Traditional Cake Shop Owner One Of The Last Few Makers Of Sugar Lions In S’pore For Teochew Prayers
On a humid afternoon, we walk by Sze Thye Cake Shop at Beach Road and peek in. Ensconced within the shop is its owner Koh Sun Liang, 78, who is packing biscuits. The air is hot and still. But Sun Liang patiently and methodically portions biskut telinga, also known as ear biscuit due to its shape, into small plastic bags.
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Holding a shovel made from a biscuit tin sawn in half, he carefully weighs each pack on a well-used weighing scale. A portable radio, tuned in to radio station Mediacorp Capital 958, plays an upbeat Teochew song.
Traditional cakes and biscuits
We have been patronising Sze Thye since our teenage years, having first been captivated by the sight of this uncle sitting Zen-like in his shop. Unlike the chaotic Thai Supermarket’s offerings at Golden Mile Complex just across the road, Sun Liang’s traditional snacks are the complete opposite of loud, gimmicky food fads.
His biscuits, cakes and other tidbits come in simple solid colours like pink, white and brown, encased neatly in transparent sachets. And yet there is an irresistible charm to his old-school bakery. Plastic baskets lining the entrance invite passers-by to discover treats like gem biscuits and pineapple jam biscuits. A glass display case is filled with fresh tau sar piah.
Food for praying to the Chinese deities
There are also racks stacked high with goods that customers buy to pray to the Chinese deities — crumbly bite-sized cakes, candied winter melon, dried whole mandarin oranges with a powdery sugar coating, and crunchy sesame-coated sticks.
“I have been working here since I was 12. When I learnt how to make all these things, I had not even gotten my first IC yet,” Sun Liang laughs. He used to operate his shop at Liang Seah Street, but shifted to Beach Road 20 years ago when his landlord wanted the unit back. 
"These are the leftover biscuits. I will eat them later," Sun Liang laughs. He makes most of his Chinese cakes in-house now, though he orders biscuits from suppliers. “I buy them in huge packs and repack them myself so I can check each piece for quality. I don’t make the biscuits here because if there’s too much smoke coming from the ovens, people will complain and I will be forced to go find a factory space,” he laughs. 
Ovens that cost as much as a HDB flat
Sun Liang has been using his trio of huge industrial gas ovens for over 60 years. “I bought them at an exhibition. They were made in Switzerland, and cost over S$7,000 back then. That’s the price of a three-room HDB flat at that time!” he shares.
He felt it necessary to invest in the ovens to make his business more efficient. “No choice lah. Last time, we used to use charcoal to cook. It was very slow and was more expensive. The oven is more convenient,” he says.
Teochew sugar lions
Sze Thye Cake Shop is also one of the few remaining places in Singapore selling Teochew-style sugar lions and pagodas, which are called tang si in Chinese. They traditionally come in a pair, which Sun Liang prices at $20, and are used for praying to deities and one’s ancestors.
“I’m one of the last people in Singapore to make these, because you need to have the moulds to make them,” Sun Liang explains. “This tang si can be dissolved after prayers to make sugar syrup for desserts and coffee. I don’t put any preservatives in it.”
The process of making it is challenging. “It’s very hot and very rushed. The sugar hardens quickly, within two minutes. If a customer comes into my shop while I’m making tang si, I tell them to take what they want first. They can settle their bill later,” Sun Liang chortles.
On passing his business to another generation
Sun Liang has two children, a son and a daughter. “My daughter works with computers, and my son is dealing with audio system repair. They can work in any job they are interested in,” he says.
But he reckons that there will be no one to take over his shop. “No choice lah. There are over 30 items here, all handmade. It’s not fun to work here at all,” he shares. He is also not considering retirement, pointing out: “If I retire, where can I go to pass time?”
He currently opens his shop daily, from 9am to 7pm. He shares: “If there is more business I work more. No business, I work less. Don’t think so much lah. What’s the use of stressing so much? It does you no good. I work just to pass the days and months and pay my rent and utility bills.”
Sze Thye Cake Shop is at 2 Beach Rd, S190002. Tel: 9658-1286. Open daily 9am-7pm.
Photos: Yip Jieying
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