Ex-Meat & Rice founders open Prawn Hub Hokkien Prawn Mee at Tanjong Pagar Plaza Market & Food Centre

A new Hokkien mee stall has opened at Tanjong Pagar Plaza Market & Food Centre. And if you take a closer look at the owners, they might seem familiar. 

That’s because the duo behind Prawn Hub Hokkien Prawn Mee are none other than buddies Xavier Lim and Ong Wei Jie, both 31, previously of Meat & Rice. We first covered the hawker concept when Xavier and Wei Jie were dishing out delicious braised rice bowls at ABC Brickworks Market & Food Centre.

Since then, both went their separate ways. Wei Jie ventured out to start Braissers Rice Bowl, while Xavier remained at Meat & Rice (which relocated to a coffee shop at Yishun).

Now, they’re back together but with a completely new direction: A classic plate of Hokkien mee.

Why reunite?

Xaxier tells us he missed working with Wei Jie when the latter left to start his own stall. After all, the pair have been friends since secondary school, and Xavier missed having someone to bounce ideas off.

“It felt a little empty running a stall alone,” Xavier admits. “When we started Meat & Rice, we used to brainstorm ideas and had different perspectives. Wei Jie is also more experienced than me when it comes to cooking, so I appreciated his input.” 

“After I stopped working with Wei Jie, I could only rely on my own experience and opinions and I felt limited,” Xavier adds.

Over time, the pair found themselves gravitating towards working together again. 

At their respective stalls, both were working on braised rice bowls. However, the duo observed that rice bowls, while popular, didn’t quite fit the rhythm of everyday hawker dining.

“It’s not a staple dish like chicken rice or fish soup, as many people don’t eat braised meats with rice every day,” Wei Jie observes. 

This was especially apparent during breakfast and lunch hours where service was slow at times. Customers tended to gravitate towards more familiar dishes at other stalls. 

So why switch to Hokkien mee? Simply put: It’s something they genuinely enjoy eating — and a dish they felt had stronger daily appeal.

Unlike braised rice bowls, Hokkien mee is a true staple. It’s the kind of hawker dish Singaporeans don’t mind eating regularly, especially for lunch. 

With that, the duo decided to pivot fully. They both closed their previous stalls and started afresh with Prawn Hub Hokkien Prawn Mee in November last year.

The recipe

Prawn Hub’s Hokkien mee recipe is from Wei Jie’s aunt, Cherry Tham, who helps out with cooking the dish. 

Wei Jie says that Cherry has prior experience running her own Hokkien mee stall, the former 66 Noodles at Yishun Street 31. She plays a key role in the cooking process, often taking charge of preparing the dish herself.

What sets their Hokkien mee apart is the technique. For one, they deep-fry the prawn shells, a step that gives their prawn oil a deeper, more intense flavour profile.

This oil is then used to build the stock, resulting in a broth that appears more orange than the typical greyish tones seen elsewhere. 

They also take a different stance on wok hei. For Wei Jie, it’s not the defining feature.

“Wok hei is a bonus, not a must,” he says, noting that too much of it can overpower the natural briny sweetness of the prawns. Instead, the focus is on balance — allowing the prawn flavour to come through clearly.

Even the pork lard is treated with care. It is fried first, then kept in a slow cooker to retain crispness — ensuring it stays crunchy even for takeaway orders.

What we tried at Prawn Hub Hokkien Prawn Mee

The Hokkien mee comes in portions of S$5, S$6, and S$8. Customers can also choose to add a mixture of ingredients (prawns, pork belly and squid) for an extra S$2, noodles at S$1 or egg at S$1.

Our verdict? The Hokkien mee does indeed lean more prawn-forward in richness, rather than an intense smokiness.

The broth carries a noticeable depth, with a clean, briny sweetness that doesn’t get masked by excessive wok hei. Noodles are well-coated, without being overly greasy. We felt that there was a generous balance of noodles, egg and seafood as well.

With Prawn Hub Hokkien Prawn Mee, Xavier and Wei Jie aren’t just launching another stall. They’re returning to what worked best for them: Building something together. 

When asked if they will ever return to serving their braised rice bowls (which we really enjoyed), the duo aren’t closed off to the idea. They admit they still enjoy devouring a hearty bowl of pork jowl with indulgent gravy and rice. 

But for now, their focus is on serving an all-time hawker favourite, and starting a partnership once again.

This was a hosted tasting.

For more ideas on what to eat, check out 108 Nasi Lemak Shop at the same hawker centre, or our take on Maremyst, Singapore’s first Algerian hawker stall!