Sarah Sng, an alumnus from Singapore Polytechnic, left her corporate job in the middle of the pandemic last year to open a stall at Pasir Ris Central Hawker. The 27-year-old hawker founded Nyonya Pok Pok Kay which sells affordable and authentic Peranakan food.
Sarah shares her story in our series this month on ‘Finding Purpose in Work’.
Right after graduating from Singapore Polytechnic with a Diploma in Business Administration, I found myself at a crossroad in my life—take the conventional route of going to university or start working immediately.
I had the idea to open a stall, but I did not know at that point in time when or how it would come about, because the idea felt so daunting and far-fetched.
Hence, I decided to go out into the corporate world to gain some experience and exposure first. I thought that the real-life skills that I would learn at work would be more relevant and helpful in the future.
Inspired by my parents and rich heritage
Prior to opening this stall, I was running a home-based business together with my parents called “Daddy’s Kitchen”, selling authentic Peranakan food, with my dad as the main chef. My dad used to be a hotel chef and he found interest in cooking Peranakan cuisine as he thought that the dishes were challenging and interesting to prepare.
My mum’s a pure Peranakan, so I always make the joke that my dad learning how to cook Peranakan cuisine was how he chased and won over my mum. During our home-based business, we would host something called “Tok Panjang” which translates to “long table” and people would be able to enjoy an authentic Peranakan dining experience at our home.
After which, we had the opportunity to open a physical stall called “Baba Bento” at the basement of Hong Leong Building. There, we sold 4 different bento sets catering to the CBD lunch crowd. However, as the rent was getting too steep and we only opened for lunch, we decided to stop after eight months, and I returned to the corporate world to gain more relevant experience in the F&B industry.
In the past two ventures, my dad was the main chef running the show, which was why the names “Daddy’s Kitchen” and “Baba Bento”. But after shadowing him, I slowly learnt how to cook the dishes. Growing up with a mum that is so proud of her Peranakan roots, I was also inspired to continue this rich heritage.
Starting out as a hawker
Starting out fresh was not easy at all, the sourcing of various equipment, ingredients, location for the stall, suppliers and many more were all new to me.
I struggled initially, having to tackle many issues and tasks to do at once. It overwhelmed me, and I don’t handle stress very well. Fortunately, I gradually found a rhythm and set up some simple processes to make the work more manageable.
For example, I made a simple table and printed it out, listing the details of the order and delivery timings of suppliers. I would check the stock every day at 3 pm to see what I needed to stock up on, and refer to the table to make sure I didn’t miss anything out.
Thankfully, I had help and guidance from my parents too, as they were more experienced in this aspect. I am thankful for how many things went smoothly and seemingly fell into place so perfectly.
One of the instances was me meeting my signage maker through a grab hitch ride and having a really good price as compared to other quotations that I have received!
The different situations I had to go through were needed training ground for me to better handle situations.
Through time, things were slowly forming up, and receiving compliments as well as constructive feedback from customers brought much fulfillment to me.
It is always an honour and deep encouragement to me when Peranakans feedback to us that our food reminds them of their mothers’ or grandmothers’ cooking.
From left to right: Nyonya Chap Chye, Ayam Curry Kapitan, Blue Pea Rice and Sambal Egg
Humility is always a must, there will be days when some customers are difficult to me, but learning to better handle the situation according to each customer, to take criticism and improve, is absolutely necessary.
However, despite that, it is still interesting to interact with the customers and see the expressions on their faces when they enjoy and taste our food. It could be small actions like them nodding their heads and smiling as they eat.
I meet a whole diversity of people from differing backgrounds and I learn their stories, hardship and life lessons.
Finding purpose in life
Starting this business has shown me my purpose in life. For the first time in my life, I’ve never felt dread going to work.
Of course, there will be days when I’m feeling more physically tired than usual, but I always feel cheerful and energised as I look forward to cooking and serving people food that will put a smile on their faces.
Whenever people ask me how it’s like running a stall, I always say it is hard work, long hours and it can get extremely tiring. However, it is also very rewarding! I choose to see it as an exciting journey for me to continue to learn and grow.
Not everyone’s purpose in life will be conventional, nor will it be straightforward and easy.
Not everyone’s purpose in life will be conventional, nor will it be straightforward and easy. It took me much time and training for me to realise my purpose.
I believe there are many considerations to finding one’s purpose. It could start with realising your passion, interests, and strengths and exploring things related to them.
Subsequently, considering things like finances, and how realistic and achievable your goals are could be smaller “checkpoints” to see how you are doing.
For me, being a person of faith, I found my direction through prayer. To get to live out my purpose, I had to decide to follow a more unconventional path instead of pursuing a higher education.
Though people have questioned me along the way, which sometimes made me feel inadequate afterward, I eventually saw that it was all necessary for the end goal.
The different situations I had to go through were needed training ground for me to better handle situations.
In this journey, I’ve learnt to be fearless and unafraid of failure. The journey will not be easy and can be terrifying at times. You might have the best plan, but you will still inevitably encounter obstacles and make mistakes along the way.
What really helped me was having a supportive community of family and friends, who I could comfortably share both my struggles and joys with. If you can, identify people who have walked a similar journey to share their insights and experiences with you.
While many will ask questions and share their opinions on how to do things, always keep an open mind and heart to hear what they have to say.
Don’t be afraid to make changes and to get out of your comfort zone. Press on!
