Hawkers of SG #104 – Jia Authentic Hakka Yong Tau Foo

We recently opened in December of 2019, right before the pandemic happened. I operate the stall alone, and I am actually a chef myself. Before this, I was running a pub in Singapore and used to own my restaurant. I also help others to set up their F&B business.

While I have worked at a pub before, what I am selling here at Pasir Ris Hawker Centre is very different. When we dine out at hawker centres, our staple food include Chicken Rice, Nasi Lemak, Laksa and all of these are actually our comfort food. Here, I sell Yong Tau Foo, another famous comfort food for Singaporeans. Why Hakka Yong Tau Foo? Because back in the day, it was often consumed and cooked by grandparents. We call it 家 “jia” because it means home. We want our customers to feel at home and be able to reminisce about their home-cooked food.

One memorable encounter I had was with a 70 years-old customer. He expressed how my Yong Tau Foo reminded him a lot of his wife’s cooking. He felt that it was also difficult to find such dishes in Singapore anymore. That’s why customers like him who expresses how my dish brought back some of his memories, keeps me motivated. Yong Tau Foo cannot be found anywhere easily as it can get quite tedious. I come in as early as 5:30am to prepare the main ingredients such as fresh pork. We need to stuff the ingredients into the tofu, that’s why more time is required to prepare the ingredients.

Here, we have BelanjaEat, an initiative to give back to those who are in need. Anyone who needs a meal, can redeem here at my stall, no questions asked. We do have customers donating and we donate about 10 bowls a day as well. Singaporean or not, everyone is trying to contribute to make this place a better place especially during this period. I’ve had customers donate $500 to give free meals to those in need. So I encourage anyone in need, please come and redeem at my stall. No questions asked.

Jia Authentic Hakka Yong Tau Foo (#01-20)
Pasir Ris Central Hawker Centre
(Delivery available via WhyQ)