Recently, I hosted a small community event at my void deck called Kampong Soup Kitchen.
The basic idea was simple: serve free soup to people who signed up, and if there was extra, anyone passing by was welcome to have some too.

This came partly from reading and thinking about how many people feel socially isolated today, even though we technically have so many ways to connect. Initially, I wanted to use private venues for community events, but rental costs made it hard to keep sustainable.

Then someone in a social Telegram group mentioned that they had organised a potluck at their void deck before, and suggested I try asking my town council. So I did. I explained clearly that it was a free community food event, with no money exchanged, and that I would cap it at around 50 people to keep it manageable for both me and the residents.

To my surprise, they were okay with it.

I ended up serving two soups:

- A clear chicken soup with crêpes and vegetables

- A spiced pumpkin and carrot soup with red lentils and coconut milk

I tried to keep the ingredients halal-friendly, although I also made it clear that I’m not from a halal household.

The total cost for using the space came up to $89.38. That included $50 for the rental, plus charges for the use of electrical and water points. Compared to private venue rental, it was honestly very affordable, and I’m quite grateful that my town council was open to the idea.

Small clarification: I paid for everything myself and ran this independently. Nobody paid me anything, and the soup was free for anyone who came by, though I set aside portions first for those who had signed up.

There were some hiccups. I could only use one electrical point because the other one required a 15A round-pin plug, which I did not have. One water point also was not working, though thankfully there was another one nearby. I also could not confirm the wattage of the electrical point, so I was slightly worried about overloading or tripping it.

I spread the word to my neighbours quite last-minute because the event itself was also planned in a bit of a rush. Still, some neighbours came down to try the soup, and a few even offered to help out at the next one. Some of them also naturally started chatting with people who had signed up, which was honestly one of the nicest parts of the whole thing.

I also want to thank the people who volunteered to help. Their support made the event much easier to run.

What surprised me most was not just that people came down for soup, but that neighbours and strangers naturally started chatting with one another. It made me realise that sometimes people are open to community, but there just needs to be a simple excuse for everyone to gather.

For anyone thinking of doing something similar at their own void deck, here are a few things I learnt:

-LifeSG may not list the void deck directly below your block, so going through your town council may be the better route. That was what I did, since I had seen weddings and funerals held at my void deck before.

-Be very clear about what your event is. In my case, I stated that it was a free community event with no money exchanged. I’m not sure how commercial events would be handled, so check directly with your town council.

-Ask about the exact water and electrical points available. Check whether they are working, what plug type they use, and what the wattage limit is.

-If the electrical load allows, bring fans. Singapore is hot and humid, and people will be much more comfortable if there is some airflow.
If you do not have enough chairs, floor mats can help too.

-Keep the first event small and manageable. It is easier to scale up later than to be overwhelmed on the first try.

-I also tried to keep things manageable by capping the numbers, preparing the food properly, keeping the area clean, and making sure we cleared everything after the event.

-Also, be mindful of accessibility and foot traffic. Avoid blocking corridors, lift lobbies, ramps, letterboxes, bicycle paths, or common walking routes. People should still be able to move through the void deck comfortably, especially elderly residents, wheelchair users, families with prams, and anyone just passing by.

Overall, I’m hoping to host more free community events at my void deck. I also hope this helps others see the void deck as more than just a space for weddings and funerals. It can also be a simple, affordable space for neighbours and strangers to meet.

TL;DR: I asked my town council whether I could host a free community food event at my void deck. They said yes. I paid about $89 and hosted a soup event.

Here’s the recipe but made for 2 person instead of 50 😂

Creamy Roasted Pumpkin, Carrot & Red Lentil Soup

Makes about 1.5 to 2L soup
Ingredients

600g pumpkin, peeled and cubed
300g carrot, chopped
1 onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic
20g ginger, sliced
100g red lentils, rinsed
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp smoked paprika or sweet paprika
Small pinch chilli powder, optional
1.5L water or vegetable stock
250ml coconut milk
1 to 2 tbsp lemon or lime juice
Salt and black pepper
Oil

Steps:
Roast vegetables
Toss pumpkin, carrot, onion, garlic, and ginger with oil, cumin, paprika, and a little salt.
Roast at 200°C for 35 to 45 minutes, until soft and lightly browned.
Simmer
Transfer roasted vegetables to a pot. Add rinsed red lentils and water/stock.
Simmer 25 to 35 minutes, until lentils are fully soft.
Blend
Blend until smooth. Add more water if too thick.
Add coconut milk
Stir in coconut milk and warm gently. Don’t boil hard.
Final seasoning
Add salt, black pepper, and lemon/lime juice.

Clear Chicken Soup with Sliced Savoury Crepes

Ingredients

Broth
400g to 500g chicken bones / wings / carcass / necks
1 small chicken thigh or drumstick, optional but useful for meat
1/2 onion
1 small carrot
1/2 celery stalk
1 clove garlic
1 small bay leaf
Tiny pinch dried thyme
3 to 5 black peppercorns
1.2L water
Salt, to taste

Final soup

A little diced carrot
A little diced celery
Shredded chicken from the thigh/drumstick
Fresh herbs, if you have
Steps:

Roast chicken bones, onion, carrot, celery, and garlic at 200°C for 25 to 35 minutes until browned.
Put everything into a pot with 1.2L water, bay leaf, thyme, and peppercorns.
Simmer gently for 1 to 1.5 hours.
Add the thigh/drumstick for the last 30 minutes, if using.
Remove chicken meat, shred it.
Strain the broth.
Add diced carrot/celery and simmer until tender.
Add shredded chicken back in.
Season with salt properly.

Savoury Crepes

Ingredients
50g plain flour
1 egg
100ml milk
25ml water
Pinch of salt
1/2 tsp oil or melted butter

Steps
Whisk everything smooth.
Rest 10 minutes if you can.
Cook 2 to 3 thin crepes.
Cool, roll, and slice into thin ribbons.
Put ribbons in bowl, ladle hot soup over.

EDIT/UPDATE:

Thanks everyone for all the kind comments, messages, offers to help, and even offers to donate or contribute food. I honestly did not expect this to go beyond the subreddit. I mainly posted because I thought it was pretty cool that it was possible to host a small free community food event at a void deck with town council approval.

Just adding more details since some people asked.

The event was planned for around 50 pax, but I kept it registration-based so that it would be manageable for me and also considerate to the neighbours living around the void deck. In the end, about 40 plus registered participants turned up, which honestly felt like a nice size for a first run.

I served two soups: one meat soup and one vegetarian soup.

The meat soup was a clear chicken soup with sliced savoury crepes and fresh herbs. I chose chicken soup because it has that warm, homey feeling to it. Like “chicken soup for the soul” kind of thing. It reminds me of being sick and someone cooking something comforting for you, or that feeling of grandma/home cooking. (Do bring your Ah Ma to give me the seal of her approval if she's okay to travel)

The sliced savoury crepes were inspired by German-style pancake soups, like Flädlesuppe, where thin savoury pancakes are rolled up, sliced into ribbons, and served in a clear broth. I thought it was a nice way to make the chicken soup a little more special without making it too weird or inaccessible.

The vegetarian soup was a creamy roasted pumpkin, carrot and red lentil soup with coconut milk. I wanted it to contrast with the chicken soup. So one was clear, light and more Western/European-style, and the other was thicker, creamier, gently spiced, and maybe a bit more familiar to local palates because of the coconut milk.

The cooking itself took close to 20 hours, partly because I had work in the morning and had to work around that. There was roasting bones and vegetables, simmering broth, making the vegetarian soup, preparing the crepes, cooling and storing everything safely, then reheating and finishing the soups on the day itself. It was tiring, but I felt that just because the event was free, it should not mean the food is an afterthought.

I also really could not have done it alone. Volunteers, participants, friends and family helped with a lot of the prep and setup: making the savoury pancakes, shredding chicken, cutting vegetables, plucking herbs, moving chairs, arranging the space, serving and cleaning up. The event started with me cooking soup, but by the end it really felt like everyone had a hand in making it happen.

The atmosphere was honestly warmer than I expected! At one point, the void deck felt like a shared dining room.

Quite a few people also travelled from other parts of Singapore, including the West, to Tampines. I was really grateful for that. What touched me was that many people did not just come to receive something, they came to contribute too.

Some things I learnt from the first run:

• Keep the first one manageable.
• Registration helps to keep things manageable!
• Be upfront about allergens and dietary stuff.
• Inform neighbours and remind people to keep volume down.
• Check power points and plug types properly. (Type M connectors was one of them)
• Fans are important. (humidity!!)
• A void deck could use a bit of effort to make it feel warm. (lights!)
• Volunteers are extremely helpful. (Thank you to everyone who had offered to help out!)
• Cleanup matters a lot.
• Don’t overcomplicate the first session.

There are also things I want to improve next time.

Because most of the outreach was through Telegram, Reddit and Instagram, the crowd leaned younger, mostly people in their 20s and 30s. I would like to reach older neighbours more intentionally next time, maybe through simple flyers, speaking to residents nearby, and making the invite less dependent on online spaces.

I also want to make future sessions more meaningfully halal-friendly. For the first session, the meat soup used halal ingredients, but it was prepared in a non-halal-certified home kitchen, and I made that clear. I’m trying to learn more about how the sertu process works so that Muslim friends and neighbours can feel more included too.

For future sessions, I’m thinking of keeping soup as the main theme and maybe “travelling the world through soup”, going country to country or region to region. If people cannot travel to those places, maybe I can bring a small part of those places to the void deck through a bowl of soup.

I also usually try to include some kind of charity/fundraising element in my food events. The food itself is free because I can absorb some of the cost, but if people want to give something, I’d rather direct that generosity to charities or social service organisations that need the money more than I do.

Anyway, thanks again for the very kind response. I really did not expect this level of attention. I’m still figuring things out as I go, but the first one gave me a lot of hope.

A bowl of soup obviously does not solve loneliness or social isolation, but it can create a small moment where people sit together, talk, and remember that community can still happen in very ordinary places.

For me, the soup was just a way to create that space. I hope people left with both a full stomach and a small reminder that community can still happen in ordinary places, like the void deck below our homes.

Overall, I’m hoping to host more free community events at my void deck. I also hope this helps others see the void deck as more than just a space for weddings and funerals. It can also be a simple, affordable space for neighbours and strangers to meet.

My wife is citizen. I am pr. We are in USA 5 years already. No place good for chicken rice or char siu so I had to figure it out for myself.

Happy wife, happy life.

As requested by some fellow redditors, here's a proper introduction of MRT-chan and some of her family/friends.

In-case if anyone is asking, the blue-haired girl is our own mascot, Daiya. :)

Link to postal sector map

The first two digits of each postal code represent the postal sector it is in. Currently, the postal sectors go from 01 to 82 (excluding 74 for some reason), with 83 reserved for Simpang when that area eventually develops.

Some random facts about postal sectors: - The postal sectors were first created in 1979, with the postal sectors going from 01 to 80. Special postal codes starting with 90 and 91 were also introduced for PO Boxes. - Sector 81 (for Changi Airport) was created in 1981, likely being carved out of sector 49 (for Tanah Merah Coast Road/Changi Beach/Changi North) - When the 6-digit postal code was introduced in 1995, sector 82 (for Punggol) was carved out of sector 54 (for Kovan and Sengkang), while sector 83 (for Simpang) was carved out of sector 76 (for Yishun). - There are 2 addresses named 1 Beach Road, which are in different postal sectors.

In addition, there are a few interesting postal codes starting with 88 that I came across on OneMap, although I can't find any information on what sector 88 would represent: - 1A Cassia Link, Singapore 886127 - 1A Upper Changi Road North, Singapore 886129 - 100A Kranji Loop, Singapore 887328

Sharing a project I made with my team for the Singapore Stupid Hacks hackathon yesterday, which won 2nd place! You can try out the game here: https://yjjcoolcool.github.io/Train-To-Bishan/

Inspired by the recent "trend" of MPs taking the MRT, we thought - why go through the hassle of actually having to take the MRT, if we can create a platform where people can do it from the "dis"-comfort of their home?

And so, we set out to create Train to Bishan, our hilarious take on the usually monotonous commuting experience on the MRT. The game pokes fun on topics like civic-mindedness, compassion and reliability of the MRT system.

You have to fight to get a seat when getting onto the train - if you don't, you have to stand until a seat becomes available! The game forces you to hold your phone in an upright position (using the device's gyroscope), simulating holding onto the hand grips!

Throughout the ride, events may occur, like babies crying, people blasting TikTok, gossip, and if you're seated down, an auntie might appear demanding you give up your seat!