Single Storey Shophouses #601-639


Single Storey Shophouses #601-639


Such Single-storey buildings were found in many parts of pre-1965 Singapore, especially in the suburban and rural areas. They were built by early developers for sale as shops and homes for new settlers from the rural areas who were told to leave their rural areas for urban developments.

Though these shophouses were some of the earliest buildings to be constructed, the architects had seen the need to integrate some designs in the form of Art Deco pediment above the five-foot way to make it more aesthetically inclined. The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has made conservation efforts to these buildings by prohibiting any alterations to these buildings.

We have heard about the famous 'Tau Sar Piah' shop which was situated at one end of the stretch of shophouses. However we did not know that along that stretch alone, there were 4 Tau Sar Piah shops! Despite the choices of shops available, consumers still chose to flood the shop at the end of the stretch! We (Don and Jerome) had to queue for ~ 2 hours to get the Tau Sar Piahs!

The famous Tau Sar Piah Stall 

The queue at around 11am when we arrived
P.S We only bought the Tau Sar Piah at the end of our trail, by then (around 1.10pm) the queue had extended to the corridors! Even spilling over to the shop next door. 

The view outside the shop. 

The view from the other end of the stretch of shophouses. 

Apart from the delicious Tau Sar Piah that we 'dabao' (took away), we were also thankful that efforts were made to preserve these shophouses which have a long heritage. This enables the future generations to be able to witness the type of houses that some groups of Singaporeans used to live in as compared to the modern high rise building that we see at almost all corners of Singapore today. 

Be sure to try the Tau Sar Piah when you are there! 
By the way, Jie Ling recommends the Coffee Tau Sar Piah from Unit 603. ;-)

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