Running a hawker stall for 18 years is no mean feat, but Francis Lai, 66, took it a notch further when he transformed his popular herbal soup stall at Chinatown Complex Food Centre into a fusion Western eatery that specialises in omelettes, appropriately named Omelette Chef. He now runs the stall dressed amusingly in chef’s whites and a puffy black toque (his wife Doreen who also works here is attired normally). But it isn’t just a gimmick — the chatty man used to wear a similar uniform when he last worked as head chef at the now-defunct Hotel Malaysia about 20 years ago.

His new menu is refreshingly straightforward — just pick a topping for your omelette, and choose your carb of either spaghetti or Japanese rice (both are topped with sauteed mushrooms). All options are priced at $5 — “we want to make it easy for our customers to pick.”

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Francis cites his three children as motivation for the pivot, which happened in 2019. “None of my three children (who work in government sectors) are willing to take over the stall. They asked us to retire but I still wanted to work. So they said, ‘why don’t you think of selling something else that doesn’t require such long hours and hard work?’”

The couple, who are in their 60s, started Grand Stewed Herbal Soup in 2001 (pictured). The stall opened from 9am to 10pm daily. “We would start preparing ingredients at 5am and reach home around midnight. It was very tough – I still had to do the housework when I got home,” shares Doreen.

Besides soups, the stall offered side dishes like fried fu rong egg (Chinese-style omelette with pork and vegetables), which became his inspiration for Omelette Chef. “Since my customers loved the fried fu rong egg, I thought – why not focus on omelettes?” says Francis.

Photo: Francis Lai

When they shared their plans to reopen as Omelette Chef a year ago, many regulars were concerned. “They were worried for us and asked why we wanted to start from scratch.”

Francis admitted that it was not an easy decision. “We had a good thing going – we just needed to open the stall and the customers would come. We didn’t have to worry about anything else.”

Despite having loyal customers who are still urging the couple to resume serving Cantonese double-boiled soups, the hawker remains undeterred. “I always look forward. The goal is to lighten our workload, so I want to focus on that and keep moving.”

We asked Doreen if she supported his decision from the get-go. “Aiyah, she just follow only!” Francis interrupts jokingly. “As long as he’s happy, I’m ok. Anyway, once he’s made a decision, you cannot change it!” Doreen laughs.

Now, the stall is open from 11am to 8pm and is closed every Sunday. “My kids are happy for us. They tell me, ‘you can relax more now!’ and I look forward to spending time with them on Sundays.”

The youngest of 11 children, Francis left school at 13 to support his family. “I started working at a relative’s zi char stall at Tiong Bahru Food Market,” he tells us.

In 1976, he started formal culinary training in a Japanese restaurant at Apollo Hotel (now Furama RiverFront Hotel). “After two years, I decided it was time to broaden my horizon so I left for Hotel Malaysia (which closed in 1999) to learn to cook Western cuisine.”

Over the next two decades, Francis was promoted from commis cook to head chef at Hotel Malaysia. Omelettes were part of his repertoire as a Western chef, and his secret to making a good omelette is ensuring that it’s fluffy (“the key is in how you beat the eggs”), well-seasoned (he uses salt and pepper) and a watchful eye on the heat (“the fire needs to be controlled constantly”).

When he was nearing 50, the steady job with “good pay and benefits” could no longer suppress his desire to chart his own path. “My job was stressful and I worked long hours at the hotel. I figured why not start my own business? Even if I have to put in long hours, at least I’ll be working for myself.”

Having grown up in Chinatown, getting a stall at Chinatown Complex was a no-brainer for Francis. “Back then, I knew it wouldn’t be easy to sell Western food in this area as the customers had more traditional tastes. I’m Cantonese, and I saw that there were no other herbal soup stalls in the food centre so that’s how we started serving herbal soup here.”

When asked about how the pandemic has affected their business, Francis shares that the pivot has turned out to be a blessing. “My soups require a lot of ingredients and preparation. It would have been difficult to continue serving them during the circuit breaker as it was impossible to estimate the demand.”

By focusing on omelettes, the current stall requires a smaller ingredient list and preparation is also much more straightforward. Business has been “not bad”, with the majority of customers being office workers and the younger crowd. During our visit on a Tuesday afternoon, we were surprised to see five elderly uncles patronising the stall.

With a striking egg character logo and “Omelette Chef” in bright yellow cursive against a black signboard, the stall’s modern appearance stands out among its grittier neighbours.

Francis was quick to claim credit when we asked if his kids helped with the design. “No, it’s all my idea. I was inspired by Humpty Dumpty!” he laughs. “See the specs and hat, look like uncle right?” adds Doreen.

Another thing that sets the stall apart is Francis’s outfit – he’s dressed in chef’s whites and hat daily. “I wanted to cater to the younger generation, so I knew we had to be different,” he says. “My neighbour asked why I put on a chef’s outfit in a hawker centre, as it can get quite hot because of the thick fabric. It’s part of my image as the Omelette Chef. I’ve been a chef for so many years so I feel comfortable in this uniform.”

Besides his uniform, Francis’s bossy head chef tendencies are also evident in the couple’s amusing dynamics. “There’s a specific way of plating that he wants me to follow. He always catches me when I forget something and makes me redo it!” shares Doreen good-naturedly, who helps to serve customers and prep ingredients.

As with most very simple things, when it comes to the omelette, there is more to it than meets the eye.

Omelette Chef’s version is a hearty, half-moon fold that is well-seasoned and perfectly cooked. Francis has his fold and flip technique down pat – we counted at least four flips per omelette – and it shows. The resulting omelette filled with chopped tomatoes, onions and spring onions is light, yet flavourful, and takes on an even, light golden-brown colour with a moist middle.

It’s not like an angmoh-style French omelette, but more a home-style omelette with a crispier exterior. Somewhere between a western omelette (the moist middle) and Chinese fu rong egg. There are 10 toppings to choose from.

The tender, juicy smoked duck is a throwback to Francis’s hotel days. “It’s an ingredient that I worked with a lot and I wanted to offer something that you don’t really see at other western stalls.”

For $5, the smoked duck slices exceeded expectations. They are not too greasy and the mild saltiness provides subtle hits of flavour to the omelette and yummy spaghetti seasoned with sauteed mushroom sauce.

Francis has also provided five different sauces to dress your omelette: Thai pesto (sweet-spicy chilli sauce), Lemon Mayo (citrusy and creamy) and classic mayo, chilli and tomato sauce. We tried the first two and concluded that the flavourful omelette did not require any extra sauces.

We thoroughly enjoyed this ‘light’ version of a Western combo meal and to be honest, would pick this over overpriced protein bowls any day.

Francis tells us the satay is made from scratch and we jokingly point out that this increases his workload – “It’s the only way I can control the taste!” he laughs.

Along with Chicken Floss and Otah, the Dried Chicken Satay combo was introduced to “cater to those who want familiar Asian flavours”.

The generous chunks of grilled satay meat (sans sticks) lend a satisfying meatier touch to the omelette, and we also liked the slight sweetness from the lemongrass and turmeric marinade.

Made from shiitake and button mushrooms, this soup is a comforting accompaniment to your omelette combo. The texture is silky and its flavour reminiscent of the old-school Singaporean steakhouse type of mushroom soup.

While the omelette ingredients are not as fancy as say, a cafe or hotel breakfast one (no atas ham and cheese here), the seasoning and fluffiness of Francis’s version are definitely up to standard. For $5, we’d visit again for this generously-portioned, no-frills, old-school Asian-ised Western meal.

Omelette Chef is at #02-136 Chinatown Complex, 335 Smith St, S050335. Open Mon-Sat 11am-8pm. Closed on Sunday.

Photos: Alvin Teo

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