Tan Bee Hua, owner of Tan’s Tutu Coconut Cake, dies aged 63

Tan Bee Hua (陈美烨), the owner of the renowned Tan’s Tutu Coconut Cake stall, passed away at the age of 63, the business announced on 29 July 2025.

In a tribute shared on its social media pages, the stall wrote that Tan “always loved her job and took pride in perfecting her tutu kuehs to contribute to Singapore’s rich food heritage”, adding that she “will always live in our memories”.

Tan’s Tutu Coconut Cake has been operating from Havelock Food Centre and is known for its traditional handmade tutu kueh — a steamed rice flour snack with coconut or peanut filling.

Although its Clementi outlet closed in 2023, the Havelock stall continued to draw regulars who cherished the stall’s consistency and craftsmanship.

Within hours of the announcement, tributes poured in from fellow hawkers and customers. In the Facebook group Hawkers United, Melvin Chew, owner of Jin Ji Teochew Braised Duck And Kway Chap, called Tan a “legend”.

Chew described her dedication to the craft as “a great contribution to our hawker culture” and said her passing was “a big loss to our hawker culture”.

Known affectionately as “Auntie Tan”, she spent decades upholding her family’s legacy, which began nearly a century ago.

In a 2021 interview with Lianhe Zaobao, Tan shared that her father, Tan Eng Huat (陈永发), had started making tutu kueh in the 1930s. His work laid the foundation for the Tan family’s enduring presence in Singapore’s hawker scene.

After her father passed the business to her brother, the family name became synonymous with the snack across generations.

When her brother died in 2004, Tan made the decision to leave her 25-year career as an assistant accounts manager to take over the stall full time. She said she was motivated by a sense of duty to preserve her family’s craft.

“My brother fell ill, and I began thinking about taking over. If no one took over, my father’s creation would be lost,” she told Zaobao.

Tan’s mother initially discouraged her from leaving a stable job with benefits, but Tan remained firm in her decision. She was inspired by her brother’s final words to “do the tutu kueh to the best it can be”.

For the next two decades, Tan became a fixture at Havelock Food Centre, continuing to handcraft tutu kueh in the traditional way.

Regular customers often remarked on her patience and precision as she worked, steaming each cake to order — a practice increasingly rare in modern hawker stalls.

Her passing has led to an outpouring of condolences online, with many patrons sharing fond memories of her warmth and craftsmanship.

Observers say her death represents more than the loss of a beloved hawker — it symbolises the passing of a vital link to Singapore’s culinary heritage.