Rim Magazine |publisher=Vancouver Community College |year=1989 }} and nearby were the Singapore River{{Sfn|Augustin|1988|p=52}} and Queen Elizabeth Walk.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xdRR5MQLpYQC |title=Fodor's 90: Singapore |author=Fodor's |publisher=Fodor's Travel |isbn=9780679018247 |year=1989 }} Selling mostly chicken and beef satay,{{Sfn|Augustin|1988|p=53}} the first stall there was Fatman Satay, reviewed as the top stall in general.{{cite book|last=Hutton |first=Wendy |title=Singapore Food |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DgJ--edNl7AC&pg=PP4 |pages=4– |publisher=Marshall Cavendish |year=2007 |isbn=9789812613219 }}
=1995–2005: Clarke Quay=
The Clarke Quay Satay Club operated from 1995 to towards the end of 2005.{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/frommerssingapor00jenn_0 |url-access=registration |pages=[https://archive.org/details/frommerssingapor00jenn_0/page/119 119]– |title=Frommer's Singapore & Malaysia |last=Eveland |first=Jennifer |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |year=2007 |edition=5 |isbn=9780470100493 }} Situated alongside the River Valley Road in Clarke Quay,{{cite book|title=Gateway to Malay Culture |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1qIhB0I3Pq0C&pg=PA147 |page=147 |publisher=Asiapac |author=Asiapac |isbn=9789812293268 |year=2003 }} it opened its stalls from 7 p.m. onwards, selling mostly chicken and mutton satay.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mRkgkUdWn9wC&pg=PA127 |pages=127– |title=The Rough Guide to Singapore |year=2003 |publisher=Rough Guides |edition=4 |isbn=9781843530756 }}
=2013–present: Satay by the Bay=
Stylised after the Satay Club, Satay by the Bay was opened on January 15, 2013, at the Gardens by the Bay tourist attraction. It was described as "reminiscent of the old Satay Club".{{cite news|url=http://www.straitstimes.com/breaking-news/singapore/story/satay-the-bay-open-jan-15-20130103 |title=Open air foodcourt Satay by the Bay to open Jan 15 |date=January 3, 2013 |newspaper=The Straits Times }} {{subscription required}}
In Singaporean culture
The Satay Club was so famous that one source goes on to claim that "[e]very taxi driver [in Singapore] knows it".{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BFcrAQAAIAAJ |title=The Singapore Visitor |publisher=Creation & Communications |year=1982 }} It was featured on complimentary tourist brochures issued by the Singapore Tourism Board. It was common practice at the Satay Club in around 1986 to re-sell leftover sticks of satay. This was deemed to be "unhygienic" by Andrew Chua of the Straits Times.{{cite news|url=http://newspapers.nl.sg/Digitised/Article.aspx?articleid=straitstimes19860814-1.2.32.1&sessionid=64c098869d03425092c368f63b59c696 |page=14 |date=August 14, 1986 |title=Satay Practice |first=Andrew |last=Chua }}
The name "Satay Club" is also informally applied{{Cite web|url=https://www.google.com/maps/place/Satay+Club/@1.280686,103.8497887,19.09z/data=!3m1!5s0x31da190de266a78b:0xc1ca94f48ef012b0!4m5!3m4!1s0x31da190de1a58ee5:0xb634a465fc8f7482!8m2!3d1.2803116!4d103.850116|title = Alhambra King Satay · Boon Tat St, Singapore}} to the streetside satay stalls south of Lau Pa Sat market.{{Cite web|url=https://www.thebestsingapore.com/best-place/lau-pa-sat-satay/|title = Lau Pa Sat Satay|date = 3 August 2012}}
See also
References
{{Reflist|2}}
Bibliography
- {{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=diNvdZ3mP1MC |first=Jaim |last=Kaan |title=The Singapore Necklace: A Secret Love Across Two Cultures |publisher=AuthorHouse |year=2012 |isbn=9781468587760 }}
- {{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e8VGAAAAMAAJ |title=The Singapore treasury: secrets of the garden city |last=Augustin |first=Andreas |year=1988 |isbn=9789810004927 |publisher=Andreas Augustin }}
External links
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20131203055736/http://infopedia.nl.sg/articles/SIP_1027_2006-08-12.html Singapore Infopedia page on Satay Club]