When I visited Teo Jun Jie and Soh Ren Jie’s Hokkien Mee stall in March past lunchtime, I was taken aback by the dramatic display behind the counter.
Soh was whipping up a batch of 10 plates of the popular local seafood noodle dish. First, he threw eggs into the searing wok and scrambled them before adding two different types of cooked noodles.
Next, he ladled in big spoonfuls of the broth, which gives the noodles their rich umami quality. For a bit, he disappeared into a big cloud of steam. And last in were the prawns, already cooked and pink.
Before serving it to the customer, he passed it over to Teo, who topped the dish with limes, fried and crunchy lard, and a sweet and spicy chilli paste.
The duo opened their stall, Ah Jie Hokkien Mee, in Singapore’s residential Ang Mo Kio neighborhood in August. Ah Jie is an endearing play on their names, which both contain the word “jie.”
The result of a severe back injury and a lot of reflection
The idea for the business came to Teo when he was recovering from a severe back injury. In 2021, he was carrying a loaded pail of prawns for an ex-employer when he turned around and heard a loud click in his back, followed by intense pain.
The pain got progressively worse until he was unable to stand up straight or sit without a backrest. Eventually, he had to quit his job.
During his yearlong recovery, he reflected on his career. But instead of abandoning his dream of making his mark on the food and beverage industry, he doubled down.
“It hit me that I should be trying to do something for myself, that allows me the freedom to work how I want and not answer to anyone else,” Teo said.
Teo contacted his friend Soh, who also had F&B experience, asking if he’d like to set up their own hawker stall selling Hokkien Mee.
“I would definitely not last in an office job. I can’t sit still all day,” Teo, 28, said with a laugh. He’s done everything from working as wait staff to taking up part-time cooking jobs.
One item on the menu and 14-hour days in front of the stove
Teo said the toughest part of starting the stall was perfecting the broth, which took weeks.
“The broth must capture the essence of the prawns, with hints of sweetness and the right balance of saltiness,” he said.
“Our customers complained about consistency and said it tasted different every time they had it,” he added. “But over the weeks, we nailed it down.”
Kevin Soh, a regular who has had Teo’s dish weekly since it opened in August, said it’s one of the best Hokkien Mee he’s had in Singapore.
Soh, a cab driver for the Singaporean ride-hailing platform Grab, told me he lives 30 minutes away from Teo’s stall. But he loves the dish, saying the seafood is always fresh, and the noodles stay hot until the end.
“It’s worth the drive every week,” Soh said.
On a good day, Teo said they serve up to 300 plates of Hokkien Mee, each priced at about 6 Singaporean dollars, or $4.60. That means that on a good day, they can make as much as SG$1,800.
Teo said wait times during peak hours sometimes reach up to 45 minutes.
It’s a time and labor-intensive job. The duo starts work at 8 a.m., making a fresh batch of broth every morning.
A hungry lunch crowd keeps them occupied until 3 p.m., after which they give themselves a breather before prepping and serving a dinner crowd until 8:30 p.m.
Teo said the most difficult part of the job is having to smile at customers even when he’s having a bad day.
By the time they wrap up, it’s 10 p.m. Working 14-hour days, seven days a week, is a demanding job. But as Teo put it, “Once you get used to it, you don’t think twice about it.”
Gen Zers are betting big on F&B in Asia
In Singapore, small hawker stalls like Teo’s are known for serving world-class fare. Some have even been included in the Michelin Guide.
Many hawker stall owners say the work is difficult, hours are long, and the chance of failure is high.
Despite these factors, more Gen Zers in Asia are venturing into F&B, said Herman Ko, the head coach and chief program director at Career Hackers, a human resources and education technology startup in Hong Kong.
Ko said this can be attributed to factors like burnout stemming from China’s grueling 996 work culture and Japan’s exploitative “black companies.”
“Starting their own ventures allows Gen Z to have control over their pace of life and work,” Ko added. Many Asian Gen Zers are zeroing in on the F&B scene in particular because food is key to Asian identity, and there are low barriers to entry to the market, he said.
“Gen Zers can enter the F&B market without heavy upfront costs and unique expertise. For example, over the past few years, there have been a lot of Gen Zers setting up their bubble tea and beverage stores,” Ko said.
Looking to take a step back in a few years
When asked why he doubled down on F&B even though that’s how he injured his back, Teo said the long-term plan is to hire staff who could do more of the cooking, and he could take on a more managerial role.
He said he might even venture into other fields at some point.
“But even though we enjoy this, we know that the F&B scene is really, really tough. Competition is high, and manpower is hard to get. So, we might do something else,” he said.
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