In 2001, a Century-Old Tea House Temporarily Came to a Stop

Bunn Choon’s family food story began in 1893.

Beginning with first-generation founder Wong Kee Swee, Bunn Choon passed through different generations in Kuala Lumpur’s Petaling Street and became a tea house remembered by many long-time neighbourhood residents.

However, even a brand with a long history must face the changes of time.

In 2001, with third-generation successor Wong Chuen Hon retiring, and later generations pursuing their own careers, the original Bunn Choon tea house eventually ceased operations.

For a brand that had already been passed down for more than a century, this meant more than simply closing a shop.

A familiar old signboard that had once been part of daily life in Petaling Street temporarily disappeared from the street.

Without a Tea House, the Fourth Generation Chose to Become a Mobile Hawker

After Bunn Choon Tea House ceased operations, fourth-generation successor Wong Kok Tong did not immediately have another full-scale tea house.

He transitioned into becoming a mobile hawker, continuing to make and sell pastries.

Without a spacious shop, he started with a small business he could afford.

From setting up stalls and making pastries, to finding different ways to continue operating through each stage of the journey.

For a name with more than a century of history, it may have looked like a huge step backwards.

But from another perspective, it was precisely because someone was willing to restart small that Bunn Choon never truly disappeared.

You can also read more about how fourth-generation Wong Kok Tong carried Bunn Choon through a difficult chapter .

One Egg Tart Became the Beginning of a New Generation Rediscovering Bunn Choon

During the process of rebuilding, Bunn Choon gradually evolved from the image of a traditional tea house into another way of connecting with customers.

Egg tarts became one of the most important products in that journey.

Many younger customers may not know the original Bunn Choon tea house, nor did they experience the era when neighbourhood residents gathered in tea houses for tea, buns and conversation.

Their first encounter with Bunn Choon may simply begin with their first egg tart.

The product became the entry point, allowing customers to gradually discover the brand name, the family and the history behind it.

This is also why egg tarts did not replace the heritage of Bunn Choon.

Instead, they became a bridge connecting a century-old brand with a new generation of customers.

To learn more about this chapter, you can read how egg tarts introduced Bunn Choon to more customers at Imbi Market .

Why Return to Petaling Street? Because It Was Never Just a Place to Do Business

For Wong Kok Tong, Petaling Street was never simply a commercial location.

He grew up here and developed a deep emotional connection to the old neighbourhood.

As Petaling Street gradually entered a new phase of development, together with opportunities created by the revival of the old district, he decided to bring this century-old name back again.

In 2015, Bunn Choon returned to Petaling Street.

Later, Bunn Choon established a space beside Kwai Chai Hong where customers could once again sit down, enjoy dim sum, drink tea and taste traditional pastries.

The familiar “Bunn Choon Tea House” signboard was raised once again.

For long-time customers, it was the return of a familiar memory.

For new customers, it may have been their first introduction to a name that began in 1893.

Bunn Choon Today: Where Memories of the Past Meet a New Generation

Today, when you visit Bunn Choon, you can still begin with a classic egg tart.

But if you are willing to sit down and look a little closer, you will find that what continues here is more than just a popular food item.

There are also traditional pastries, dim sum, radish cake, congee, noodles and rice dishes, desserts and Chinese tea, together with traces of the tea house culture that once belonged to old Kuala Lumpur.

This is what makes Bunn Choon’s comeback so meaningful.

It did not simply recreate the past. Instead, it allowed a story from another era to continue in a form that people today are still willing to experience.

If you are exploring Petaling Street, you can also discover what to eat at Bunn Choon in Petaling Street .