Qantas pilots from Australia bid farewell to Wing Seong Fatty’s Restaurant at Bencoolen St on its last day

Wing Seong Fatty’s Restaurant in Burlington Square at Bencoolen Street closed its doors after 100 years of operation on Jun. 28, 2026.

Amongst those who went to bid the restaurant farewell were a group of Qantas Airways pilots, who have patronised it for over 20 years.

Known for serving Australian staff from Qantas

The establishment was founded in 1926 at Albert Street by the grandfather of the current owners.

According to The Sydney Morning Herald, the restaurant was known for serving staff from the Australian carrier, Qantas, and was a familiar name with those in the aviation sector.

This is because second-generation owner, "Fatty" Au Chun Seng, is remembered for risking his life to help Australian prisoners of war during the Japanese occupation.

Some of these prisoners of war would go on to become pilots of Qantas and would make it a point to visit Wing Seong Restaurant whenever they passed through Singapore.

The tradition has since been passed down through generations of Qantas captains over the past 80 years.

Saying goodbyes

The restaurant's last day saw many regular customers dining one last time and leaving farewell gifts.

Amongst the patrons were a group of Qantas captains, who invited current co-owner Au Kwok Wing, to take a group photo with them, Shin Min Daily News reported.

The pilots told Shin Min that they had been visiting Wing Seong Restaurant every few weeks and heard last year that its owner was planning to retire.

On Sunday night, they returned to bid the restaurant a final farewell.

One of the pilots, Jerry Maguire, 51, told Shin Min that he first dined at the restaurant 25 years ago when he began his flying career.

Meanwhile, Michael Crew, 58, who has been a regular for 32 years, said he knows the restaurant's dishes like the back of his hand, with the clay pot chicken being his favourite.

Another pilot, James Graves, 62, who has been flying since 1989, said he has fond memories of the father-and-son duo.

He said Wing Seong Restaurant is like a second home to Qantas employees.