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As I pay more attention to the surrounding, observing and trying to recall what it was like just few years ago, it is shocking just how much has changed in barely a decade. Previously, I blogged about how Forfar House and the old flats at Dawson were still standing nearly a decade ago but today replaced by new and upcoming premium housing. When I read about some commemorative bronze sculptures at the site of the old Simon Road market, I feared for the worst. Clearly the word "commemorative" does tell you something.
A market with 50 years of history before it was demolished in 1999, it was known for its delicious Mee Rebus and also Hokkien Mee and Pork Congee. Read this plaque beside the sculptures, which tells us there was even a "Muah Chee Stall where customers were even provided free tea to drink", and where many of the stall holders continue their business today at ... where else but Hougang. Speaking of Au Kang (Hougang before pinyinised), this was one place the catch from the vicinity of Kang Kar and Serangoon River were brought in, and attracted many from the neighborhood.
If location is everything, then this bygone market at 6th milestone Serangoon was at one pretty strategic place because this is where Tampines Road meets Upper Serangoon Road. The market would have served the folks going to Punggol and Kang Kar or, using Tampines Road, to Changi. From old street directories, Tampines Road met Upper Serangoon at an acute angle, a V-shape, and unconnected to Simon Road; today Tampines Road forms a cross junction with Simon Road and Upper Serangoon.
My personal memories of the place was when we used Tampines Road to visit my grand-dad living, or rather interred, somewhere inside the many private estates tucked between Upper Serangoon, Hougang Ave 2 and Yio Chu Kang Road. I was familiar with Tampines Road as we used to go but not very often to, I think, the market at Kovan for food. After the long and straight Tampines Road, we would reach a junction; after that a few confusing turns before reaching our destination. When I sat behind the wheels later, I was given directions and assurance, " just travel to the end of Tampines Road and go straight" and the guiding would start after the junction. After the visit, we would take to Yio Chu Kang Road and exit somewhere near the Japanese cemetery. Thus Simon Road would have been part of our route. I cannot recall whether I saw the market then but I'm pretty sure there was no condo.
Before my exploration in June 2011, I found some old photos of Upper Serangoon Road at vicinity of Simon Road market (leave a comment if you know the photographer). Gosh, I'm overawed by how much the place has transformed!
46 comments:
Glad to know this:
>One good news: the coffee shop opposite outlived the market. <
I wonder if this coffeeshop still has the vendor selling Fried Hokien Mee.
It was one of the last Hokien Mee stalls, as far as I know, to use a charcoal fire. It was always an amazing sight to see the sparks flying from the charcoal fire when fanned.
Regards,
wee kiat
=====================
Wow Hokkien Mee over charcoal fire?!! I never tried that. Alas, forgot to take photo of the coffee shop; it was closed that day.
I hope they have taken more pictures of the old market. It is a great part of the history of the place. It will be great to display those pictures in the condo lobby.
Agree with Apartment. It is a pity the market has to make way for the condo. IMHO, we have too many condos in sg.
I used to stay in a kampong village at the opposite side of the market when I was little. If you can get hold of a 70s street directory, the road is called Lorong Basapah. The village site is now where the nursery and Kovan Hawker Centre sits. A lot of the 2-storey shophouses are still there today. I remember fondly that there is this old fashioned toy shop next to the overhead bridge along the same row as the old market. My usual haunt is the mama shop outside the market coz of the comics they sell.
not to forget the nearby Simon Road Camp also replaced together with Simon Road Market..
btw the old kopitiam was demolished a few week ago..
the delicious hokkien mee has shut down, and the famous orh luak has shifted to where Punggol Nasi Lemak is (about 100m away)
sad isn't it?
Hi Burns,
Thanks for the info on Lorong Basapah. My hunch is that the person had to do with the Basapah family who started Punggol Zoo and owned the estate of Somapah in Changi. Will check out the area again, thanks. Where Tampines Road meets Upper Serangoon, the confluence, must had been a significant area.
http://www.singaporebasapa.com/Welcome.html
Hi yesterdayom,
You know Hebrew? Yom = Day in Hebrew. Nice combination of yesterday + day, hehe
Not sure where is Simon Road Camp, can you elaborate. Dont have a map to refer offhand. With the demolition of the old kopitiam, nothing at Simon Road junction is a heritage anymore ... :(
hi icemoon,
no lah, the nick actually is the short form for "yesterday once more".. hehe
i believe Simon Road Camp was once located near the junction of Simon Road and Simon Walk... it was demolished at the end of the nineties
sadly, not many pics of the camp are available
btw, i have heard that Simon Road kopitiam is up and running again, after weeks of renovation...
the Hokkien Mee is back in business, but probably the old nostalgic feel of the kopitiam is gone forever, replaced by a new design similar to that of a modern food-court ;)
Yesterday once more ... must be the song from Carpenters. ;)
I see, good to know they only renovated not demolished. Will go back if I have the chance. Thanks!
The pic of Simon Road market brought back memories :)
My fondest memory about Simon Road market was that I went there in the mid 70s to buy some chicks to rear as pets.
Simon Road used to be only a two-carriage street (and it was only one-way in) before the condo was built.
Hi Anon, thanks for the memories. Most of us forget the chickens we eat but not the chicks or any animals we rear as pets.
For those interested, see my photo for evidence of Simon Road widening.
Hello Icemoon, i vaguely remember this stretch before Kovan MRT, the Condominium and all the other stuff along this stretch of road was redeveloped.
Was only about 7 years old when the market was demolished... I live just further down the road ;)
The Simon road kopitiam has changed owners only recently, I believe just before your posting of this article.
I do not know where the Hokkien mee has moved... but the Fried Oyster stall has moved to the Punggol Nasi Lemak kopitiam down the road just a bit.
Great post by the way!
Hi Fabian, thanks for the information on the kopitiam. I miss the scene a decade ago when Simon Road was still one way.
Hi guys, the Nam Heng coffee shop hokkien mee hawker is still in the same location, just that the coffeeshop is now newly revamped. Do visit him again.
The Satay and Oyster Omelette at Nam Heng coffeeshop has just slightly shifted down to a stall at the Punggol Nasi Lemak food centre... its just straight down ahead from the old Nam Heng Coffeeshop... :)
Hi Min, thanks for the information. Will drop by at Kovan one day to try the food.
Thanks for posting the picture of the market. Brings back a lot of memories of me. And was surprised and touched that the street name Lorong Basapah was being brought up. I was borned there, and the address was 57 Lorong Basapah :-)
Hi Anon, glad that the post invoked your memories. Cheers.
Thanks a lot for sharing. You have done a brilliant job http://cottageme.com/offers/all/canada/ontario/bruce_peninsula
The Fried Hokkien Mee using charcoal fire from Simon Road Market is called Nam Sing Fried Hokkien Mee. It has shifted to the Old Airport Hawker Centre since the market was demolished.
If I am not wrong, the Fried Hokkien Mee from the Nam Heng Kipithiam has also shifted to a Kopithiam at Kovan (Opposite the OCBC Bank Branch.
Hello! I just chanced about your blog and what a whole lot of wonderful fuzzy memories have flooded back to me. I grew up in Lorong Basapah and have many fond recollections of my childhood spent in the area. I recall my grandmother and mum bringing me to the 6th mile (Lak Kor Chiok) market with its perpetually flooded floors and myriad smells and sounds. My favourite place in the market was the (drier) hawker food section where I would feast on my favourite bubor terigu from the hot dessert stall. Yum! I remember peering longingly at the toy stall wishing I could get that doll or tea set - it wasn't easy for my folks to afford new toys in those days. Then we would wind our way through the dark alleys of the sundry goods/apparel section before coming out to busy Upper Serangoon Road. I remember that there was a large canal that flowed through the Simon Road market that sometimes stank! The corner kopitiam also had great popiah and I remember watching them making the popiah skins onsite. We would cross the overhead bridge near the kopitiam (I believe your old photos of the market was taken from this overhead bridge) and walk through yet another set of interesting sundry shops (where I would invariably pester my mum to buy a cute hair clip or two) to cut through to Tampines Road and then across to my kampung home in Lorong Basapah. My great grandfather used to run a cooked food stall in the row of shops facing the Tampines/Upper Serangoon Road junction. Ah.. thank you for walking me through these priceless memories. Please share more photos of the area especially of Lorong Basapah if you can find them. All the best! :-)
I remember there is this chinese provision shop called Seng Chee. A wood mill/merchant shop called Chua Lye Seng. Somewhere further in is a small Indian mama shop ran by an old uncle whom everyone affectionately calls Mr Panjang as he was rather a tall and lanky figure. There was a small eat
There was a small eating place, coffeeshop, like a shed, with stalls selling fishball noodle and char Siew rice in between the curved junction of Tampines Rd and Upp Serangoon Rd. It's like in between Lorong Basapah and Kovan Market.
And yes, I rem the shop that sells chicks outside Simon rd. There was a chinese temple called Poh Kiu Siang Tng along Simon Lane too.
Thank you thank you so much these fond memories. My parents still live there and change is inevitable. I remember taking photos(For report books IC passport etc) in one of the shops on the second floor. I always buy my stationary from “天天书店”, a family business. The mama shop sells all kinds of things. Till now once in while i still dream of the place.
Fantastic blog that revived many memories. Anyone knows where the fishball noodle stall moved to if they are still operating? They also sell at lim ah pin at one time but moved after the coffeeshop was sold.
Thank you for bringing back my good old day memories. I used to stay at Simon Place:)
Hi
I would like to ask for permission to use some photos from your blog for my school heritage wall. We are doing a heritage on Hougang. I cannot reach you by email (the email button doesn't work). Hope you can get back to me via this email address: 7fatherheartofgod9@gmail.com
Thanks!
Regards
Nicholas
We are neighbours!!
Thats my childhood grounds run just opposite my kampong Lorong Berhala now the Koven foodcentre.🥰🥰🥰
We are the kampong boys bro..im fm Lorong Berhala where there are more then 20 TokPekKong temples right fm beginning till end the the road with non stop of opera shows every week 😜🤣🤣🤣
How old were you when u were staying there?
Any know where the simon road popiah moved to?
I am from Lorong berhala too. I used to fly kite in 257.257 and 258 used to play kite fighting.
Remember evening time an old uncle will sell fried char kuay teow using wood. The stall is near the timber merchant. The stall is in front of the shop name joo chang.
Wah Eng cinema. I study in SSS. Stay in Lorong berhala. 大 井 脚。
I live in 6 mile stone.
Yes I buy chicks and ducklings. There are 2 shops selling teochew piah in 6 mile stone.
In the market desert stall is nice. There is a porridge cooked food stall, the sting Ray fried with chill and salted vege is supper nice and the mee rebus too.
I remember order prata and bring our own eggs.
Yes there is an Indian rojak stall too.
There is the Dainty Photo. The boss is Mr. AU.
I was told the stall is operated by the younger generation in the hawker centre next to Heart land mall.
I stay in lor berhala near the third provision shop.
We are same kampong. I stay near the third provision shop. People call the owner uncle kwan.
Okay this will bring back memory more from the 70s and 80s. The Indian store is just beside the bus stop. Used to buy SHOOT football magazine or try and read it before the bus came. The two indian store anchor on the both sides. One beside the sundry shop/clothing shop/school uniform/underwear/singlet. The other side anchor bridge that is in the picture. Two book store, one owned by the Heng family and the other is Daily Book store. Bought my first soccer boots there. Quite expensive but unless you go downtown that was the place to buy special pens or sports shoes or stationary. I love the poh piah store that was beside the soy bean drink. There was another drink store in front which was the water chestnut store. There are two food place, one across the bridge and one just beside simon road. The one beside simon road day time is mee rebus but night time there is a teochew porridge which i frequent even in the mid 80s. Crossing the bridge and canal - really stinks - is the ice kachang store. I like the muah chee at night, the minced pork porridge and the oyster omelete. The rest of the food stalls are so so. My mother likes the pig intenstine and blood soup there also. That poh piah store is always my favorite don't know where they go. It didnt have too much peanut to overwhelm the taste. Actually along that line of shop just below before the bridge there is a place that sells hainan curry rice. I always remember the steam minced pork balls/patties. And as a kid who likes fish, there were two stalls.. one you have to walk past daily book store and cross the road and there was a small shop there. The other one most people forgot inthe 70s was behind the food market (again cross the bridge), there was a shophouse behind that sells aquarium fish - guppies, neon tetra. I still cannot forget the toilet behind there in the food market. But that was life. - Terence Ow - Montfort 1972-1981,
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