How Instant Noodles Went Viral and Became Iconic
“Jeh O” is the name of the auntie chef-owner of this a 60-year-old restaurant that was 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 noodle soup for himself (Mama being Thailand’s favourite instant noodles). But instead of using just the seasoning powder for the soup, he made creamy tom yum soup from scratch and dressed it with a lot of toppings. He posted it on social media and it looked so impressive that his friends asked him to make it for them.
He served it right in the pot, with lots of toppings, and when he plopped it on the table people said, “Oho!” which is Thai for “wow.” So he named the dish “Mama Oho.”
When Jeh O consulted her son about how to draw in more customers during the quiet late 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 wild for it. After they announced the new item on social media, lines were forming around the block on day 1. Literally overnight an iconic dish was born. It has been many years, and Mama Oho has stood the test of time and people are still lining up for it today, and I was one of them!