Hawker Teo Aik Hua was sued by his childhood friend Don Tan for the repayment of $350,000 that the latter claimed was a personal loan. The court dismissed the lawsuit because Mr Tan failed to produce a single shred of evidence to show that the loans were made to Mr Teo.
The owner of a well-known hawker stall selling prawn noodles in Zion Road decided to go into business with a childhood friend to open a restaurant in South Bridge Road, after turning down other investors.
But the restaurant, which specialised in prawn noodles, struggled to stay afloat and closed down on Oct 1, 2021, after operating for nine months.
The business failure soured the friendship of over 30 years between the hawker, Mr Teo Aik Hua, and his friend, Mr Don Tan, a former chief executive of mainboard-listed company Sin Heng Heavy Machinery.
Mr Tan ended up suing Mr Teo for the repayment of $350,000 that he claimed was a personal loan he had extended to the hawker.
In response, Mr Teo said the loan, which was disbursed in multiple transactions, was not made to him personally but to the company that was set up to run the restaurant.
In a written judgment published on Feb 14, a district judge said he dismissed the lawsuit because Mr Tan failed to produce a single shred of evidence to show that the loans were made to Mr Teo.
District judge Vince Gui noted that as a former CEO of a listed company, Mr Tan ought to have known the significance of not documenting a loan allegedly made to another individual.
The judge also detailed key pieces of evidence that did not square with Mr Tan’s claim.
This included the fact that Mr Tan had transferred the funds directly to the company’s bank account and had indicated “director loan” in the remarks for at least one transfer.
Judge Gui also noted that Mr Tan referred to the money in an e-mail as a “shareholder’s loan” contributed by him.
This solidified the understanding that Mr Tan had loaned the sum to the company, said the judge.
Mr Teo, who does not speak English, became a hawker when he was 16 years old.
He sold his signature prawn noodles at the Zion Riverside Food Centre. The stall, named Fresh Taste Big Prawn Noodle, has received the Michelin Bib Gourmand every year since 2018, except in 2020 when no selection took place due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Michelin’s Bib Gourmand award is given to places that offer good value meals.
In June 2020, Mr Teo decided to go into the restaurant business. Around this time, he received news that the food centre would undergo renovations from November 2020 to April 2021.
Mr Tan, who regularly patronised his stall, agreed to be his business partner.
On Nov 30, 2020, a company, 2 Bowls, was incorporated to run the restaurant, named Zhi Wei Xian @ Zion Road Big Prawn Noodle.
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