Ex-Mr Lorbak Hawker, Now A Restaurant GM, Back With Pop-Up Stall At Food Court

When popular soy-braised pork hawker chain Mr Lorbak was forced to shut its doors back in 2020 due to heavy losses during the pandemic, owner William Liou, 38, tells 8days.sg that he “cried so hard”. He shares candidly: “To watch the brand grow from nothing to something so prominent was a humbling experience. So when I had to shut down, it felt like I was throwing away five years of hard work”.

Prior to becoming a hawker, the Shatec grad was a chef at Kopi Tiam restaurant in Swissotel The Stamford and general manager of F&B group Sprmrkt, so it’s no surprise that he became general manager of the Akashi Group of restaurants after Mr Lorbak winded down. William has been working at Akashi for four years now, and tells us he got the job as Akashi’s second-generation owner is his close friend. 

Akashi owns F&B concepts like Japanese restaurants Akashi, Akanoya, plus Chinese eatery London Fat Duck, and modern food court Singapore Jiak. 

No part of this story or photos can be reproduced without permission from 8days.sg

William Liou aka Mr Lorbak

Is being a restaurant GM or hawker more challenging?

Does he prefer being a hawker or manager? “That’s a really difficult question. I do enjoy cooking a lot, and making people happy when they eat my food is satisfying, but being GM has its own challenges that’s also very exciting for me. I love both jobs, I can never decide which is better,” he says diplomatically.

William does, however, admit that his job as a GM is much comfier than being a hawker: “Physically, being in a hawker setting is so hot, oily and you’re in harsh conditions all day long, but as the general manager of a restaurant you can relax in air-con. But at the same time, I also have to be accountable for all the profits and losses, so it’s more stressful,” he laughs. 

William shares that he's making a "comparable" amount as a manager now as he was as a hawker chain towkay before the pandemic.

Mr Lorbak back via a pop-up stall after four years

But good news for fans of the ex-hawker’s soy-braised pork belly rice - after four years of requests from old regulars, William has resurrected Mr Lorbak for a month-long pop-up at Akashi’s food court concept, Singapore Jiak. The pop-up runs from now till end July, and William says he cooks there daily. 

William at his hawker stall back in 2017

Hawker biz lost $30K per month during pandemic

William tells us he had no choice but to shut down Mr Lorbak in 2020, as the pandemic took a major toll on his business. “My stalls are all situated within the CBD and factory areas in the heartlands, so when Covid happened I was hit pretty badly. We were focusing a lot on online deliveries, which meant that I could actually direct all my sales to one outlet, causing the rest of my four outlets to be unnecessary,” he explains. William closed four of his outlets first, before shutting his final stall later that same year when his head cook retired. 

Though Mr Lorbak made profits as a whole over five years, the former hawker says he lost an average of $30K per month in the biz’s final few months, leading to its closure.

The ex-hawker is now full-time GM with the Akashi Group of restaurants

What inspired Mr Lorbak’s return?

So, what inspired William to bring Mr Lorbak back after so many years? “Last month, I bumped into an ex-regular customer in JB. We ended up having a 30 minute-long conversation, to the point that both our wives got bored and went to do their own thing, leaving two men there talking about lor bak. He was asking me when I’m gonna do a collab or pop-up, and I thought okay, maybe I should, and that’s when I decided to do it,” William laughs. 

He adds that many of his old patrons also still ask him about Mr Lorbak’s future. 

Same recipe, better ingredients

William tells us he’s still using the same recipe from his grandma. His lor bak is a mix of Teochew, Peranakan and modern styles, made with Spanish pork belly which he marinates with over 20 herbs and spices like galangal, cinnamon, star anise and tau cheo (preserved soy bean paste), then braises for 22 hours. 

Each Mr Lorbak Rice Bowl is priced higher at $10.80 now, instead of its old pricing of $6.50. It comes with pork belly topped with mei cai, peanuts, black fungus, tofu and soy-braised egg.

The chef attributes the price increase to inflation, but adds that he’s also using more premium herbs now, like cinnamon that he specially selected and imported from India. Furthermore, he no longer buys his meat in bulk like he used to. 

Will Mr Lorbak make a permanent comeback?

Will William ever consider opening a hawker stall again? Or even set up a proper Mr Lorbak stall at Singapore Jiak? His answer is vague: “At the moment, I can only say ‘never say never’,” he laughs. 

For now, he’s simply grateful for the good reception at his pop-up, where he says he sells an average of 100 to 200 bowls a day. 

Mr Lorbak’s pop-up shop runs till 31 July at Singapore Jiak, #02-15/16/17 Frasers Tower, 182 Cecil St, S069547. Open Mon - Fri 11am - 8pm. Closed Sat & Sun. Tel: 8684 7728.

Photos: Mr Lorbak

No part of this story or photos can be reproduced without permission from 8days.sg.

8days.sg is now on #tiktok! Follow us on www.tiktok.com/@8dayseat