Lien Ying Chow Unsung Hawker Hero • Legendary Mandarin Chatterbox Chicken Rice • International Launch of Singapore Hawker Culture

In the world of Singapore chicken rice, Swee Kee is at the level of mythology with no equal in its aura - though Swee Kee closed in 1997, its presence and influence are still felt today in the signboards of emulators from Singapore, to Malaysia and even Taiwan as well as in the minds of its multi-generational fans.

If Swee Kee is credited for popularising chicken rice in Singapore and regional countries, Mandarin Hotel's Chatterbox Chicken Rice is the one that put the humble chicken rice dish on the world map.

Mandarin Hotel opened in 1971 - it was Singapore's first 5-star hotel and its main target clientele was international travellers and businessmen from Europe, America and Japan.

Mandarin Hotel owner Lien Ying Chow and executive chef Peter Gehrmann welcoming Deputy Prime Minister & Defence Minister Dr Goh Keng Swee at Mandarin Hotel during its official opening in 1973.

Lien Ying Chow made a very bold move when planning for Chatterbox, Mandarin Hotel's coffee house. He instructed that Chatterbox shall include three Singapore hawker dishes in its menu.

To appreciate how revolutionary the idea was, we need to understand the context of the time.

The world was just entering the seventies. Mandarin Hotel was newly independent Singapore's first 5-star hotel, its grandest and tallest building at that time. Guests were greeted by an imposing 70ft by 15ft marble mural and the world's largest chandelier which was imported from Venice, Italy.

Its clientele of European and American business travellers prefer familiar food from their home countries - trying local cuisine wasn't a thing then - especially not street food. I remember how hotel staff used to greet us when we showed up for breakfast at the restaurant - "Continental or American, Sir / Mdm"?

Singapore street food hasn't had the exposure and familiarity yet for the wide acceptance and respect that it enjoys today.

It was Lien Ying Chow who opened international travellers' eyes to the wonders of Singapore hawker culture.

Lien Ying Chow was an exceptional man, yet not atypical of the best of Singapore's trailblazing pioneers .

Lien Ying Chow was born in Dabu county 大埔县, Guangdong, China in 1906. Orphaned at 10 years old, he came to Singapore a penniless teenager in 1920. By 1929, Lien founded Wah Hin, a trading company. He prospered supplying food and drinks to British forces in Malaya. When Singapore fell to the Japanese in 1941, Lien fled to Australia.

Lien returned to Singapore after the Japanese left. He founded OUB Overseas Union Bank in 1949, appointed Singapore's High Commissioner in Kuala Lumpur in 1966, built Mandarin Orchard in 1971, among many, many achievements in his illustrious life. Lien passed away in 2004 at age 98.

他有眼光

他有信心

他看得到的

我们看不到

He has foresight

He has confidence

He can see

things we cannot see.

Said 骆云山 Loh Hun Sun (Senior Advisor in Philip Securities) who worked with Lien in OUB.

Lien Ying Chow's vision and boldness with Chatterbox paid off handsomely not just for himself and his hotel but also for Singapore hawker culture. For this, I feel any serious discussion on the history of Singapore hawker culture would be incomplete without mentioning the pivotal role of Lien Ying Chow, the banker hotelier hawker champion.

Acting on Lien Ying Chow's direction, executive chef Peter Gehrmann (who was just 32 years old then, leading 200 chefs in Mandarin's kitchens cooking for 15 restaurants, cafes, room service, etc) came up with three Singapore hawker dishes with the help of his local staff - fried kway teow, laksa and chicken rice.

(One of chef Gehmann's staff was SAF army cook Sergeant Kiang Joon Toh. I have a separate article on the late SGT Kiang.)

Mandarin chicken rice debuted on 1st August 1971 with the soft opening of Chatterbox coffee house at Mandarin Hotel.

One serving of the chicken rice set which consisted of boneless chicken in their signature ceramic sampan boat shaped plate, bowl of rice, bowl of soup and condiment set of ginger, chili and dark soy sauce cost SGD$3.50++, a princely sum in 1971 for hawker food.

All three hawker dishes did well, all remaining in Chatterbox's menu to this day, but Mandarin's chicken rice's success was phenomenal.

(Prices for the chicken rice set, of course, went up over the years. In 1996, it was SGD$16++ and today in 2026, it's SGD$27++.)

If Swee Kee chicken rice is mythical, Mandarin chicken rice is legendary.

Chatterbox sold 80 chicken or 320 servings a day or about 116,800 a year - raking in SGD$1.2 million in 1989 alone.

One dish, SGD$1.2 million in 1989, let that sink in. That's a lot of money even in today's context.

Lien Ying Chow's acute business acumen was vindicated again. He saw the business potential of hawker culture before anyone though I don't think it was purely a business decision. Lien was proud of our hawker heritage and saw Mandarin's Chatterbox as an opportunity to show it off to the world 发扬光大.

In 2022, Mandarin Orchard was rebranded Hilton Orchard. Chatterbox coffeeshop is still there, along with the legendary chicken rice. There have been a few tweaks to the original including steaming instead of poaching the bird the traditional way. And, they've done away with the iconic ceramic sampan boat 🥹

Anyway, what made the old original Mandarin Chatterbox chicken rice so popular with locals, tourists and businessmen on travel alike?

My late father was a fan of Chatterbox chicken rice. I ate at Chatterbox a few times, but truth be told, analysing my food wasn't at the top of my mind at that time.

Anyway, broadly speaking the rice was aromatic, soup was nice, condiments were on point, the chicken was fresh, nicely tender and naturally sweet. That's all I could remember but the experience was entirely enjoyable.

One of the innovations at that time was serving Chatterbox chicken boneless. This was chef Gehrmann and SGT Kiang's solution for American, European, and Japanese guests' unfamiliarity with eating chicken with bones. Boneless chicken was quickly well accepted even among locals. I remember it was one of the reasons my dad loved Charterbox chicken rice too.

What are your memories of Mandarin Hotel's Chatterbox chicken rice? Please share with us 🙏