Hawker feeds clients for free even when her stall was closed so she could care for her elderly parents

SINGAPORE: Hani Isnin-Racine is considered to be a modern Singaporean hero by many, and her recent actions only confirm this.

Ms Hani has become well-known for running The S$2.50 Shop located at Jalan Kukoh, where all the entrees are priced at just S$2.50. Her parents prepare the meals, and Ms Hani jokingly referred to herself as the “Deputy Owner” in the same way that there is a Deputy Prime Minister.

Most of their clients are elderly Singaporeans and households with limited means to buy food.

Of late, however, the stall has been closed because Ms Hani’s parents, who are in their 70s, fell ill, and Ms Hani had to care for them.

Instead of focusing on her own concerns, she has chosen to continue to care for the people who rely on The S$2.50 Shop, preparing food for them, which she has given out for free, according to reporting from Berita Harian earlier this month.

Ms Hani would make nasi lemak or fried noodles, and then place them outside her stall so that regular clients could help themselves until the shop opened again.

“I’m more worried if they don’t have food… I’ve known them for years. Some depend on my stall to get their daily food before taking medicine, and some live alone. So, if I close completely, what will they eat?” she told BH.

After running the stall for the past six years, the regulars have become part of her life, and she sees her purpose as serving the community.

Ms Hani added that if she can no longer continue to do this, it would make her feel like she’s lost part of her life’s purpose.

The S$2.50 Shop

The Independent Singapore first wrote about Ms Hani’s stall in 2024.

Ms Hani has said she starts work before 2 am, and the stall serves between 200 and 250 diners each day. The reason they start so early is that many seniors come first thing in the morning before heading down to medical appointments, such as dialysis sessions. 

Neither she nor her parents drew a salary from the stall, which Ms Hani says just about breaks even. When asked how this is sustainable, she simply replied that her parents have their savings to fall back on, while her husband works in the United Kingdom and sends her money each month.

Surprisingly, Ms Hani came from the corporate world, which only made her miserable. By 2022, she decided to help her parents with the stall. And when they started the stall, the prices they charged were actually higher.

However, a conversation with a woman who only had S$10 but had five children to feed caused them to decrease their prices to S$2.50 per dish.

BH reported her as saying that only charging this price means that with S$10, customers can still buy four dishes. 

“I want them to still have dignity and freedom of choice,” she said, adding, “They don’t feel like they’re begging.”

In the shop’s latest Facebook post, it says that the proprietors hope to reopen for business on Wednesday (July 15). /TISG

Read also: S’poreans say hawkers who serve $2.50 meals to the elderly and single mums ‘should get an award from the government’