Golden Mile chicken rice stall founder dies aged 77, asked family to take care of stall

Founder of Da Po Hainanese Chicken Rice & Curry Chicken Noodles in Golden Mile Food Centre passes away

Shortly before he passed away, Mr Thien Chor Meng called his wife and sons, asking them to take good care of the chicken rice stall he co-founded.

He then died last Saturday (18 Jan) at the age of 77.

Source: Shin Min Daily News

Golden Mile chicken rice stall announces temporary closure after death of founder

Mr Thien’s death was announced on Facebook by Da Po Curry Chicken Bee Hoon Mee & Chicken Rice, the popular stall he established in the basement of Golden Mile Food Centre.

Source: Da Po Curry Chicken Bee Hoon Mee & Chicken Rice on Facebook

While the stall has already been taken over by his second son, it will be closed for a few days as his wake is held.

Its second stall at Tanglin Halt Market and Food Centre would be similarly closed, the post said.

Deceased continued coming to stall despite health problems

Mr Thien’s wife, 75-year-old Leh Kah Kiow, and his second son Li Wen, 46, told Shin Min Daily News on Tuesday (21 Jan) that he started suffering from health problems in 2016.

As he had to receive kidney dialysis three times a week, his son took over the running of the stall.

Source: Shin Min Daily News on Facebook

However, Mr Thien was a “workaholic” and continued coming to the stall to collect money and clear plates, his wife said, adding:

It brought his life joy.

He called wife from hospital to remind her to open the stall

More than two months ago, Mr Thien started being hospitalised regularly, Mdm Leh said.

A photo taken on 26 Dec 2024 of Mr Thien in hospital. Source: Da Po Curry Chicken Bee Hoon Mee & Chicken Rice on Facebook

This didn’t stop him from coming to the stall before being warded, though.

He also called his wife and sons shortly before his death to ask them to take care of the stall.

Mdm Leh recalled that he called her from the hospital early in the morning to remind her to open the stall.

She replied that it was early in the morning and he should go to sleep.

Now that she thought about it, he must have decided to reach out to his loved ones as he realised that he had little time left, she said.

Founder started chicken rice stall at Golden Mile in 1987

Mdm Leh said her husband had worked in the F&B line since he was young and could cook many kinds of dishes.

After working for others, he co-founded Da Po with her at Golden Mile Food Centre in 1987.

When they started out, they realised that nobody was selling curry chicken noodles so they decided to serve that.

The couple slogged it out daily from dawn to dusk, running their stall while bringing up four sons.

Their efforts paid off when Singaporeans started queueing up for their signature Hainanese Chicken Rice, which often sells out by early afternoon, and curry chicken noodles.

Source: Google Maps

Stall has received awards

Soon, the stall started racking up awards too — in 2009, it was named one of the “Top 10 King of Chicken Rice” stalls.

In 2024, it was listed in the Michelin Guide.

Source: Da Po Curry Chicken Bee Hoon Mee & Chicken Rice on Facebook

According to its Facebook page, Li Wen was also awarded the Outstanding Hawker Mentor Award on 4 Nov at the Singapore Hawkers Awards, for his service as a Hawkers’ Development Programme mentor.

Source: Da Po Curry Chicken Bee Hoon Mee & Chicken Rice on Facebook

A host of celebrities have also been photographed at the stall, including Edmund Chen, Bryan Wong, Kym Ng and Romeo Tan.

Also read: Founder of Fatty Cheong hawker stall at ABC Brickworks Market dies at 56

Founder of Fatty Cheong hawker stall at ABC Brickworks Market dies at 56

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Featured image adapted from Da Po Curry Chicken Bee Hoon Mee & Chicken Rice on Facebook and Shin Min Daily News on Facebook.

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