Our story
Three years in a restaurant kitchen,
then one stall
Lester Li cooked at Jumbo Group for three years. In 2018 he opened his own stall at Golden Mile Tower — opposite what was then the DMAX nightclub — selling one thing properly: a whole pork cutlet over a dome of egg fried rice, fried to order.
The queue did the rest. The same board turned up in kopitiams, food courts and mall basements, and today there are more than 30 King of Fried Rice stalls across the island, from Bukit Batok to Changi Airport Terminal 4.
Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia, 2023
“A high school dropout, Li chose to follow his passion for fried rice.”
Nothing sits under a heat lamp
One plate at a time
Your rice goes into the wok when you order it, one portion at a time, and the cutlet is fried to go on top of it. That is the whole trick, and it is why there is usually a queue.
10,000 Plates a day, islandwide Lester Li, in The Straits Times, 2023
In his own words
What the name is for
“I hope to be the king of fried rice by giving customers restaurant-style fried rice at affordable prices.”
[PLACEHOLDER — the fuller founder story, and a word about the team behind the woks today. To be written with the owner at onboarding.]
The queue
There is usually one, and it is the cooking. Nothing is batched ahead or held warm — your portion hits the wok after you order it.
The other stalls
Same kitchen thinking, different bowls: MentaiKing for torched mentaiko rice, King of Krapow for Thai basil minced meat. Sister-brand line-up to confirm.
Big orders
Feeding a company, a school or a wedding? Group buys start at 50 pax — message us and we will sort out the wok time.
As featured by
- Eatbook
- SETHLUI
- Mothership
- Miss Tam Chiak
- The Straits Times
- Forbes
Behind the counter
A closer look
[PHOTO NEEDED — owner to provide current outlet, team and kitchen photos for the live build.]