Here’s the sort of news that needs no dressing up: the popular Fresh Taste Big Prawn Noodle, formerly known as Noo Cheng Adam Road Prawn Mee (Zion Road) from Zion Riverside Hawker Centre, has re-emerged as a small restaurant on South Bridge Road.

The air-conditioned 52-seater, which opened in January a stone’s throw away from the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple, has a bright and modern interior and comes with a comprehensive menu that includes appetisers, sides and desserts. This is quite a departure from its predecessor’s singular offering of prawn mee.

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Chef-owner Teo Aik Hua, 56, has, until now, mostly worked alone. “As a hawker, I could take it easy with flexible opening hours and rest days,” he explains in Mandarin. “There’s pressure that comes with opening a restaurant. I have employees (there are two part-time kitchen staff and three servers) to think of now.” But Aik Hua still makes the all-important stock daily and oversees all the cooking.

If you think this all sounds very familiar, well, Aik Hua’s twin brother, Aik Cheng, founded the famous Noo Cheng Adam Road Prawn Mee. The brothers worked together to perfect their prawn noodle recipe about 30 years ago before setting up their respective stalls. Aik Cheng paved the way at Adam Road Food Centre before Aik Hua set up his stall at Zion Riverside Centre, originally under the same name, a few years later.

Aik Hua changed the stall name to its current moniker in 2018 as the brothers agreed that it was best to create separate brands since both businesses are unrelated. Both stalls have their respective loyal following, and Aik Hua says he has never been mistaken for his identical twin.

We were naturally curious if there was any sibling rivalry between the two. Aik Hua tells us that on the contrary, they share a very good relationship, often discussing how to improve their soup and where to get better ingredient supplies.

Today, Aik Hua is double-hatting as the sole owner of the Zion Riverside Centre hawker stall, as well as a co-owner of the newer Fresh Taste Big Prawn Noodle outlet.

He tells us that this evolution has been a long time in the making. “I’ve always wanted to take my food to the next level and introduce it to more people, but I was not ready to put the plan into action as I was busy running the hawker stall,” shares the soft-spoken boss.

The pieces started to fall into place when Zion Riverside Food Centre was closed temporarily for renovations last December (it reopened recently). “I had more free time to revisit the business plan and it was the perfect window for me to start a new venture.”

When we noted that it took less than a month between the food centre closure and the opening of the new restaurant – hardly enough time for the busy hawker to enjoy any rest – he chuckles cheerfully: “I can’t stand having nothing to do! I’m very active and I simply can’t stay put at home.”

Aik Hua reveals that he has been approached by “many investors, including the Killiney group and a Hong Kong company” over the years, but he was reluctant and apprehensive about working with strangers.

That concern is central to his choice to go into business with his current partner, a childhood friend who is the director of a listed machinery firm. “We already have a deep trust and understanding. It’s also easier to communicate with a good friend, so I decided to give it a try.”

“We talked about whether it was worth it for him to sell his recipe. I suggested that he could try to elevate the prawn mee concept and expand his operations before considering any sale,” shares the partner, who declines to be named.

He also tells us that the pair does not have a contract for their partnership. “We grew up in the same kampong at Bukit Timah. There are no secrets between us. Our whole community is still very close – in fact, one of our kampong friend’s son is now my apprentice,” says Aik Hua.

In 2013, 8days.sg presented Aik Hua with the tongue-in-cheek “Hottest Hae Mee Hawker” award – we were amused to find the article proudly displayed on the restaurant’s ‘wall of fame’ next to its entrance.

Besides the addition of a pair of glasses and a few extra kilos, Aik Hua’s charm is still intact – his gentle demeanour and fair, smooth complexion make him appear more youthful than his actual age. When teased about living up to his ‘hot hawker’ accolade, the shy chef laughed it off: “Old already lah, where got handsome!”

There is some discussion that eventually, someone else could take over his business. Aik Hua has an unexpectedly carefree way of thinking about his craft – “It’s not something that I can bring with me anyway, there’s no point hoarding it!”

While there are no successors in sight yet, Aik Hua’s eyes sparkle with enthusiasm at the possibility of grooming the next generation. “On my own, it’s hard to go any further. The business can be more exciting if we can find the right people to join us.”

Right now, his focus is on running the eatery. “I plan to make the soup and prepare all the ingredients for both outlets. I will be back at the hawker stall, and my workers can take care of the rest here.”

During its early days, business was erratic – “sometimes good, sometimes bad”, with the eatery getting busier during the weekend. The outlet seems to be doing well now, with our colleague observing long queues during a recent visit.

The candid boss tells us he is “not able to make a lot of money” because of his insistence on using the best ingredients. Every bowl of prawn mee is crowned with two huge wild-caught prawns – notably bigger than what he used to serve at Zion.

Aik Hua personally selects the catch at Jurong Fishery Port daily at midnight after closing the eatery. “No choice leh, the supply has not been stable during Lunar New Year. I don’t mind working a bit harder to ensure that I get the best prawns,” he says.

His picks rotate among red tiger prawn, ‘ang kar hei’ (red leg prawn in Hokkien), and flower prawn – depending on the quality of the day. Despite being pricier than the farmed prawns commonly used by other stalls, Aik Hua prefers wild-caught ones. “Wild prawns are simply tastier,” he explains.

Another departure that Zion regulars may notice is the option to have Japanese-style sliced pork instead of the usual ribs with your prawn mee. “Some customers don’t want pork ribs as they are messier to eat, while others dislike pork belly as it’s too fatty. I don’t want to use lean pork as I find the meat too tough,” he says.

In the end, Aik Hua settled on using the shoulder butt of Brazilian pork, which he finds more tender. “It is lean, with a slight fat content that helps to keep the meat moist after braising.”

With clean white walls, light wood furniture and dark blue accents, the outlet gives off a modern and cosy vibe. Order at the counter right by the entrance and relax in air-conditioned comfort while waiting for the friendly staff to serve your noodles.

As we’ve not been to the Zion stall recently, we will not be comparing this entry-level bowl to the original hawker version (where prices range from $8 to $25). However, we can assure you that the almost-creamy, briny broth that won the hawker stall its Bib Gourmand accolade from the Michelin Guide is well-deserving of its title.

The soup, which is prepared daily, brims with flavour. A base stock made from pork and chicken bones is simmered for six hours before combining with prawn broth, a secret weapon of Aik Hua that includes the use of whole prawns (“different from the ones served with the noodles”) instead of just shells. We also detected a heady scent of pepper and garlic that lifts the umami goodness of the soup.

While some prawn mee soups are lauded for being heavy and ‘gao’, Aik Hua’s concoction, though rich, is not overpowering and doesn’t leave you reaching for a drink after every few slurps.

The large, fresh prawns that top the bowl are cooked to order, which explains the sweet taste, succulent texture, and old-school hae mee lovers will also enjoy the tender ribs and chewy pork skin. Get the $16 version if you want bigger prawns and a larger serving of noodles.

The chewy yellow noodles and thick bee hoon (a combination recommended by Aik Hua) are the right vehicles to carry the fragrant dry hae mee sauce mixture – which includes lavish lashings of fried lard, fried shallot, and homemade chilli paste tinged with dried shrimp.

The prawns are sliced in half and thanks to its freshness, easy to extract from the shell. However, we prefer the butterflied version used in the soupy hae mee, as it’s more shiok to chomp on the thicker flesh.

We also appreciate the generous, thick pieces of sliced pork cooked somewhat Japanese-style in soy sauce, inspired by (but still not quite) the chashu you find at ramen joints.

An unusually indulgent dish for a prawn mee eatery, this Teochew signature requires the use of extremely fresh crabs, and we were not disappointed. Packed with sweet meat, the luscious lumps come off easily from the thin shell of the Sri Lankan crab. Of course, the creamy, tasty liver (the yellowish substance around the flesh that’s often mistaken for roe or milt) was a decadent highlight.

Aik Hua serves his crab with a homemade garlic-chilli dip, as well as golden orange oil (made from kumquats), a traditional Teochew condiment that has saccharine, citrusy notes, although we must say the naturally sweet crab meat requires no additional sauces.

At $45 for a crab between 400-450g, the price is comparable to most Teochew restaurants – in fact, we don’t mind the splurge knowing that the crustaceans served here must pass the chef’s choosy standards.

We were delighted by the juiciness of the Fragrant Pork with Crushed Garlic ($6), which showcases thick slices of fat-rimmed poached pork belly generously topped with minced garlic, chilli and spring onion. We also think the crispy, crunchy combo of Fried Fish Cakes, Tau Kwa & Tau Pok ($8), served with a tangy homemade chilli sauce, is a solid side to snack on while enjoying your hae mee.

The original prawn noodle soup with ribs is a clear winner, while versions with the slightly drier sliced pork could use a little fine-tuning. All bowls come with exceptionally fresh prawns – definitely one of the best quality we’ve tried from any hae mee joint. Go for the pricier $16 bowls if you want even bigger prawns that weigh around 100g each (compared to 60g for the cheaper version). For those willing to splurge, the cold crab is a standout dish as well. Worth visiting to enjoy this popular prawn mee in air-conditioned comfort.

Photos: Alvin Teo

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