Old is gold: Rasa Sayang Western Food crew proves age is nothing but a number

Working in a kitchen is typically a young person's game, what with the long hours and crazy amount of physical work involved. 

Occasionally, you have the odd elderly hawker who goes against the grain, soldiering on in their chosen trade. Case in point, Maxwell Food Centre's Ri Xin Snack Delight and its friendly elderly owner.

But at Rasa Sayang Western Food, old is gold, with all the staff at the Ang Mo Kio stall going strong despite passing the official retirement age of 63, according to a recent 8world report. 

Located in a coffee shop along Ang Mo Kio Street 31, the wildly-popular Western food stall is helmed by 75-year-old Wang Suixia and his 71-year-old wife Li Yuelan. 

In addition, they have three employees — 72-year-old Wang Suizhong (also Suixia’s brother), his 69-year-old sister-in-law and a 66-year-old employee. 

Despite this, they have no trouble keeping up with the huge demand for their signature dishes —  chicken chop, ribeye steak and fish and chips. If you've heard of a famous Western food stall in Ang Mo Kio from family and friends, chances are they are referring to Rasa Sayang Western Food.

So what's the secret sauce? 

Age and experience it seems. Just take owner and chef Suixia, who has more than 40 years of culinary experience. He started out in a hotel in his younger days before progressing as a chef on the luxury cruise ship called, yeah you guessed it, Rasa Sayang. 

Previously, before moving into its current premises, Suixia first set up Rasa Sayang Western Food at the nearby Blk 711 in 1994. They remained there for 23 years before closing in July 2017 due to rent and manpower issues. 

After a three-year-hiatus, Suixia managed to find his current stall through a friend and reopened in January 2021.

His tender juicy chicken chops have suffered no drop in standards, especially going by the large number of returning customers from his time at Blk 711. Loyal patrons travel from as far as Punggol just to have a taste of his old-school delights.

So what keeps the 75-year-old towkay going?

In an interview with 8world, Suixia said it is the relationship that he has built up over the years with his customers. He speaks of the satisfaction of seeing his loyal customers come full circle – starting out eating as kids before growing up and bringing their own kids down.

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While retirement is still not on Suixia’s mind, he and his wife are not getting any younger. Yuelan explained that they used to work 12 hours per day, with only one off-day every two weeks. 

But now, they can rest one day every week since one of their sons and daughter-in-law swing by to help. Suixia is also handing more responsibilities to his son with a view that he will one day take the reins. Guess it isn’t just Suixia’s customers who come full circle, but his own kids as well!

ALSO READ: 'The elderly still need to have something to do': 90-year-old hawker continues running Ang Mo Kio tofu stall after half a century

Nonetheless, expect to see Suixia and Yuelan and the rest of their 'old is gold' crew around if you head down.

Address: Blk 347 Ang Mo Kio Ave 3 #01-2142, Singapore 560347
Opening hours: 11.30am - 2.30pm and 5pm – 10pm 

timothywee@asiaone.com