A wedding is a very special event and many couples spend months on end choosing the perfect dreamy location to hold it.
But for 54-year-old Huang Zhi Cheng and 42-year-old Zhang Ke Le, the perfect location was very down-to-earth and quintessentially Singaporean — a coffee shop.
The pair tied the knot in a Bukit Merah kopitiam on Sunday (5 Feb), the last day of Chinese New Year.
They celebrated the joyous day together with 60 of their friends, and in true budget kopitiam fashion, spent only S$3,000 on their big day.
On Sunday (5 Feb) evening, the Foodgle Eatery & Beer Garden kopitiam in Bukit Merah was lit up and adorned with balloons.
Spirits were high as 60 of Mr Huang and Ms Zhang’s closest friends gathered for their wedding dinner.
According to Shin Min Daily News, the couple had planned for their special day to fall on the 15th day of the Lunar New Year, which is also dubbed Chinese Valentine’s Day.
However, they found that all the restaurants nearby were already booked up.
That’s when they had the bright idea to hold their wedding reception at the kopitiam.
Mr Huang said they chose the Bukit Merah kopitiam, which is nestled in the industrial area, as many of their friends work nearby.
The head chef is also his good friend. He had come up with a “banquet menu” for the couple and even personally helped decorate the coffee shop.
The nine-course meal included mostly seafood dishes such as abalone, sea cucumber, steamed fish, drunken prawns, roasted duck, and fried e-fu noodles.
At a restaurant, a wedding banquet typically costs at least S$600 per table and will have other additional costs.
On the other hand, having it at a coffee shop is cheaper, with one table costing S$500, said Mr Huang.
This means that the couple spent S$3,000 hosting six tables worth of guests.
Furthermore, Mr Huang explained that this was a celebration for their friends.
The couple had already registered their marriage the week before and celebrated with relatives over a meal at a restaurant.
Speaking to Shin Min Daily News, Ms Zhang said she is from Chongqing, China.
She has been working in Singapore for about seven years but never thought she will get married here.
Then, she met Mr Huang through mutual friends and love blossomed from there.
Both Ms Zhang and Mr Huang had been married before and were single for almost 12 years.
So, they decided to let nature take its course and did not put any pressure on their relationship.
In Nov 2022, about a year after they met, they decided to get married.
While Ms Zhang has met her new in-laws, Mr Huang has only met Ms Zhang’s parents over video call due to Covid-19 travel restrictions.
With the lifting of restrictions, he hopes they will be able to travel to China sometime in March or April.
He shared that they plan to hold another wedding banquet over in China.
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Featured image adapted from Shin Min Daily News and Google Maps.
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