Former Les Amis sous chef sells matcha and coffee in Boon Lay HDB home
Dining
After seven years in a three-Michelin-starred restaurant, Chia Jin Fang quit to open a home-based cafe selling excellent drinks with homemade toppings like silky honey cream foam and caramelised banana. 'I was burned out. And my grandma needed me,' she says of her dementia-stricken gran, whom she lives with.
When Chia Jin Fang, 29, left her job as sous chef at three-Michelin-starred French fine-diner Les Amis earlier this year, most people expected her to pop up at another award-winning restaurant. After all, she had spent nearly a decade in the high-level cooking scene, climbing through the ranks to become third from the top in one of Singapore's best kitchens.
Instead, she performed a hard pivot: She chose to sell coffee and matcha from home. It's something you might expect from an amateur barista or student looking to make pocket money, not a seasoned fine-dining chef. The flame-torched banana comes as an additional topping. (Photos: 8days/Dillon Tan)
Her new venture, The Noob Coffee, opened last week at her family's four-room HDB flat in Boon Lay. A simple signage at the gate hints at what's inside: A simple but cosy setup in the living room, framed with orange walls and anchored by a small counter where drinks are meticulously made.
Here, a gleaming S$3,000 Italian espresso machine sits beside other apparatus that signal this isn't your average HDB kopi business. (Photo: 8days/Dillon Tan)
Chia presides over the drinks with a meticulousness that can only come from years in a Michelin-starred kitchen — blow torching caramelised bananas, scooping up homemade strawberry compote and house-made pandan syrup to pair with coffee and matcha. Sometimes, customers are greeted by Chia's chatty 85-year-old grandmother, who was recently diagnosed with dementia and occasionally helps out with small tasks. Fang with her grandmother who occasionally helps out with small tasks at The Noob Coffee. (Photo: 8days/ Dillon Tan)
Quitting Les Amis wasn't a spur-of-the-moment thing. 'It was building up,' Fang explained. 'I was working 12 to 14 hours most days. Even on my days off, I was [too tired to do anything other than] rest.'
But it wasn't an easy decision, she admitted. 'Did I regret giving it all up? Honestly, that's something I've asked myself more than once,' she said. 'But I left on my own terms, with a sense of pride and peace. Sometimes, walking away isn't about giving up, it's about making space for something else to grow. I'm grateful to have worked alongside chef [and Les Amis culinary director] Sebastien Lepinoy, who was a tremendous mentor.' Fang at Les Amis restaurant (second from left, beside culinary director Sebastien Lepinoy) (Photo: Chia Jin Fang & Les Amis)
Chia's culinary journey began in secondary school, when a teacher enrolled her in a Shatec cooking programme to help steer her away from bad company. 'I was quite an ah lian back then,' she said, laughing. She completed her NITEC in Western Culinary Arts at ITE West, followed by a diploma from French culinary school Institut Paul Bocuse, also at ITE.
She joined Les Amis as an intern aged 18. After converting to a full-time role as chef de partie (a mid-level role within a professional kitchen's hierarchy), she stayed on until she was 22, then left to explore working at other eateries. She eventually returned to Les Amis aged 26, this time joining the management team as sous chef, reporting to executive chef Kentaro Komoda and culinary director Sebastien Lepinoy. She worked for another three years before leaving the industry entirely in March this year. The Noob Cafe setup. (Photo: 8days/Dillon Tan)
Fang's departure meant stepping away from a rare achievement: She was one of very few female sous chefs in a three-Michelin-starred restaurant in Singapore. 'It wasn't easy getting there. I felt like I had to work twice as hard to be taken seriously,' she shared. 'The pressure, expectations, and sometimes the culture in those environments can be intense.'
While it's less common to see women in top jobs in Michelin-starred restaurants versus their male counterparts, Jin Fang acknowledged that Les Amis was an exception in many ways. 'One of the things I truly appreciated was that promotions and opportunities there were based on merit, not gender,' she said.
Chia was also quick to add that she wasn't denied a promotion at Les Amis, but was offered a salary raise in recognition of her work. 'By then, I already knew I couldn't commit to that [demanding] lifestyle anymore,' she added. 'The hardest part was not having time for my loved ones.'
'My family was always there, but I wasn't,' Chia said. 'So they were supportive when I decided to leave my job at Les Amis.'
The shift from a steady salary to building a home-based biz has been a challenge, said Chia. 'I'm not drawing a salary now,' she added. She spent about S$7,000 on her home cafe, which comprises a Bellezza Bellona coffee machine, a Fiorenzato coffee grinder, a chiller, and more. 'I have set aside a safety net and I'm focusing on budgeting and reinvesting into the business.'
'I don't think I have plans to go back to fine dining – I would like to open a cafe [in future] if there's an opportunity to do so,' she shared. One of the reasons Fang opened her home cafe was to care for her grandmother who was diagnosed with dementia last year. (Photo: 8days/Dillon Tan)
An even bigger impetus to quit came when her 85-year-old grandmother, who helped raise her, was diagnosed with dementia late last year. With both her parents working full-time (dad works as a travel planner while mum works in jewellery sales) and her married older brother living elsewhere, Chia didn't want her grandmother to be left alone at home with just their new helper.
'It's been hard to see (my grandmother) gradually lose bits of herself, but even with the challenges of this illness, she still remembers me and my family,' Chia said poignantly. 'There are times when she seems distant, unsure of where she is or what's going on, but when I walk into the room, her face lights up in a way that reminds me of the grandmother I've always known.'
Midway through her interview with 8days.sg, we heard the front door shut, followed by the sound of the elevator doors opening. Chia and her helper rushed out to look for granny, who had wandered out of the flat.
They found her on the ground floor, attempting to throw out the trash. They had grown accustomed to gran's sudden departures and are worried she wouldn't be able to find her way home. Since then, the family has resorted to putting an AirTag on grandma. Some of the drinks available at The Noob Coffee. (Photo: 8days/Dillon Tan)
Chia chose to focus on serving coffee and matcha because they 'felt personal and doable'. At a time when home-based coffee and tea businesses are the rage with a low barrier to entry, Chia isn't too concerned about standing out in a crowded field. 'Anyone can get a drink elsewhere,' she opined. 'But I want people to feel like they're getting something intentional here, not just a quick fix. Even when it's just a short interaction, I want it to feel personal.'
Chia calls her business, The Noob Coffee because: 'I didn't come from a cafe or barista background. I felt like a beginner all over again. So, I asked my barista friends to teach me how [to make pro coffee and tea], and just started experimenting from there.' TOP-NOTCH PALATE EQUALS MORE SOPHISTICATED DRINK COMBOS
Chia is confident about her one secret weapon: Her palate.
'Years in the kitchen trained me to taste everything. I can tell when something's off – too sweet, not balanced, lacking texture,' she said. That same discipline that has been instilled in her bones now goes into her drinks. And it shows in their fab flavour profiles. But more on that later. The menu at The Noob Coffee. (Photo: 8days/Dillon Tan)
Unlike most home-based cafes where you hover by the corridor or collect your drinks through a window with no dine-in, The Noob Coffee allows customers to step right into her flat, and even chill in the dining room. 'We can seat up to 10 people currently. I actually prefer having people over,' she confessed. Yep, it's like hanging out a pal's home.
Part of the reason she allows people into the family's private space? She hopes the small interactions with customers might help her grandmother stay engaged. 'Maybe seeing people come and go could lift her spirits and keep her mentally active,' she said. Beyond that, her gran would sometimes help wash pandan leaves, help paste stickers and do minor cleaning up. WILL OFFER SOME BAKES SOON
Why not sell food, something she has plenty of experience in? 'Cooking takes up a lot of space, time and equipment. It's not quite realistic for this home setup.' That said, she's not ruling out selling some snacks. Bakes are in the works, with a banana cake likely to roll out in about two weeks. We can't wait. Freshly made Iced Strawberry x Yogurt Matcha at The Noob Coffee. (Photo: 8days/Dillon Tan)
Most of Noob's affordably-priced drinks are served chilled. Expect familiar cafe staples done with care, like Black Coffee (S$4), White (S$5), and a straight-up Espresso Shot (S$3). But it's the speciality drinks where things get more gourmet. There's an Iced Pandan Latte (S$6) and Iced Strawberry x Yogurt Matcha (S$6.50), basically a layered dessert in a cup.
Other matcha options included the classic Iced Matcha Latte (S$5). For something a little extra, you can add on feathery homemade honey milk foam or a brûléed 'burntnana' for S$1. Iced pandan latte layered with homemade pandan syrup, milk and a shot of espresso. (Photo: 8days/Dillon Tan)
Probably one of the prettiest caffe lattes we've clapped eyes on. Served in a clear cup, the drink shows off its layers: A soft green base of homemade pandan syrup, milk in the middle, and a shot of espresso that blooms into a rich golden-brown on top.
Chia uses a Colombia-Brazil-Ethiopia blend of Arabica coffee beans from local roaster Asylum Coffeehouse, selected for its floral notes, citrusy brightness, and chocolatey body. It holds its own against the fragrant pandan, which can be overpowering in less skilled hands.
She spent weeks fine-tuning the ratio of syrup to milk to coffee, and it shows. 'I've got insomnia from taste testing too much coffee!' she said. The result is aromatic, smooth, and just sweet enough, with a lemak pandan whiff. Not noob at all. We chose to top this with a cute caramelised banana (see below for details). The Iced matcha latte highlights the rich, umami flavour of high-grade Uji leaves balanced by creamy whole milk. (Photo: 8days/Dillon Tan)
Clean, smooth, and free of the gritty texture that plagues far too many matcha lattes. The vegetal, umami-rich flavour comes through nicely, giving it that satisfying depth you want from 'high-grade' leaves from Uji in Kyoto. It's a tiny bit tannic, but whole milk tames it, adding a light creaminess. Iced Strawberry x Yogurt Matcha layered with housemade strawberry compote, tangy strawberry yogurt and Uji matcha. (Photo: 8days/Dillon Tan)
Another eye candy of a drink, layered with housemade strawberry compote, tangy strawberry yogurt, and a pour of earthy Uji matcha. Chia had no clue what the hype on strawberry matcha was about initially, but after some nudging from friends, she gave it a go, albeit with her own chef-like twist. Fang prepares the strawberry compote herself using two types of fresh strawberries. (Photo: 8days/Dillon Tan)
She told 8days.sg that she makes the compote herself using two types of fresh strawberries, though she remains tight-lipped about the exact varieties. Unlike the usual blended jammy base, her version starts with macerating the fruit (soaking it in syrup to absorb more flavour and juice) before simmering it in a low-reduction sugar syrup. The uneven chunks of berries give the drink a lovely bite. The yogurt adds a refreshing zing that cuts through the richness, and the matcha brings just enough bitterness to balance it all out. Stir it through and you get a creamy dessert-like drink that's playful and super tasty. Earl grey with matcha a unique combination found at The Noob Coffee. (Photo: 8days/Dillon Tan)
An unexpectedly good combo. The Earl Grey tea is perfumey and bright, while the matcha adds just enough depth without overpowering everything. Yum. Optional topping of flame-torched banana available to upgrade your drink. (Photo: 8days/Dillon Tan)
The bittersweetness of the flame-torched banana lend a cute, delish upgrade to your drink. It's made with lady finger bananas coated in white sugar and torched till perfectly caramelised. We recommend dipping this into the pandan latte for a snack. Totally worth the extra buck. Another topping available - Honey Cold Foam. (Photo: 8days/Dillon Tan)
Chia's honey cold foam add-on topping is made fresh per order, using a 3:1 ratio of cream to milk, gently sweetened with maple honey. After being whipped with an electric whisk, you get a smooth, billowy froth with a subtle floral note and mellow sweetness. Delightful with the iced matcha latte. (Photo: 8days/Dillon Tan)
There's nothing noob about The Noob Coffee. The drinks are creative and delicious with sophisticated flourishes; clearly the work of someone who knows her way around flavour. That this humble home-based biz is also Chia's drinkable love letter to her 85-year-old grandmother makes it sweeter. (Photo: 8days/Dillon Tan)
The Noob Coffee is at #02-519, Blk 259 Boon Lay Dr, Singapore 640259. Open daily 11am to 6pm Mon - Fri; 10am to 6pm Sat-Sun. More info here.
This story was originally published in 8Days.
For more 8Days stories, visit https://www.8days.sg/ food and beverage cafes
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