When the Circuit Breaker started in April and offices in the CBD shuttered, foot traffic in the area plunged — along with Arcade Fish Soup’s sales. “Our sales dropped by about 80 percent during the circuit breaker. Now, it’s around 30 percent of what it used to be pre-pandemic,” says Eric Lee, 36, who helms the business with his brother, 34-year-old Lee Wei Sheng. So, the second-generation owners of the 17-year-old fish soup biz scrambled to seek a solution.

“We were hesitant to offer delivery at the start as we believe our fish soup should be eaten fresh off the stove, as far as possible,” says Eric (right in pic). However, as the circuit breaker drew on, he and Wei Sheng (left) realised that they would have to pivot if they wanted to boost sales.

“Once we realised the situation won't be over anytime soon, we immediately kicked into overdrive and started our delivery service.”

“Honestly, there’s not that much change in our sales before and after Phase 2 started — in fact, our deliveries dropped by 30 to 50 percent.”

He cites this as the reason why he and Wei Sheng decided to start their $4 islandwide delivery promotion. This promotion was initially slated to end after July. However, buoyed by the support from their regulars, they decided to extend the promotion “for as long as we can. Moving forward, we don’t dare to think too much, as now we’re really in survival mode.”

Lunch orders run from Monday to Saturday between 11.45am and 1.45pm, with a minimum order of $20 to qualify for delivery. Place your orders at least one night in advance (up to a week in advance) to secure your slot.

Opened at The Arcade building at Raffles Place in 2003, Arcade Fish Soup started out quietly. “We didn’t even have a name back then, because we didn’t think that our fish soup would become this popular” says Eric.

The directors of Arcade Fish Soup recall how their mother, Madam Goh, 64, first opened her eatery at The Arcade — a coffeeshop with two stalls under the name Hup Lee Cafeteria — with the intention of selling cai png from their main stall. At that time, they only sold fish soup from a side stall in the corner.

The crowds loved it — with queues that stretched all the way out the store into the hallways. Over the years, their fish soup business became so good that they converted both stalls in The Arcade eatery to sell just fish soup.

“A lot of livelihoods depend on our business. We employ quite a number of aunties and uncles who have stuck by us for many years — some since our mum’s time. That’s why we tell ourselves we can’t fail,” reflects Eric. Madam Goh has since retired, handing the reins over to her sons in 2015.

Eric and Wei Sheng have been a part of their mother’s F&B businesses since they were in primary school (mama, bottom left in pic, first ventured into the F&B scene in 1988, opening a stall selling claypot rice and curry chicken in Bugis). So their school holidays were often filled with hopping around the different F&B outlets. “We started out as cashiers, before finally moving up the “ladder”,” said Eric, adding that their mother would pay them $5 an hour for their work.

The older of the brothers, Eric graduated from the Singapore Institute of Management with a Bachelor of Science in Computing and Information Systems, starting his first job as a financial analyst at Systematic. “I wanted to give the corporate side a shot. However, life at the office was quite boring to me. That’s why I found my way back to F&B.”

In 2011, he joined his brother Wei Sheng, who had jumped straight into the Arcade Fish Soup business full-time after graduating from Nanyang Technological University with a Bachelor of Accountancy in 2009.

After joining the business full-time, the brothers made tweaks to their mother’s original recipe, “adding certain things, adjusting certain things”, before finally nailing the taste they were aiming for.

In 2018, the brothers decided to expand beyond The Arcade. “The number one complaint amongst customers is that our Arcade shop is too warm! Plus, that building is really old.”

Heeding their regulars’ feedback, Arcade Fish Soup opened three new outlets in Marina One, Frasers Towers, and Marina Bay Link Mall in 2018 and 2019, under the new entity Arcade Fish Soup Pte Ltd. “Back when we only had one shop, we didn’t have an official name. Our regulars would always refer to us as “The Arcade fish soup” — so that name stuck!”

Arcade Fish Soup’s menu is short and sweet. Here’s how it works:

1. Choose between Sliced Fish Soup, Mixed Fish Soup or Fried Fish Soup ($7 for a regular bowl; $9 for a large one).

2. Opt for milk, or no milk in your soup.

3. Add on your choice of carbs (white rice for $0.50, brown rice or thick beehoon for $1).

4. Add boiled scallops ($2 for four pieces).

When our delivery order arrived, the first thing that caught our eye was the packaging. Specifically, how meticulously packed it was. Every bowl of fish soup was tightly sealed with cling wrap, and packed separately from the noodles and rice. And the signature fried garlic is packed in its own little tub, for sprinkling on just before you dig in.

“We did our research on the different options for delivery packaging before launching, and noticed that many vendors skipped the cling wrap on their products — leading to spillage.”

It works. Zero mess, zero wastage.

The Sliced Fish Soup is still hot by the time we get it, brimming with thick slices of batang (Spanish mackerel), cabbage, slices of xian cai (pickled vegetables), beancurd and tomato. The fish meat is extremely fresh, with an excellent texture despite the journey. Tender and smooth, with a delightful bouncy texture. If you’re picky about the “fishy” taste that sometimes comes with fish skin, this one is is silky smooth with zero funk.

The soup itself is just as good. Bright, sweet, and intensely umami. Shower everything with fried garlic, for another jolt of flavour.

We opted to add on some boiled scallops, and they don’t disappoint — remaining sweet and springy. No jaw-aching rubberiness here. Eric divulged that the secret to the deep flavours comes from “fresh fish bones, long hours in the pot, and a lot of heart.” Pork bones, anchovies, soybeans and various spices make up the rest of the soup, along with a tiny bit of MSG that Madam Goh believes is necessary for elevating all the flavours.

“We use premium fresh batang fish, which costs a lot more than the ones you typically find at most fish soup stalls. Considering that almost 95% of our customers have been converted to regulars, I guess that’s a sign that they feel our food is worth it too.” The Grade 1 batang fish they use is air-flown in fresh, as opposed to the cheaper ones that are typically frozen.

The Mixed Fish Soup has a blend of fresh sliced fish and deep-fried nuggets of dory fish. We opt for milk in the soup this time, to see how it would change the flavours. With the addition of evaporated milk, the soup develops a different profile. It’s definitely richer and more full-bodied, with its natural seafood-y sweetness amped up.

We were initially sceptical, since fried food usually tastes the best fresh — plus, the thick slices of fresh fish are pretty hard to beat. But this was fantastic. With only a thin coating of batter, the pieces of fried fish had a nice flaky texture and a substantial bite — meatier, compared to the typical thin fillets of dory. Again, it had the same QQ-quality as the fresh fish slices, and none of the expected greasiness.

Even though the exterior isn’t as crispy (probably because of it was delivered), the fish nuggets do a good job of soaking up the sweet, milky broth. This is probably the only time we’ll accept fried food that’s not crisp (sorry, Team Soggy Fries).

On its own, the fish soup tastes more complex and bright, while the addition of milk helps to round off the taste and makes it more indulgent. We're fans of both. Get the clear one if it’s your first time trying, so you can fully appreciate all the flavours in the broth.

It’s not quite Arcade Fish Soup without the mountain of fried garlic on top of each bowl of soup. Eric and Wei Sheng launched their Bottled Fried Garlic in 2018, due to requests from many customers. The fried garlic gives the fish soup some extra crunch, along with layers of pungent sweetness. So far, we’ve used it to jazz up everything, from instant noodles to buttered baguettes. Shiok.

Aside from fish soup, you can also order Chicken Curry from Arcade Fish Soup’s sister restaurant, Yi Jia Chun (which sits a few units away from The Arcade HQ space). It specialises in chicken curry and double-boiled herbal soups. On first look, the bright colors and fall-off-the-bone chicken meat look promising. But while the curry is lemak enough, the spices and flavours could have permeated the meat better. Save your dollars for the fish soup instead.

From the thoughtful delivery packaging to the quality fish and broth, there’s clearly a lot of heart going into each bowl. We’d order this via delivery again — $4 is a reasonable price to pay for convenience in this pandemic.

Order via the Arcade Fish Soup delivery platform at least a day in advance (minimum $20 to qualify for islandwide delivery; orders below $20 incur an $8 delivery fee). Mon to Sat 11.15am - 1.45pm. Takeaway & dine-in also available, check out opening hours on their website.

Photos: Alicia Teng, Eric Lee