ThaiPan, popular zi char place, reopens at Turf Club after closing down at Mandarin Gardens

Saved by a loyal supporter.

Fasiha Nazren| September 19, 2021, 06:47 PM

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On June 30, zi char restaurant ThaiPan closed its doors for good after close to 18 years.

It was frequented by residents in the Katong and East Coast area and the go-to after-school spot for students from nearby schools like Victoria Junior College and Victoria School.

The popular restaurant located in residential estate Mandarin Gardens closed down as it was unable to cope with the economic impact of Covid-19 and the health of the elderly owner was also cited as one of the reasons.

Relaunched on Sep. 17

But here's some good news for the fans of the restaurant.

In September, ThaiPan has joined Tribeca Bar & Bistro at Turf Club Road.

Tribeca is a multi-menu concept that also houses La Takorea, Pasta Table, Smitten, Southern Soul and The Vault.

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A post shared by Tribeca Bar & Bistro (@tribecasg)

The restaurant officially relaunched on Sep. 17.

In a report by 8 World, the owner of Tribeca is said to have been a regular patron of ThaiPan.

He asked the 80-year-old owner of ThaiPan, Yang, to join his restaurant group on the last day of ThaiPan's operations.

The 47-year-old owner of Tribeca was formerly a Victoria Junior College student who frequented ThaiPan.

Even after graduating from junior college, he would go back to ThaiPan for gatherings with classmates and Chinese New Year reunion dinners with family.

Handing over the ropes

Yang apparently wanted to enjoy her retirement following the closure of the restaurant.

However, as her staff missed working for the restaurant and were willing to join the business again, she accepted Tribeca's proposal.

However, due to her old age, she said that she is not going to do this for long and is in the midst of handing over the ropes of the business to the employees within a year.

Previously, Yang would buy the ingredients for the zi char dishes herself, visiting the market four times a week to purchase them.

In the past two months leading up to the relaunch of ThaiPan, however, Yang has been buying the ingredients with her employees so that they are familiar with the operations.

According to 8 World, the five employees that have returned to ThaiPan have been with her for more than 10 years.

Located at Turf Club Road

The restaurant still has popular favourites such as the butter squid (from S$16) and ThaiPan Fried Rice (from S$5.80).

Image via Google Maps

Tribeca Bar & Bistro's full menu can be found here.

Details

200 Turf Club Road #01-20 Grandstand South Entrance Singapore 287994

Opening hours: 11am to 10:30pm, daily

Top image from Google Maps.

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