As Singapore’s hawker culture has made it to a UNESCO list, we can rightfully say that it’s an indelible part of our heritage.
However, as our pioneer hawkers age, some fear that this heritage will erode as they leave us.
Sadly, another beloved hawker has passed away — the owner of Hoover Fish Porridge in Whampoa.
Source: Hoover Fish Porridge on Facebook
Thankfully, though, his legacy will be continued by the next generation.
The passing of Mr Yeo Cheng Huat was announced by Hoover Fish Porridge in a Facebook post on Monday (6 Mar).
It said “Grandpa Yeo” passed away the day before, on 5 Mar.
As such, the stall would be closed for the week, but customers shouldn’t worry as they promised,
We will be back soon.
Mr Yeo was 76 years old, and his cause of death was ischaemic heart disease, his grandson Xavier told The Straits Times (ST).
However, he was also found to have lymphoma in November 2022 and was just discharged from the hospital in January.
He experienced breathlessness on the night of 4 Mar and was sent to the hospital via an ambulance.
His wake was on Thursday (9 Mar).
Mr Yeo leaves behind two sons and two daughters aged between 44 and 51. His grandchildren include Xavier, 25, who’s a flight attendant.
Before his passing, Mr Yeo, his elder son and Xavier had planned to go to Phuket in March and had already booked flights and accommodation.
Since the bad news broke, fans of Hoover Fish Porridge have mourned the loss of yet another hawker institution in Singapore.
A frequent customer posted in the Hawkers United – Dabao 2020 Facebook group that he’s been eating there since he was a kid.
In fact, many netizens also posted in the comments that they’d been eating fish soup from the stall since they were young.
Source: Hawkers United – Dabao 2020 on Facebook
That’s because Hoover Fish Porridge has been operating in Whampoa for as long as 48 years.
Mr Yeo opened the stall at Whampoa Makan Place, also known as Whampoa Market & Food Centre, in 1975.
Source: Hoover Fish Porridge on Facebook
He named the stall as such because his father started it outside Hoover Cinema on Balestier Road in the 1960s.
His wife, Madam Ang Geok Lian, had worked beside him since it opened till she passed away from cancer in 2021.
Now that the couple is no longer around, fans of their fish porridge need not worry that the stall will close for good.
After Madam Ang passed away, it closed for a few months but then reopened with Xavier’s 44-year-old father — Mr Yeo’s youngest child — taking over the reins.
Source: Chia Yoke Hwee on Facebook
Xavier himself helps out at the stall on his days off, and plans to work there full-time eventually, he told ST.
Now that the business is in good hands with the fourth generation of Yeos, fans can rest assured that they’ll be able to eat their fare for many years to come.
Hoover Fish Porridge will reopen on 17 Mar.
MS News offers our heartfelt condolences to the family of the deceased. May he rest in peace.
Have news you must share? Get in touch with us via email at news@mustsharenews.com.
Featured image adapted from Hoover Fish Porridge on Facebook and Foo Jason on Facebook.
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