A more mature towkay these days
“From 2020 to 2025, I was taking a break,” he says in @8dayseat’s video. “I took a break to spend time with my family and kids.”
The spinoff Hokkien mee brand has three other outlets at Upp Serangoon, Suntec City and Jewel Changi Airport. “I don’t usually cook at one fixed spot anymore. I mostly go around the [various] outlets doing quality checks,” Aaron tells 8days.sg.
Dad asked him to return to work
His break began the same year that the family struck a sweet deal with BreadTalk Group. As 8days.sg reported in 2020, Aaron, his older brother Desmond and their dad William received a sizeable payout plus shares, but BreadTalk Group did not permit disclosure of the amount.
Back then, we reported the figure was enough to buy “two smallish suburban condominium units” — granted that was back before property prices shot up.
The partnership brought First Street Teochew Fish Soup to Food Republic at BreadTalk IHQ in Tai Seng, and the brand now has a total of three outlets.
Asked if the BreadTalk deal helped make his lengthy break possible, Aaron tells 8days.sg: “Yes, the partnership was a great help. I wasn’t totally away from the biz, though. I just stepped back from the day-to-day operations.”
While he did not elaborate on how he remained involved during that period, his dad and brother kept the business running by being physically present at the eateries. Eventually, his dad William asked him to return to a more active role.
“Most parents cannot bear to see their son not doing anything,” Aaron says truthfully.
William, now in his 70s, has since moved into a consultant role, though Aaron jokes that “his real job is PR”. “He talks to every customer to find out more about what they like or don’t.”
“I don’t want to touch fish soup anymore”
Returning to hawker work appealed to Aaron, but he wanted to cook something different. When asked why, he explains that he wanted a change after years of cooking fish soup. “Nothing dramatic. Fish soup is still our main core business, but I wanted to try something new,” he says.
“Hokkien mee was quite the trend,” he adds. “So that’s how it basically started.”
Photo: Kelvin Chia
The family’s business began with First Street Teochew Fish Soup, founded by William in 1988. They branched out to Hokkien mee with First Street Fried Prawn Noodles, which opened in 2025, at the same coffee shop as their original fish soup stall at 1014 Upper Serangoon Road.
Sold Hokkien mee more than ten years ago
This isn’t his first Hokkien mee venture, though. More than a decade ago, Aaron sold the dish at the original Upp Serangoon stall in the evenings. “Fish soup in the day, Hokkien mee at dinner,” he recalls.
It stopped because the fish soup business became too busy. “I got called back [by my dad] to cook fish soup instead,” he explains.
Aaron learned the basics of cooking Hokkien mee from an older hawker who used to have a stall in Toa Payoh and whom he believes has since retired. “It was only for a short while, just the basics. After that, I refined the recipe to my liking.”
He also knows the owner of fellow Hokkien mee stall Xiao Di Fried Prawn Noodle and several other hawkers selling the dish. “We sometimes chat and swap tips. It’s a good community.”
The stock is the star
For Aaron, the most important part of Hokkien mee isn’t necessarily the seafood piled on top.
“Normally, when people talk about Hokkien mee, they will talk about the prawns as the star,” he says. “But for me personally, I think the broth is the real star.”
His stock is cooked fresh daily for at least six hours. While he doesn’t reveal the ingredients, he says: “They’re fresh and top quality, and we spend a lot of time sourcing them”. He adds that given a choice between wet and dry Hokkien mee, he prefers the wet version so he can taste more of the stock.
At Food Opera, the Signature Fried Prawn Noodles cost $9.50, while the Lala (Clam) Fried Prawn Noodles ($14.50) are currently exclusive to this outlet. The stall also serves Char Kway Teow from $7.90 and Black Carrot Cake at $7.50.
For papa William, the new stall’s location has a significance beyond bringing the family’s food to more diners.
“I think my dad had a dream to open a stall in town,” Aaron shares. “So this [Ion Orchard outlet] is his dream come true.”
First Street Fried Prawn Noodles is at Food Opera, #B4-03/04 Ion Orchard, 2 Orchard Turn, S238801. Open daily 10am to 10pm. More info via Instagram.
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