If you’re a follower of local getai singer Wang Lei’s live streams, you probably would have heard of new Thai casual eatery Thai Taste in Toa Payoh.

The month-old joint is co-owned by Wang Lei’s son-in-law, Donavan Ho, 36, and two partners, childhood pal Ye Yicheng (right in pic below), 38, and Ah Tong (standing), 47. Since Thai Taste opened shop at the end November, Wang Lei, better known as ‘Fish Selling Bro’ as he sold frozen seafood on live stream , has been actively marketing the F&B biz online, introducing viewers to dishes, as well as selling dining vouchers.

Located at social service centre CaritasAgape Village, the joint serves up popular Thai street foods such as tom yum soup, pad thai and green curry. There are also signatures like Thai-style fried chicken rice and a small selection of local and Thai breakfast toasts. 

The cosy 48-seat air-conditioned restaurant is simply decorated to mimic a Thai street eatery. Mini Thailand flags and light bulbs adorn the ceiling, and on one wall is a mural depicting a Thai street scene.  

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Idea to start F&B biz sparked at Wang Lei’s office 

Donavan, who is married to Wang Lei’s youngest daughter Sharon Hong, 31, is a Jack of many trades. Besides overseeing operations at Wang Lei’s live stream company with Yicheng, he is also a live streamer and runs his own tiling and contractor business.

The idea to start Thai Taste sparked after Yicheng mentioned during his employee engagement review with Donavan in April that he would like to start an F&B business with his Thai wife in future. She’s a cook and used to run an eatery with her mum in their hometown of Korat in northeastern Thailand.

Together with Ah Tong, who supplies frozen seafood to Wang Lei’s business, the trio invested around $150K to open Thai Taste.

“We serve authentic Thai street food that’s why we named our restaurant Thai Taste. My wife trained our cooks, and the dishes are cooked using recipes from her mum,” Yicheng tells 8days.sg .

They had considered starting small with a hawker stall specialising in Thai-style fried chicken rice as it is rare in Singapore, but expanded their menu when they found this cosy space “at a very good deal”.

They declined to share how much they pay to rent the unit, only saying it’s “comparable to a coffeeshop stall”. 

“There are pros and cons opening here. We have a standalone space and cheaper rent, but the location is ulu and hidden, you won’t know there’s an eatery here unless you come into the compound, so we have to do a lot of marketing to draw customers,” shares Ah Tong.

Business exceeded expectations by 30% 

Not that they have to worry about that. Thanks to Wang Lei (who has no share in the restaurant), business has “exceeded expectations by 30 percent”.

Yicheng shares that Wang Lei has been nothing but supportive of their new venture. In addition to helping with food tasting during R&D, he would come up with marketing ideas and take time out of his busy schedule to promote Thai Taste.

“He’s constantly travelling yet he finds time to help us. He will bring friends down to eat or do live streams to help pull customers. He’s an old person who chiongs,” laughs Yicheng. 

Donavan adds: “We see an immediate spike in business when Wang Lei does a live stream here. People living nearby will specially come down and sales will double. Dishes he recommends will be sold out too.”

Earned “five-figures” on opening day

According to the guys, around 80 percent of customers found out about Thai Taste through Wang Lei’s live streams, and they have sold more than 300 dining vouchers worth $100 each.

“A lot of people came down on our opening day and we made low five-figures, inclusive of voucher sales, which is unbelievable,” says Donavan.

“There are already people approaching us for franchising, but we want to focus on stabilising operations first before taking the next step.”

Signature ThaiFried Chicken Rice (Cutlet), $6.80 (8 DAYS Pick!)

The fried chicken rice is Thai Taste’s bestseller. The team spent around six months refining the recipe as they couldn’t nail the specific taste that Donavan wanted. “I insisted that our fried chicken should taste like the one from my favourite stall in Bangkok’s Pratunam Market, so during a work trip earlier this year, I tapow the fried chicken back for our team so they can recreate the flavour,” he shares.

Chicken thigh is marinated overnight in a blend of aromatics like lemongrass, garlic powder, and other “secret ingredients” and then coated in scallion oil-spiked batter. The result is succulent chook with a crunchy crust, and thick, savoury meat within.

It’s served with tangy papaya slices and Hainanese chicken rice -style grains which is fried in chicken fat with lemongrass and pandan leaves, before cooking in broth. Fragrant and infused with chicken essence, the rice goes perfectly with the piquant, ginger-forward nam jin chilli sauce.

Thai-Style Braised Pork Knuckle, $16.80

This is one of Wang Lei’s must-eats at Thai Taste. Stewed for a day in a braise consisting of spices like star anise, five-spice powder and cinnamon, the decadent dish is less sweet compared to the ones you’d get in Thailand, with a balanced flavour. The pork knuckle is cooked just so the meat falls off the bone and the skin soft and gelatinous.

Sour Spicy Steamed Sea Bass Fillet, $12.80 (8 DAYS Pick!)

Another favourite of Wang Lei. Perfectly steamed, the meaty sea bass, which weighs at least 300g, is moist and firm in texture. Despite the punchy dressing of lime juice and other ingredients like garlic, lemongrass and chilli padi, you can taste the freshness and natural sweetness of the seafood. Very appetising and value-for-money.

Basil Pork Rice, from $6.80

We enjoy the basil minced pork rice too. Thai basil perfumes the meat, with a hint of heat from the chilli padi. It is served with steamed jasmine rice (add 80 cents for chicken rice) and your choice of a runny sunny-side up, double egg, um, threesome or foursome. Extra $1 for each additional egg.

Stuffed Chicken Wings, $3.80 for three pcs

These chicken wings are a labour of love. Each piece is deboned, meat removed and then stuffed with a blend of fish and sotong paste, and deep-fried. It is crisp on the outside, bouncy inside, and deliciously umami. Definitely order this if you like anything fish paste like us.

The details

Thai Taste is at #01-01 Caritas Agape Village, 7A Lor 8 Toa Payoh, S319264. Open daily from 8am – 9.30pm. More info via Instagram. 

Photos: Dillon Tan

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