By Wilfred Pilo
KUCHING, Sept 24: Swee Sen Cafe proprietor and kolo mee vendor Jeffrey Cheng, 63, has loved eating noodles since childhood.
Cheng said his taste for the dish could also be due to inheriting the culinary skills of his parents who served delectable noodles to cafe customers.
Growing up, he always knew he would have a delicious noodle dish in front of him at every meal.
He told DayakDaily that out of 365 days in a year, he can count the number of times he has eaten rice as a main meal.
He added that his love for noodle dishes motivated him to continue his parents’ legacy in 1978.
Cheng revealed that the cafe started in 1962, and when his father passed away in 1975, his mother and sister took over.
“I was a teenager around 14 at the time of my father’s passing and when I completed my secondary school, I decided to take over the cafe business in 1978. I had learned and have been in the trade until today,” he said.
Cheng disclosed that his parents’ cafe gained popularity in the 10th Mile Bazaar area in those days because patrons liked their noodle dishes which featured fresh seafood like prawns, fishballs, as well as barbeque pork (char siew).
“Seafood noodles was one factor that attracted customers. They usually ate noodle dishes which had meat, and coming to our cafe gave them a different option.”
Cheng said when he took over the cafe, he continued serving the same dishes as his parents to customers.
He is glad his parents’ popularity and legacy gave him an advantage when he took over the cafe. However, he still had to work hard to maintain its success.
“Now my day begins at 2.30am daily to prepare for the day ahead. It is already routine as we open our shop and get ready to serve by 5am.”
He revealed he faces competition from many noodle houses in the city also serving delectable noodles, and the palates of young people are different.
“I support them in the industry as we all face the same issues of cost escalation affecting our business. And many young people don’t eat what noodle houses or cafes serve.
“But we all continue to ensure our profession gets going and always do our best to serve our customers with our unique noodle dishes.
“I believe Sarawak noodle dishes are unique and suit local palates. I believe all these well-known noodle dishes like the ‘kolo mee, ‘laksa’. ‘kampua mee’, and beef noodles are here to stay. They are all my favourite noodles.”
Cheng is modest about his cafe’s popularity and often listed as being among the top local noodle joints in the Kuching area.
“I am glad that people from as far as Taiwan and Hong Kong feature the cafe on their social media with good reviews. I don’t mind and this is a way to promote all the food of Sarawak. A tribute to my parents too,” he said.
Cheng said despite being a second generation vendor in the trade, he is not concerned as to who would take over from him.
“All my family, including my only son and many nephews, know how to make noodles. They would be the next generation of Swee Sen Cafe. I am confident they will continue with the family legacy.
Cheng said he is not ready to retire yet and still has all the energy to continue to operate the cafe.
He joked that eating noodles was good as it gives him the strength and energy to carry on his business.
“In all honesty, at this age, we still want to make a little money and many noodle dishes for customers,” he opined.
” I want those who come to my cafe to be assured of delectable noodle dishes made by me or family ready in front of them with value for money,” he said.
Swee Sen Cafe is located at 33, Jalan Penrissen, Kota Padawan, Kuching. It operates daily from 5.30am to 2pm.
For more information, call 082-611 179. — DayakDaily
