SINGAPORE – An unassuming mixed rice stall in Bedok Reservoir Road became the focus of debt collectors on a quiet afternoon on Nov 12, as they pursued unpaid claims from businesses linked to the Lao Huo Tang restaurant chain.
The visit to Le Xin Mixed Veg Rice was among a series of attempts by debt recovery agencies to recover unpaid invoices involving companies linked to Thomas Hong, the founder and chief executive of Lao Huo Tang Group.
Hong has held directorships in several food and beverage businesses. According to corporate records obtained by The Straits Times, he is currently listed as a director of companies such as Lao Huo Tang Investments, Lao Huo Tang Canton, Singapura Heritage Food Hall, Kenny Rogers Roasters and Le Xin Mixed Rice.
He is also a shareholder of Lao Huo Tang Investments and has previously served as a director of other food and beverage companies.
At the stall on Nov 12, debt collectors from FDR Services encountered an elderly man whom they believe to be Hong’s father.
The visit to Le Xin Mixed Veg Rice stall in Bedok Reservoir Road was among many attempts by debt collectors to recover money owed to suppliers of businesses under or associated with Lao Huo Tang Group
PHOTO: FDR SERVICES
The commercial debt retrieval agency said the man declined to assist with their attempts to recover payment and indicated that he would contact the police. The collectors subsequently left a notice at the premises.
Speaking to ST, FDR Services said it is pursuing claims totalling $550,795.58 on behalf of three suppliers, while another agency, A.S.K Debt Recovery, said it was handling claims approaching $2 million involving businesses associated with the restaurant group.
It is unclear whether the amounts being pursued by the two agencies overlap.
The claims involve various companies and outlets operating under several food brands.
The amounts have been provided by the agencies and have not been independently established as debts owed by Hong personally, though he has become the central figure in the debt collection agencies’ pursuit of unpaid claims.
More than $550,000 allegedly owed to 3 suppliers
FDR Services said it was handling claims totalling $550,795.58 involving three suppliers that provided vegetables, meat, frozen food and other food products to restaurants and food stalls operating under various brands believed to be linked to Hong.
According to documents provided by the agency and seen by ST, one vegetable supplier was pursuing $335,494.97 in allegedly unpaid invoices for deliveries to several outlets, including those at NEX, Jurong Point, Causeway Point, The Star Vista, Sun Plaza, Waterway Point and Seletar Mall.
Of this amount, $63,740.21 was allegedly owed for deliveries to NEX, more than $59,000 to The Star Vista and $51,488.37 to Jurong Point.
The invoices dated back to 2025, with some outlets allegedly failing to settle payments for several consecutive months.
FDR Services initially handled nine cases involving the vegetable supplier when they were referred to the agency in April.
Its portfolio subsequently expanded to include claims from other suppliers, bringing the reported total to $539,810.91. This was later revised to $550,795.58 after additional cases involving a meat supplier were included.
The claims involve several companies, including Lao Huo Tang Investments, Singapura Heritage Food Hall and businesses operating other food brands.
Another agency pursuing claims approaching $2 million
Separately, A.S.K Debt Recovery said it was handling claims approaching $2 million involving several suppliers and creditors of businesses operating under or associated with Lao Huo Tang Group.
In a statement to ST, the agency said one client had identified $356,138.36 in outstanding invoices across 10 accounts involving various outlets.
These included $52,684.16 allegedly owed at The Star Vista, $50,360.43 at Waterway Point, $46,674.85 at Jurong Point and $36,277.32 at Bukit Panjang Plaza.
The same client was also pursuing payments involving other businesses, including Singapura Heritage and Kenny Rogers, bringing its total claims to approximately $570,000.
Two other clients were pursuing more than $50,000 collectively, while another separate matter involved close to $1.2 million.
The agency stressed that its overall figure was an estimate based on claims brought to its attention, rather than a complete calculation of debts owed by every related company.
It also said the businesses involved were not necessarily under the same legal ownership.
A challenge to recover money owed
Both agencies said their attempts to recover the alleged debts had been challenging.
FDR Services said its representatives had visited numerous restaurants, food stalls and registered business addresses, sometimes leaving without being able to find and speak to anyone responsible for payments.
At a registered address in Gambas, the agency said nobody answered the door despite signs that the premises might be occupied. Its representatives eventually slipped a recovery notice under the door.
At another address in Woodlands Close, representatives were reportedly told that a business, unrelated to Lao Huo Tang, had taken over the premises about six months earlier.
The agency also described encounters with restaurant employees who said their managers were unavailable or that they did not know how to contact the people responsible for settling invoices.
At several outlets, staff accepted recovery notices and agreed to pass them to management.
In one instance at a Lao Huo Tang outlet in Causeway Point, FDR said a manager declined to engage with its representatives, citing the number of customers she was attending to, and threatened to call security.
At another outlet in NEX, the agency said employees told its representatives that their salaries had also been delayed.
‘We are asking for suppliers to be paid’
A.S.K Debt Recovery said it had repeatedly attempted to contact relevant parties, including Hong, and visited business premises in hopes of reaching repayment arrangements.
Instead, the agency said it received legal correspondence disputing Hong’s involvement or directorship in certain companies it had approached. No further legal action was taken by Hong, the agency added.
In a phone call with ST on Nov 13, a representative said: “We have been chasing them for (a) very long (time), since January. We will chase them down.”
A.S.K Debt Recovery said it repeatedly attempted to contact relevant parties, including Thomas Hong.
PHOTO: A.S.K DEBT RECOVERY
A.S.K, in an earlier response in October, said it remained willing to review relevant documents where there were genuine disputes over the identity of debtors, corporate liability or amounts outstanding.
The agency added that its clients were prepared to consider instalment arrangements rather than insist on immediate full repayment.
“We are not asking for businesses to close. We are asking for suppliers to be paid,” it said.
Lao Huo Tang management sought breakdown of alleged costs
When contacted by ST in October, Lao Huo Tang’s management team asked for a breakdown of the outstanding amounts allegedly owed by the companies.
ST did not provide the breakdown, as the information had been shared by the debt collection agencies and was not for ST to disclose. The agencies had also indicated that they were already in contact with the organisation and the relevant companies over the alleged debts.
In the recent months, several companies linked to Lao Huo Tang appeared in court over unpaid Central Provident Fund (CPF) contributions.
At a State Courts hearing on Oct 6, Lao Huo Tang F&B received a discharge amounting to an acquittal on nine charges after clearing its CPF arrears, while Lao Huo Tang Restaurant applied for the same outcome on six charges.
Separately, Hong in court said he had personally paid off CPF arrears involving Chickita F&B, Soup Empire Holdings, Kenny Rogers (Marina Square) and Kenny Rogers F&B.
In another development, Singapura Heritage Food Hall, wholly owned by Lao Huo Tang Investments, was ordered to wind up by the High Court on Oct 23 following an application by poultry supplier Toh Thye San Farm.
The amount owed in that proceeding was not disclosed in the Government Gazette notice.
When ST visited Marina Square in early November, the Kenny Rogers Roasters outlet was closed and boarded up.
PHOTO: ST READER
When ST visited Marina Square in early November, the Kenny Rogers Roasters outlet was closed and boarded up. Its Google business listing also indicated that the outlet was permanently closed.
Meanwhile, Singapura Heritage Food Hall at SingPost Centre remained open and operational when ST visited around the same period, with most seats occupied during the lunch hour.
The CPF proceedings and winding-up order are separate from the commercial claims being pursued by the debt collection agencies.
Both the organisation’s management team and Hong did not respond to ST’s latest queries.
