Actor Zhang Yaodong spotted serving diners at his Tampines zi char stall after staff resigns

Almost a year after his scandal, former Mediacorp actor Zhang Yaodong seems to be moving on pretty well. 

While the 47-year-old Malaysia-born actor never responded to allegations of him impregnating various women, he did reveal in November that he has two daughters, and deeply regrets not having been there for them throughout their childhood.

In February, it was revealed that Zhang is no longer managed by Mediacorp's talent management arm The Celebrity Agency.

So what has Zhang, who is nominated in the Top 10 Most Popular Male Artistes category at this year's Star Awards, been up to lately? 

The actor was recently spotted manning a seafood zi char (cooked dishes) stall in a Tampines Industrial Park coffee shop. 

A diner named Xia Tian De Yu Er on Chinese social media platform Xiaohongshu, had noticed Zhang working the cash register and took to the platform to share about it. 

"The food stall I eat at every afternoon turned out to be run by him. I only saw him coming to help because his staff resigned," wrote the diner.

They also remarked that Zhang, who helped to take orders and serve customers, "looked better in person" and praised him for being polite. 

It appears that the diner's post-scandal impression of Zhang had changed after meeting him in person. "Actually, it's very virtuous for one to admit their mistakes and correct them," the diner wrote. 

Netizens seem to agree too.

Though there are still those who continue to condemn Zhang, many are now defending him and urging others to not rain on his parade. "There's nothing wrong with him making an honest living," wrote one netizen.  

This is in fact not Zhang's first F&B venture. He has a catering business and he and his friend Terence Cao once opened a roast meat stall in a food court but shuttered it after two years, causing Zhang to lose a six-figure sum. 

Zhang's parents, who were from a town named Selayang in Selangor, started out as hawkers before opening a coffee shop. The actor was said to have helped out there when he was young.