Famous JB banana cakes see popular demand at vending machine in Senja Hawker Centre

Johor Bahru banana cake sells out in 1 hour at vending machine

The popular banana cakes from Hiap Choo Bakery & Biscuit Factory in Johor Bahru (JB) are now available in Singapore.

Since last Saturday (17 May) new vending machine at Senja Hawker Centre in Bukit Panjang have been dispensing the bakery’s signature cakes daily.

The cakes are so popular that they sell out within an hour each time they are replenished.

Johor Bahru banana cake in high demand

Even though the service launched last weekend, some members of the public have had to queue four times to get their hands on the banana cakes, reports Shin Min Daily News.

Ms Chen (surname transliterated from Chinese), who lives opposite Senja Hawker Centre, told the Chinese newspaper that the cakes were already sold out when she visited the market last Saturday noon — the first day of launch.

She returned at 4pm to buy one box, but decided to give it to her sister to try. Ms Chen joined the queue again the next morning, but missed out due to long waiting times.

Ms Chen reluctantly returned in the afternoon with her son for the fourth time and finally succeeded in buying one for herself.

The banana cakes at the vending machine go for S$8.60 per box, nearly twice the price at the JB store — RM13 (S$3.92). This is reportedly due to the cost of refrigerated transportation.

Despite the price difference, some customers like Ms Kong Xiaoling (name transliterated from Chinese) felt that the cakes are reasonably priced since a slice of cake at a café costs between six and seven dollars.

Expansion of group ordering business started during Covid-19 pandemic

The person who made this possible is Serene Ong, 41, the founder of Hypha Vending Retail.

Source: hypha.sg

Since Oct 2024, she has set up four vending machines at Buangkok Hawker Centre, Woodleigh Village Hawker Centre, and Bukit Batok West Hawker Centre, selling desserts and popular local bread brands.

She told SM that adding the popular banana cake is an expansion on the group buying service she started since the Covid-19 pandemic.

Ms Ong said: “While promoting local brands, I also bring in popular foods from our neighbouring countries that are well-loved by Singaporeans.

Source: EatBook

The vending machines start selling the banana cakes at 11.30am and 4.30pm. To ensure the cake’s freshness and taste, only 48 boxes are sold each time, usually selling out within an hour.

When Shin Min Daily visited the vending machine at about 4.10pm on Sunday (18 May), there were already about 50 people in line.

Hiap Joo has no plans to open in Singapore

Despite the cakes’ popularity among Singaporeans, Mr Lim Toh Huei — the third-generation owner of Hiap Joo Bakery — said there are currently no plans to open a store in Singapore.

Source: Eatbook

Mr Lim also shared that the vending machine operator had reached out a few weeks ago and expressed interest in reselling the store’s cakes.

To ensure freshness, the cakes are transported to Singapore in a low-temperature environment every morning.

The banana cakes can last a week if refrigerated, and two days at room temperature.

Gary Yang

Gary is a football fanatic with a knack for finding beauty in the most unexpected places — whether it’s a perfectly-timed goal or the perfect cup of coffee on a lazy Saturday.

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