Why it belongs in ORBIS
Tong Heng was founded in 1935 by Cantonese emigre Fong Chee Heng, who had sold snacks from a pushcart in Singapore's Chinatown before opening a shop on Smith Street. Now run by fourth-generation owner Ana Fong from South Bridge Road, the bakery still hand-bakes its trademarked diamond-shaped egg tarts daily.
Tong Heng traces to the 1920s, when Cantonese emigre Fong Chee Heng arrived in Singapore from Guangdong and began selling drinks and snacks from a pushcart in Chinatown. In 1935 he opened a proper shop, Tong Heng Tea Room, at 33 Smith Street, introducing the bakery's signature egg tart and a traditional omelette toast.
When the Singapore government acquired Smith Street in the late 1970s, the bakery relocated to South Bridge Road, where its Chinatown shop still stands today. Its egg tarts have gone through several shapes over the decades and settled on the trademarked diamond form the bakery is now best known for, alongside other handmade Cantonese pastries, coconut and charcoal egg tarts, kaya, heritage cookies and mooncakes.
Tong Heng is now led by fourth-generation owner Ana Fong, who has worked to modernize the nearly century-old family bakery while keeping its hand-crafted production methods. The bakery operates two Singapore locations, in Chinatown and at Jurong Point, plus an online storefront on Shopee.