'It's not about rent': Leong Yeow Chicken Rice owner reveals reason for shuttering stalls; customers rush to dabao, take selfies

Competition is understandably stiff among hawkers, especially among those selling similar food items within the same space. But does it mean that one has to bow out?

According to Shin Min Daily News, that's the stance taken by the boss of Leong Yeow Famous Waterloo Street Hainanese Chicken Rice in deciding to close both its stalls around Waterloo Street.

AsiaOne had earlier reported on the closure, based on a netizen's Facebook post.

The stalls were started in 1978 and 1979 by husband-and-wife team Li Huijin (transliteration) and Sun Chunlan (transliteration).

The Albert Centre hawker stall is currently run by the couple's third son and his wife, while the coffee shop stall at Waterloo Centre is managed by their eldest and youngest sons, under the watchful eye of 85-year-old matriarch Chunlan.

While netizens had speculated that their impending closure might be linked to rising rental fees, Chunlan revealed that it wasn't the case in an interview with Shin Min on Friday (May 24).

"It's not because of the rent. We were doing well here. To continue a business is not easy, and we don't want to do it unhappily," Chunlan intimated.

She divulged that the family had come to the decision to bow out after they caught wind that a new roasted meat stall would be moving into the coffee shop at Waterloo Centre.

Besides chicken rice, Leong Yeow also serves up other roasted meats such as roast pork and char siew.

Preventing future unhappiness was key to the family's decision.

Chunlan reasoned: "Businesses should be conducted under harmonious circumstances. No matter which stall does better, the other party wouldn't feel good. We don't want such a situation to happen."

As to why the Albert Centre outlet, which is within a hawker centre, has to close too, Chunlan explained that the Waterloo Centre outlet, with its bigger area, was always the central kitchen from where food would be prepared by all three siblings before being transported to the other outlet.

Chunlan indicated that the family will be taking a break first after the stall's last day on Monday (May 27), before looking out for another suitable space.

"If we do reopen, we'd definitely notify everyone," she said.

Not enticed by lower rent

According to the Chinese evening daily, the Waterloo Centre coffee shop owner had tried to convince Chunlan to stay by offering to lower the rent, but to no avail.

He added with some exasperation that the coffee shop had been experiencing low footfall in recent times, with Shin Min noting that several stall spaces are still vacant.

Regular customers who found out about the stall's impending closure have made a beeline for the stall for one last meal, Shin Min reported.

One of them, Chen Hongjie, 44, said that he'd been patronising the stall since he was an 11-year-old boy and used to buy from them at least "three or four times" a week.

Hongjie, who was spotted taking a selfie with the lady boss, observed that prices at the stall have remained economical through the years: "It's a pity that they're closing, I hope they find a new location and reopen soon."

Another loyal customer, surnamed Yan, spent $118 to dabao packets of chicken rice for her entire family.

She said: "When my son got married, he invited the bosses to attend. We have gone from being customers to friends."

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candicecai@asiaone.com