Carmal Ahmad is the finance graduate turned hawker specialising in wallet-friendly halal-Japanese fusion ramen. Before opening his Hawker stall in 2019 he was working in the corporate industry as a fund operations associate. Pursuing his dream of running his own business, he decided to enrol into the NEA’s incubation stall programme.
The decision to specialise in Japanese Ramen came from his own love of Japanese cuisine. As he saw an opportunity to develop a ramen for the halal market, he went to Japan to learn how to cook. He then worked hard to develop a broth for a halal-Japanese fusion ramen. After trying his recipes during a 10 day pop-up event at Marina Bay, where he asked Japanese customers for feedback, he felt secure in opening up his hawker stall. Today, he serves 7 types of halal ramen dishes at his stall in Tanjong Pagar.
Running a hawker wasn't something his parents wanted him to pursue at first - even though they themselves used to run a Malay food stall at Maris Stella High School - but now his mother is working alongside Carmal.
Prior to Covid-19 Carmal had already set up the logistics to provide island-wide delivery and was able to remain in operation during the Circuit Breaker period. Carmal is inventive and savvy in tapping into technology to help him operate his business during the pandemic.