KF Seetoh’s Urban Hawker food hall selling Singaporean food in New York to shut in July

SINGAPORE - The Urban Hawker food hall, home to Singaporean food in the heart of New York City, is set to cease operations in July, said Makansutra founder KF Seetoh.

The food court in Manhattan will stop operating on July 17, with the building where it is sited sold by its owners for redevelopment, said Seetoh on Facebook on June 30.

“It may be curtains down at Urban Hawker, but it ain’t the end for Singapore makan culture there. Another door will always be open,” he wrote.

Seetoh, who partnered US food court operator Urbanspace to start Urban Hawker in September 2022, said they are looking for a new spot to house more hawkers in a “kopitiam concept space”, calling New York City a dynamic and meaningful market.

“We are also looking for a spot to house a few more dynamic hawkers in perhaps a kopitiam concept space. If you know any, let me know. NYC and the US is a dynamic and meaningful market for us.”

Urban Hawker sold popular Singaporean food including chicken rice, laksa and curry pork chop, and even the Singapore Sling cocktail, many of which earned positive reviews from US food critics from publications including Eater, Food and Wine and The New York Times.

The food hall has been operating at 135 West 50th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan.