You are in: A Little History
The story traces back to 1971, when Molly Tay and her husband, Ah Joo, decided to put their culinary skills to use and start their own business. It all started in their quaint little kampong kitchen back in Jalan Payoh Lai, where they produced their first homemade Otah, Nasi Lemak, Nonya dumplings, Hokkien dumplings and Nonya cakes.
Molly and her husband shared a belief. Not only did they want to produce Nonya delicacies that cater to the taste buds of everyone, they wanted to share these traditional Nonya treats with the world. With this strong belief and their authentic recipe, Molly’s soon found it's way to a shop along Simon Road in 1983, where wholesale and retail were established.
With the ever rising demand, in 1993, Molly’s once again move to shift bigger premises. Apart from the shop at Hougang Ave 1, this time, a factory was opened in Defu Lane to help cope with production needs. Although production had since been taken over by high tech machineries, Molly and her husband still held firmly to their beliefs. They made sure that every stick of Otah and every single packet of Nasi Lemak still preserved that unique personal touch and their original homemade taste. It was also in the same year that they decided to focus solely on producing Otah, Nasi Lemak, thus discontinued production of their Nonya cakes and dumplings.
Through years of hard work and painstaking efforts, Molly’s established itself a good and reputable position in the market. Now, even after the original founders have retired, the dream to preserve the Nonya culture lives on. Molly's very own son and daughter have taken over the running of the business. It may, to some, seem like they are simply carrying on a family's business. But what they are really doing, is preserving a tradition. The Nonya tradition. A tradition that brings back the nostalgia of yesterday, yet linking the culture bridges of tomorrow.