How instant noodles went viral and became iconic
“Jeh O” is the name of the chef aunt who owns this 60-year-old restaurant, originally known for khao tom ped, a duck version of this Thai rice soup. Around 2015, Jeh-O’s son made a tom yum mama (mama is Thailand’s favorite instant noodle) noodle soup for himself. But instead of just using powdered seasoning for the soup, she made a creamy Tom Yum soup from scratch and seasoned it with lots of seasonings. He posted it on social media and it was so impressive that his friends asked him to make it for them.
He served it right in the pot, with lots of seasonings, and when he put it on the table people said, “Oho!” which means “wow” in Thai. So he called the dish “Mama Oho”.
When Jeh O consulted his son on how to attract more customers during the quiet night hours, he suggested putting his Mama Oho on the menu because mama is a popular late-night snack for many Thais.
And people went crazy about it. After announcing the new item on social media, lines formed around the block on the first day. Literally overnight, an iconic dish was born. Many years have passed and Mama Oho has stood the test of time and people are still lining up for it today, and I was one of them!
