'Angry' customer stirs things up at Ang Mo Kio ice cream cafe, but there's a twist

An angsty customer is never a good sign. Especially when you are in the F&B line.

No positive feedback ever started with a furious customer asking to see the boss unless you happen to work at plant-based ice cream cafe Heartbreak Melts.

In a TikTok clip uploaded last Sunday (Oct 30), user Tan Yen Jue can be seen fuming over his ice cream order before demanding to speak to the boss in what seems to be another F&B horror story.

The Heartbreak Melts staff appeared to be stunned by the angry customer's sudden outburst, but luckily co-owner Mabel Yee stepped in.

The tension in the cafe was so thick that you could cut it with a knife as a seemingly pissed-off Yen Jue barked at Mabel to taste his ice cream order, despite her repeated attempts to find out the root of his complaint.

With things reaching boiling point, Yen Jue then asked Mabel for her thoughts on his cornflakes ice cream before dropping a major plot twist!

Maintaining his angsty persona, Yen Jue shouted out his compliments - "It’s f***ing good!" - much to the amusement of the giggling staff.

At this point, it was revealed to be a prank by Yen Jue. The cheeky TikToker, who has previously uploaded other comedy skits, was chided by co-owner Mabel for frightening her young staff.

Yen Jue's Star Awards-worthy performance was so good that even Heartbreak Melt's other co-owner Goh Yong Wei gave him a standing ovation and commended him for his acting chops.

Returning the compliment, Yen Jue declared himself a fan of their cornflakes ice cream and revealed that he had made his way from Yishun to Ang Mo Kio just for their specialty ice cream.

In response to AsiaOne's queries, Yong Wei confirmed that the cafe was not in on the prank.

However, Yong Wei added that Yen Jue is a personal friend who wanted to help promote the business while pranking his young staff.

And while business has been boosted, Yong Wei stated that he doesn't "agree with these kind of pranks". He said that such pranks "scare the staff and encourage rude and rowdy customers to engage in such behaviour", and he hoped that "no one else imitate this".

While Yen Jue's methods are unconventional, his antics clearly struck a chord with netizens. His viral TikTok video has been viewed over 432,000 times, garnering 40,000 likes and over 600 comments.

Many netizens praised his acting, with one user highlighting the passion behind it while others were quick to recognise Yen Jue's unusual marketing effort.

Heartbreak Melts cafe also made the local headlines last month when they strapped a humongous teddy bear on their delivery motorcycle.

ALSO READ: This huge teddy bear on back of motorbike has painful story behind it

Address: 421 Ang Mo Kio Ave 10, #01-1163, Singapore 560421
Opening hours: Monday to Friday, 3pm to 2am; Saturday to Sunday, 12pm to 2am

timothywee@asiaone.com

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