September 10, 2021, 05:03 PM
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Mediacorp actor Ayden Sng will be cooking for a good cause this Saturday (Sep. 11).
Those keen to try his Hainanese beef noodles can visit Blanco Court Beef Noodles at Our Tampines Hub between 12:30pm and 1:30pm the day.
Baey Yam Keng, Member of Parliament (MP) for Tampines , will also be around to serve diners.
To participate in the cause, one can buy a booklet of vouchers for use at Blanco Court Beef Noodles.
Each booklet is priced at S$100, but with a total value of S$250 worth of vouchers for redemption.
All proceeds go to the Tampines North Citizen Consultative Committee Community Development and Welfare Fund (CDWF).
Not a noob
Photo by Mandy How
28-year-old Sng is no stranger in the kitchen.
Having lived on his own in the U.S. for his studies, the actor had no choice but to pick up cooking to cater to his "highly Asian palate," he tells Mothership.
"I didn't want to eat like cold sandwiches, or soup every single day, or like tacos, so you have no choice but to resort to cooking," he explained.
These days, Sng cooks lunch for himself about three to four times a week, mostly Chinese fare.
For the charity event, the actor will be working in the kitchen one day before the big day, as well as on the morning itself, to prepare the ingredients.
Sng, who appears to be very familiar with the process, regales me with the details of what needs to be cooked for how long, which I will not repeat here because there is no word count to be met.
"We want to make sure that when we say that I'll be cooking the noodles, it's as genuine as possible. Which is why beyond just doing the final step, I'll also be involved in whatever that during the event, we'll be serving, I'll be involved in the preparation."
To allay any hygiene concerns, we'll just put it here that Sng has undergone a food safety course to be able to participate in this event.
In another life
While the actor may be his using popularity for good, it's something that he's had to "acclimatise" to.
Sng is relatively new to the entertainment industry, having signed on with Mediacorp only three years ago.
Some might also know that in his previous life, the actor held a position in the corporate world that raked in S$6,000 a month.
When asked about the biggest difference before and after becoming a celebrity (i.e. a public figure), Sng pauses for a long moment, before confessing that he has no concrete answer.
"Cos I don't like to glorify the actor role, or the artiste role. Essentially it's just a job, right, like I mean every job has its own difficulties, every job has its own perks. There are certain perks of being an actor, but it also takes away the joy that I don't know, being a corporate slave has (laughs)."
Even though a part of Sng misses sitting at the computer, making decks, and talking to clients (he said it), being an actor offers a sort of dynamism that's hard to find in a corporate job.
Maybe having photos taken by a Mothership writer is also a part of that dynamism. Photo by Mandy How.
There is no such thing as food coma when you're an actor, for instance.
For one, each day is packed with different things, according to Sng, so you're not just going through the motions with a familiar task.
For another, there's just no time to fall alseep.
"Even when you're on set, before you want to fall asleep they'll probably ask you to shoot already," Sng said.
"And I think that's the most special thing about being an artiste, is that you are constantly stimulated by different things."
Blanco Court Beef Noodles @ My Tampines Hub
Address: 1 Tampines Walk #01-15, Singapore 529684
Opening Hours: 10am to 10pm, daily
Fundraiser: Sep. 11, 2021. 12:30pm and 1:30pm
Vouchers now available for purchase, valid for redemption till Dec. 31, 2022.
Top image via Blanco Court Beef Noodles/Facebook, Mandy How
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