It seems like Singaporeans lose a legendary hawker stall every other week when their owners decide to retire.
The latest stallholders to call it a day operated a beloved nasi lemak stall in Marsiling for 22 years.
They have since quietly retired.
Source: Tian Tian Lai Nasi Lemak – Marsiling Mall on Facebook
Besides getting older, the stallholders also cited rising business costs as a factor.
The stall in question is Tian Tian Lai Nasi Lemak, located at Marsiling Mall Hawker Centre.
They ceased operations on 28 Nov, reported Shin Min Daily News.
As to why they shut down without prior warning, the owners said they were worried that hordes of customers would rush to the stall if they had announced their closure in advance.
They thus told only a few regular customers who lived far away.
The owners, married couple Chen Hanbin and Fu Lixin (names transliterated from Mandarin), first established the stall at Alexandra Road.
This was after Mr Chen, now 62, left his job as an engineer to fulfil his dream of starting his own business.
However, it got off to an inauspicious start — they lost S$70,000 in the first six months or so.
Despite the setback, Ms Fu, now 58, continued to support her husband as they moved to Woodlands Centre Road Food Centre in 2001.
Thankfully, business started to pick up after they accumulated more experience and conducted more taste tests.
However, when Woodlands Centre Road Food Centre shut down in 2012, the stall also closed and Mr Chen went back to his old job as an engineer.
But because his wife had nothing much to do at home, they decided to reopen the stall in Marsiling in 2018.
Now, just five years after opening there, the stall is closed for good.
Explaining their decision, the pair said they were getting older and business costs had gone up, so they retired.
Source: Shin Min Daily News
When asked about his recipe, Mr Chen smiled and said he didn’t have any specific measurements for his ingredients.
The taste of his nasi lemak is created from his experience over the years, he explained.
Considering the stall has a healthy Google rating of 4.1 from 25 reviews, whatever he was doing certainly agreed with customers.
Source: Google Maps
Unfortunately, Singaporeans will no longer be able to try the nasi lemak again.
Nevertheless, we wish Mr Chen and Ms Fu a happy, well-deserved retirement.
Also read: Owners Of 54-Year-Old Ghim Moh Char Kway Teow Stall That Won Michelin Bib Gourmand Retire
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Featured image adapted from Tian Tian Lai Nasi Lemak – Marsiling Mall on Facebook and Google Maps.
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