Noodle Bar kicks off Tanjong Pagar branch

Here's a short story to how it started.

According to a release, Noodle Bar opens its doors in downtown Tanjong Pagar to serve traditional noodles to busy executives. Opened and managed by Mrs Yeo, 63, the concept sprung from the Yeo’s retirement plans to keep busy in their twilight years.

Started in February 2012 by Mrs Yeo as part of her retirement plan, Noodle Bar has been providing hearty dishes to the executives in the business district. Serving up simple authentic Chinese noodles, with recipes passed through the generations.

The Noodle Bar’s menu is priced at an average of S$5.50 - S$9.00 per pax, an attractive price for a delectable meal with a quaint ambiance. Noodle Bar is located at No 1 Tras Link, #01-16 Orchid Hotel Singapore 078867 and opens daily from 10:30 am to 9pm.

The Yeos ran a successful garment manufacturing business in their earlier years, bringing up 3 children and putting them through university. In the heydays of garment manufacturing, the Yeos owned factories in Singaporewith up to 200 workers and expanded to Vietnam in the mid 2000s.

The Yeos also made shrewd property investments to cater for their retirement. The garment business is currently managed by their daughter.

In 2011, Mrs Yeo thought of running a small food business to keep active. Her husband and her eventually came up with the idea for a noodle bar in the Central Business District, noodles being something close to the heart of Mdm Yeo.

“As a child, I grew up eating a lot of noodles as it was a fast and easy staple for my grandmother and mother to make to feed 6 hungry children. Most days, we had plain noodles in soup in a bowl. Once in a blue moon, we were given a treat to purchase a bowl of noodles from the street vendors,” reminisces Mrs Yeo. “The noodles from the street hawkers were mouth-wateringly tasty and I remember always wishing for a bowl when I was young.”

Now that Singaporeans are affluent, a bowl of noodles may not be such a big deal, but Mrs Yeo wants to remind her children and grandchildren that life was not always easy and to be thankful for what they have. The Noodle Bar serves a range of Chinese noodles from pork ribs prawn noodles to laksa, and made simply, because “the best things in life are the simple things” according to Mrs Yeo.

Underlying the simplicity, however, is Noodle Bar’s traditional goodness recipes culled from Mrs Yeo’s maternal heritage.

Mrs Yeo enjoys the challenge of keeping busy and learning new things. “I never thought that running a small food business could be so challenging!” gushes Mrs Yeo. “But in a way I’m glad we started this. Noodle Bar has become a cherished family project. It saw us through the death of my husband, and as my daughter helps me out, the family has become closer as aresult of having a common goal to make Noodle Bar profitable!” Mr Yeo passed away from natural causes in March 2012 and did not see the final development of Noodle Bar.

Mrs Yeo is the proud grandmother of 2 grandchildren, who are still too young to help out. Today the Noodle Bar does bustling business during lunch and also caters to early dinner diners on weekdays.