Circuit Road S$2.50 noodles: Hawkers refuse to raise prices for almost 20 years

You can get a bowl of noodles at "No. 10 Noodle House" at Block 80 Circuit Road Market and Food Centre for S$2.50 in MacPherson.

Keeping things affordable

Their menu is fairly simple — minced meat noodles, fishball noodles, and lor mee.

All dishes start from S$2.50, and the largest portion goes for S$4.

Speaking to Shin Min Daily News, the elderly hawkers behind the stall said the S$2.50 price point is really for the low-income residents and elderly in the area.

Ke Xianzhong and Liu Lixiang (transliterated) have not increased prices in nearly 20 years, despite the Covid-19 pandemic and goods and services tax (GST) hikes.

They sell around 30 bowls of noodles at the S$2.50 price point daily, with most of the customers being elderly residents living in the neighbourhood.

Some loyal customers have even offered them S$3 for the S$2.50 portion.

"Both of us have never thought about how much we want to earn every day. As long as what we make is enough to live on, that's enough," they said.

Why "No. 10"?

The elderly couple behind the stall said they were initially at Joo Seng Road.

They later moved to the National University of Singapore’s Faculty of Engineering canteen, and were assigned stall number 10 — hence, the name "No. 10 Noodle House".

They moved to a hawker stall at Circuit Road in 2006, and have been there ever since.

The future ahead

The couple, who is both in their 70s, said they plan to work for a few more years before retiring.

They have four children who give them monthly allowances, Shin Min reported, but they wish to continue running the business for their loyal customers.

They are also reluctant for their granddaughter, who currently lives with them, to take over their stall.

They cited concerns over the hard work, such as waking up at 3am to 4am to prepare ingredients, as well as long hours of being on their feet.

Their granddaughter, who is 23 years old, still hopes to take over the business someday.

She said she has plans for a central kitchen where her grandparents would oversee the preparation of ingredients, so front-line staff at the stalls would only need to master how to cook and season the noodles.

Top photo via Shin Min Daily News & Google Maps.