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If you are a fan of 88 Katong Laksa, this might be your last chance to grab a bowl of their noodles before they are gone for good.<\/p>\n
The popular hawker stall will be closing on March 29, stall owner Charlie Soh announced in the Facebook group Hawkers United – Dabao 2020 on Thursday (March 19).<\/p>\n
Charlie, 74, said that he and his wife Irene have made the “painful decision” to shutter the stall due to their health concerns.<\/p>\n
He has been battling Stage 4 cancer for years, while Irene is recovering from second-degree burns on her hands that she got while working at the hawker stall, he explained.<\/p>\n
His wife also underwent knee replacement surgery a few months ago, Charlie added.<\/p>\n
Thanking customers for supporting the hawker stall, the owners added that they look forward to continue serving their laksa until the last day.<\/p>\n
Charlie’s post received words of encouragement and support from old and current customers.<\/p>\n
One comment read: “Thank you for the many years of delicious laksa. Happy retirement.”<\/p>\n
“Thank you for the delicious laksa all these years. Sad and happy for you both,” another netizen wrote.<\/p>\n
“Sad because each day our senior and wonderful hawkers are closing one by one and we are losing the original taste, resilience and hardworking people of Singapore.”\u00a0<\/p>\n
“Happy because after all the years of hard work serving delicious food, you deserve a much-needed rest.”<\/p>\n
“I wish and pray that you have a wonderful retirement and recover your energy. Stay healthy and stay well.”<\/p>\n
Some netizens, however, pointed out that this was more of a “forced closure” rather than retirement and expressed sadness that 88 Katong Laksa has joined a long list of hawker stalls that closed down.<\/p>\n
Charlie opened 88 Katong Laksa at Circuit Road Hawker Centre after he was diagnosed with cancer <\/strong>in 2022.\u00a0<\/p>\n He wished for his wife to have a chance at earning a stable source of income in the event of his death.<\/p>\n Over the years, the elderly man had been in and out of hospital multiple times and would often document his experiences on Facebook.<\/p>\n Aside from its specialty \u2014 Katong Laksa \u2014 the stall also serves local favourites such as chicken curry and fishball noodles.<\/p>\n