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Andre Ong and Hazel Wong, both 22, are currently the young hawkers behind Youfu Fried Hokkien Prawn Noodle at the Golden Mile Food Center.
Supported by his wife
Born out of an intense love for cooking, the stand was first opened by Ong in 2020 – he and his father would fry the noodles, adjusting and tweaking their recipe along the way based on customer feedback.
Ong told us in a 2020 interview:
“Initially our Hokkien mee was very wet and not many customers liked it. Then the noodle was also a little harder like al dente, then the elderly can not chew. So we adjust and we improvise. “
YouFu Fried Hokkien Shrimp Noodles / FB
Ong was recently joined by his wife after she decided to quit her desk job and work full time at the booth.
The couple, who recently married in October 2021, were actually elementary school classmates.
Interestingly, although they’ve known each other since then, they didn’t meet until 2020. They were “just friends” before that, Ong said. Mothership.
Primary school classmates during their days at Zhangde Primary School. Photo courtesy of André Ong.
Primary school classmates during their days at Zhangde Primary School. Photo courtesy of André Ong.
“One day she just told me that she wanted [sic] to quit his full-time office job, ”said Ong.
When asked why she wanted to work full time at the booth, she told him that she hoped to spend more time with him and build a “base” together.
Previously, Wong’s attendance at the booth was purely part-time, where she helped manage the booth’s social media pages.
Photo courtesy of André Ong.
Two shifts per day
However, life as a hawker is not a walk in the park. Previously, here is what Ong shared about a typical day in his life:
“I get up at 6am and arrive here at 7am. And I’m there until 7pm. But after that, we have to prepare the broth for the next day, as if we were preparing things for tomorrow, like minced pork or garlic, in advance I live in Serangoon North it’s an hour plus bus ride so I get home at 10pm +.
We (my dad and I) both work six days a week, only Monday is a public holiday. “
Now the cooking is done by Ong and his father, while his wife supports by helping with the preparation work and serving customers.
Photo by Tanya Ong.
They also have two teams: Ong and his wife are at the booth from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m., and his father takes the night shift with his mother, from 4 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
How does he feel knowing that his wife chose to go through all of this effort just to sell Hokkien mee by his side?
“Yes, sure, feel heart pain,” he said.
YouFu Fried Hokkien Shrimp Noodles
505, beach road, # 01-57
Open every day except Monday, from 10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Top photo of YouFu Fried Hokkien Mee / FB, Andre Ong.
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