Singaporean rapper Sheikh Haikel opens halal version of popular Hwa Heng Beef Noodle in Yishun

After countless taste tests with his Chinese pals to get the flavour of the Hainanese beef noodles right at his new eatery Hai Ge Ji Beef Noodles, the rapper says: “We all look like beef balls now.” Advertisement Dining Singaporean rapper Sheikh Haikel opens halal version of popular Hwa Heng Beef Noodle in Yishun After countless taste tests with his Chinese pals to get the flavour of the Hainanese beef noodles right at his new eatery Hai Ge Ji Beef Noodles, the rapper says: “We all look like beef balls now.” Singaporean rapper Sheikh Haikel and his wife Anna Belle Francis have opened opened Hai Ge Ji Beef Noodles in Yishun. (Photo: Hai Ge Ji Hainanese Beef Noodles) New: You can now listen to articles. This audio is generated by an AI tool. Faraha Faeaz Faraha Faeaz 19 Feb 2026 02:25PM Bookmark Bookmark Share WhatsApp Telegram Facebook Twitter Email LinkedIn Set CNA as your preferred source on Google Add CNA as a trusted source to help Google better understand and surface our content in search results. Read a summary of this article on FAST. Get bite-sized news via a newcards interface. Give it a try. Click here to return to FAST Tap here to return to FAST FAST Following the success of their halal Hainanese chicken rice eatery Hai Ge Ji at North Bridge Road, local rapper Sheikh Haikel, 50, and his wife Anna Belle Francis, 47, have now ventured into halal Hainanese-style beef noodles.The couple opened Hai Ge Ji Beef Noodles in Yishun last October, a 30-seat, air-conditioned eatery. Sheikh Haikel (right) and his wife Anna Belle Francis (left) opened Hai Ge Ji Beef Noodles in Yishun last October. (Photo: Hai Ge Ji Hainanese Boat Noodles) The couple collaborated with beef noodle chain Hwa Heng Group, owned by Eric Lim, in partnership with Kiang Kin Nam – son of the original founder of Odeon Beef Noodle (later renamed Hwa Heng Beef Noodle) at Scotts Road. The brand owns nine outlets, and Haikel and Francis took over its existing Yishun outlet.“Kiang’s younger brother runs a separate [unaffiliated] hawker stall at Upper Boon Keng Hawker Centre, also called Hwa Heng Beef Noodle,” Lim told 8days.sg.Haikel later renovated the Yishun unit and renamed it Hai Ge Ji Beef Noodles. All recipes and dishes remain the same, but with halal ingredients.The couple’s love for Hainanese beef noodles goes way back. It was the original Hwa Heng Beef Noodle (formerly known as Odeon Beef Noodles) stall at the now-defunct Scotts Picnic food court that started it all. “[In the past], there were two makciks serving at the stall, and the meat and ingredients used were all halal,” Haikel told 8days.sg. “It’s just that Odeon Beef Noodles (rebranded to Hwa Heng) was never [officially] halal-certified.” Hai Ge Ji Hainanese Boat Noodles is halal-certified. (Photo: Hai Ge Ji Hainanese Boat Noodles) “I ate there and thought it was the best beef noodles I’ve ever had, and I wanted it again,” he added. Francis said she, too, grew up around Hwa Heng’s beef noodle at the same Scotts Picnic spot. It was her go-to meal after secondary school classes.Haikel had been meaning to open a Hainanese beef noodle spot following his chicken rice restaurant, but it was only when a friend suggested a collaboration with this brand that the idea really took shape.Since most of Hwa Heng’s ingredients are already halal, there aren't many changes to the recipe other than the type of vinegar or beef balls, to meet MUIS’ halal-certification standards. “It had to be the same,” Haikel exclaimed. “Or better!”But how do they know their dishes were identical to the original Hwa Heng's? The couple had brought Chinese friends for a taste test before opening the eatery.“We trialled it so many times, that’s why we all look like beef balls now,” Haikel joked. Beef Ball Noodles (S$6.90 dry or soup). (Photo: Hai Ge Ji Hainanese Beef Noodles) Their customers are a mix of both Muslims or non-Muslims, with the non-Muslims often telling them, “It tastes just like the real [Hwa Heng’s noodles]”. “The non-Muslims can eat at Hwa Heng’s outlets anytime,” Haikel added, “but we hope that Hei Ge Ji Beef Noodles will be a place where Muslims and non-Muslims can eat together.”At the Yishun beef noodle outlet, they hired a few Chinese cooks from Hwa Heng, and trained their Muslim staff as well. “It’s to maintain the authenticity,” Haikel said. “We hardly see non-Malays serving nasi padang. It’s the same for Hainanese food.”Both the chicken rice and beef noodle restaurants have been profitable, though they declined to share how much they invested in their new partnership with Hwa Heng. Haikel, who previously co-owned halal yakiniku joint, Wakuwaku Yakiniku (which he sold off to focus on Hai Ge Ji) and the now-defunct burger joint, FatPapas, is the “mastermind” behind the food. Fun fact: the restaurant is named after the rapper. “Hai Ge” for Haikel and “Ji” for chicken.Neither Francis nor Haikel do the cooking, but the dishes are all tweaked based on Haikel's tastebuds. Sliced beef noodles (S$6.90). (Photo: Hai Ge Ji Hainanese Beef Noodles) Despite announcing his retirement from the music industry a few years ago, Haikel is now working on a new hip-hop album (this is truly likely his last, he