Grumpy nasi ayam goreng seller at Lucky Plaza who went viral opening new stall in Toa Payoh

Nasi ayam goreng (fried chicken rice) so good, you’d brave a scolding to eat it. That’s how fans of Fiie’s Cafe in Lucky Plaza would describe the very popular eatery.

Back in February this year, 8days.sg investigated why its second-gen owner, Shafiie, earned his notorious reputation as the mall’s grumpiest food seller despite serving some of the best fried chicken rice in town.

In our viral report, we discovered that the former club bouncer has his own system of managing the long queues at his shop, which was started by his mum at the old Ordnance Engineering Training Institute (OETI) at Ayer Rajah Camp.

CAN'T ARGUE WITH HIS LOGIC

One of the things that gets people scolded by Shafiie is when they try to chope (reserve) a table before ordering their food. There are only 24 seats at the cafe, which he assigns to diners accordingly when it’s their turn.

“To be fair to everyone, I told them to queue and order first before getting a seat. First come first served,” he said, adding that he had to implement this rule as customers have fought over tables in the past.

OPENING A HAWKER OUTLET

The ambitious young boss is now expanding his business outside of Lucky Plaza, by opening a direct hawker outlet in Toa Payoh.

The stall, which is located in a Lorong 4 coffee shop, is now pending SFA approval to open.

Shafiie tells 8days.sg that his kopitiam branch will serve the same nasi ayam goreng main that he’s popular for, as well as a few “simple” side dishes that are currently in the works.

“Price is S$6 for the chicken rice and I’m keeping it affordable for the rest (of the menu) since it's a neighbourhood area,” he shared.

It being a coffee shop stall also means that you can finally chope a seat first before you order your nasi ayam goreng.

For those who are hoping to meet Mr Grumpy himself, he said: “I’ll still be at Lucky Plaza, once in a while at Toa Payoh.”

Fiie’s Cafe’s Toa Payoh outlet is at Stall #6 D’Koffie Coffeeshop, Blk 73 Toa Payoh Lor 4, Singapoore 310073.

This story was originally published in 8Days.