Science canteen's Uncle Wong
Uncle Wong easily serves a few customers at a time during busy periods
While cleaning up food spills may be regarded as a mundane chore by the majority, NUS Science canteen drink stall operator Wong Kai Heng begs to differ – he relishes the opportunity to engage his customers.
"I like to serve and chat with customers. In the process, I gather their feedback which may improve my operations. This keeps me happy at work, explained Mr Wong.
For the past 19 years, Mr Wong has steadfastly served the NUS community, greeting everyone with a ready smile and easy "hello, and being doubly quick with his service.
The modest Mr Wong, affectionately known as Uncle Wong, mans the till at the Science canteen from 7am but his day starts much earlier – at 4am when he makes his way to his food supplier at Lorong Ah Soo to pick up fresh kueh and pastries.
For Uncle Wong, freshness is his topmost priority, so he orders his supplies in small quantities. As a result, his food items enjoy a high turnover rate.
Uncle Wong's insistence on quality is not surprising, given his background as hotel banquet chef at five-star hotels such as Four Seasons Hotel and Shangri-La Hotel. He recounted his early days as a kitchen helper peeling a 20 kg sack of onions, and as an apprentice chef cooking various omelettes to suit customers' preferences.
When his elder daughter was born in 1995, the father-of-two wanted off days on Sundays and public holidays. He then applied to join NUS as a drink stall operator in 1996.
As many as 1,000 customers patronise his stall every day, starting from 7am, peaking around 8.30am, followed by lunch, tea break and dinner time. Other than faculty, staff and students, his regulars include members of the National University Hospital community and even construction workers.
Besides the hot drinks – milk tea is a favourite, his stall also stocks a variety of buns, including those from Four Leaves (at prices lower than its retail outlets), and chilled bottled liang cha (herbal drink) which are so popular that they get sold out every day.
Come 2016 when the canteen closes for a two-year reconstruction project, Uncle Wong who is in his 50s, can finally take a longer break. Instead of nearby destinations, he plans to venture to Japan, Korea and even the United States with his wife; and take his mother to Hainan Island, China to visit her hometown. He will also volunteer as a chef at a temple or church.
To keep fit, Uncle Wong plays basketball and jogs weekly, and even participates in three 10-km runs every year. Every Sunday, the avid gardener toils away in a community garden in Bishan, reaping a bountiful harvest of fruits and vegetables.
An early retirement is not on his cards yet. "I am so used to working, retiring will be difficult, said Uncle Wong. Still, he reckoned he would opt out of an operational role when he hits 65.
In his free time, Uncle Wong whips up mouth-watering fare, such as chicken cordon bleu, saffron rice with seafood, roast beef with salad and mango, and chicken roll with sausage and mushroom filling. But it is unlikely that he would be selling gourmet fare at NUS. Reserving his culinary skills for his family, the doting father said: "I ask my children to choose what they would like to eat, especially when they invite their friends over for gatherings.
Uncle Wong is one of NUS Everyday Icons'people who have shaped the University in unique ways'to be featured in a monthly series to mark NUS' 110th anniversary.
