SINGAPORE - The Loong Fatt Tau Sar Piah shop in Balestier has a history dating back to 1948, but its story does not begin with its popular flaky mung bean pastry.
Behind the heritage brand is a riveting story of how its Hainanese founder made many attempts to succeed in early Singapore's food industry - selling items from chicken rice to kaya toast - before eventually finding his sweet spot and speciality in the form of the humble tau sar piah.
From Saturday (March 7), this story will be on display in a National Heritage Board- funded heritage corner within the shop itself at 639 Balestier Road.
Its third-generation owner, Mr Xavier Lee, 39, whose late grandfather Lee Wang Long founded the business, worked with the NHB to put the heritage corner together. Also on show will be the late founder's traditional baking moulds and rolling pins, as well as his signed receipts and invoices.
The shop is one of five businesses in the Balestier precinct with long histories that are part of the NHB's new Street Corner Heritage Galleries programme.
The scheme, announced in Parliament on Friday by Senior Parliamentary Secretary for the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) Baey Yam Keng, highlights shopkeepers with at least 30 years of experience in Singapore's historical precincts.
NHB deputy chief executive of policy and community Alvin Tan said the Street Corner Heritage Galleries initiative aims to revitalise heritage precincts and instil a stronger sense of ownership among key community stakeholders.
Mr Tan added: "We also want to equip our precinct stakeholders with the necessary competencies in heritage programming so as to grow the heritage ecosystem."
The mini museums programme will be rolled out to heritage shops in four other historical precincts -Kampong Gelam, Little India, Geylang Serai and Kreta Ayer - by 2022.
The other shops in Balestier to have their own mini museums are: Loy Kee Best Chicken Rice, Lim Kay Khee Optical and Contact Lens Centre, Lam Yeo Coffee Powder Factory, and Sweetlands Confectionery and Bakery. These also open on Saturday.
Loong Fatt Tau Sar Piah's Mr Lee said he took part in the programme to give Singaporeans young and old a glimpse of the blood, sweat and tears shed by the island's forefathers to survive and succeed in early Singapore.
He added: "My grandfather started off doing odd jobs including recycling cardboard, selling cigarettes and working for some Nonyas. Using money he earned, he started the coffee shop, where he experimented and made his own kaya and ground his own coffee beans. In the 1970s, he started making tau sar piah, which finally gained traction."
To further raise awareness of the Street Corner Heritage Galleries, the NHB will give each shopkeeper up to $1,000 a year to develop programmes or participate in key events it organises, including the Singapore Heritage Festival.
Also in the works in the heritage sector is a revamp of the Singapore Philatelic Museum, which closed last March, into a child-centric space by next year, targeted at children aged 12 and below.
The Coleman Street museum's new permanent galleries will encourage children to discover hidden treasures based on archaeological finds from nearby Fort Canning, travel in time to meet early pioneers and run a neighbourhood post office as well as role-play as hawkers, coolies and merchants.
When it reopens, the museum will also host a special exhibition that will allow children to go behind-the-scenes of planning a National Day parade. Among other things, they will get to design parade costumes and a fireworks display.
The museum's collection of stamps, postcards and letters will continue to be used alongside other objects to support children's learning in the new museum, and be part of its refreshed permanent galleries and special exhibitions.
To reach even more young Singaporeans, the NHB and the Ministry of Education's pilot of a museum-based learning programme for Primary 6 and Secondary 2 students at the Asian Civilisations Museum and National Museum respectively, will become mandatory from this year.
The programme has been designed to reinforce what students learn in social studies and history classes, among other things.
The NHB plans to extend this programme to Primary 4 and Primary 5 students.
Mr Baey also unveiled plans to start a National Online Repository of Singapore Arts. The National Arts Council and National Library Board will work closely with the arts community to select, digitise and organise materials.
This includes materials such as those related to major festivals, Cultural Medallion and Young Artist Award recipients and key arts organisations.
