Gen Z Hawker Couple Behind Popular No. 25 Minced Meat Noodle Considering Relocation As Coffeeshop Changes Hands
Han, a former junior sous chef at Burger & Lobster, opened his own Bukit Merah stall called No. 25 Minced Meat Noodle together with Chelsea just last year. They quickly gained popularity for their mod riff on bak chor mee, serving it in a cloudy tonkotsu-style broth.
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Expanded rapidly
Due to their popularity, it made sense for Han and Chelsea to expand their business, first by setting up an outlet at One Punggol Hawker Centre. They followed up with another new concept called Heng En Noodle Stall in Bedok, which offered fishball noodles in a light tonkotsu broth with handmade fishcake.
Unfortunately, the couple had to shut down both outlets just months in, due to a lack of manpower and unsustainably steep rent for their Bedok stall.
Current coffeeshop changing hands
And now it looks like the fate of their original stall is also hanging in the balance, as No. 25 Minced Meat Noodle’s coffeeshop is changing hands this December.
The couple had to renegotiate their rent with the new landlord, which led to them making an Instagram Stories announcement on the future of their business.
In the post, Han and Chelsea wrote: “We just received news that the landlord of the kopitiam we're located in will be switching hands this December, and the kopitiam will be closed for 1 month for renovation.
At this point of time, we're still unsure if we're renewing our lease at this kopitiam; it all depends on whether we can afford the new rental charges.
We are currently unable to commit to anything at the moment, as we're still in the midst of discussion with the new landlord.
With this news, we'd like to inform all of you fans and friends that if we were to be unable to renew our lease, we will either
1) Shift to another location or
2) stop serving BCM for a while, until we get it all sorted out.
3) Worst case scenario: we'll cease this business.”
The couple also urged their fans to follow them on social media “so we can keep all of you updated as soon as we can”.
Still negotiating with new landlord
Speaking to 8days.sg, Chelsea shares that their final decision on what to do with their stall “largely depends on how much the new rental fees will be”.
She explains: “In summary, if the rental fees are within the affordable range for us, we’ll be staying. If the increase is too exorbitant, we’ll likely be looking for a new location.”
As her stall has been operating at Bukit Merah for almost two years, Chelsea expressed that she hopes she can continue selling her bak chor mee there. “We’d very much prefer to remain here because we’ve built a “base” here and we’d like to continue building our name and brand.”
Her focus is also on stabilising her business. “As you may know, it’s been especially tough for lots of F&B brands in Singapore this year, and we really really don’t want to try anything risky again, especially with the closures of our One Punggol Hawker Centre and Bedok stalls,” she says.
The couple — who is getting married later this year — is now waiting for their landlord to update them on the outcome of their rental negotiation. Han shares: “As of now nothing is confirmed on our end.”
No. 25 Minced Meat Noodle is at #01-3749, 161 Bukit Merah Central, S150161. Open daily except Sun, 10am-2pm. Facebook Instagram
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