McDonald's resumes delivery, takeaway and drive-through services in S'pore; most outlets to open from 7am to 9pm

SINGAPORE - McDonald's will be resuming its delivery, takeaway and drive-through services from Monday (May 11), the fast-food chain announced on a Facebook post on Sunday.

But it urged customers not to rush to its outlets.

McDonald's said most of its restaurants will be open from 7am to 9pm.

It will not be offering 24-hour service during the circuit breaker period. Its dessert kiosks and McCafe counters will also remain closed.

Some of its restaurants will have different opening hours and those located in parks, tourist attractions and some institutions will also remain closed.

"We hope you'll understand as this allows us to reduce the number of crew members in our restaurants and lets our more senior staff stay safely at home. Please be patient if it takes longer than usual for us to prepare your favourites," the Facebook post stated.

It urged customers to observe safety measures such as temperature taking, safe distancing and SafeEntry registration if they visit the outlets for takeaway services.

Customers can also place their orders via McDelivery, which will be contactless and only accept cashless payments, or GrabFood.

All McDonald's branches in Singapore were closed from 11am on April 19, after seven of its staff, who had been deployed across nine different outlets, tested positive for Covid-19.

The Health Ministry had advised the fast-food giant to stop its operations until May 4 at its more than 135 outlets, including its takeaway and delivery services.

A McDonald’s spokesman had said that the seven affected employees included a mix of restaurant managers and crew, and that none of them were delivery riders.

One of them had initially worked at the Changi Airport Terminal 2 outlet which closed on April 1. In the next nine days, this employee was deployed to work at three different outlets: Pasir Ris Central, Pasir Ris Sports Complex, and a drive-through outlet at a Shell petrol kiosk in Tampines Avenue 2.

[[nid:485057]]

Five employees who worked at outlets in Lido, Forum Galleria, Parklane, and Geylang East Central were also diagnosed with Covid-19.

The resumption of the fast-food chain’s delivery, takeaway and drive-through services comes amid Singapore’s easing of tightened Covid-19 circuit breaker measures.

Since April 22, businesses such as standalone F&B outlets selling only beverages, packaged snacks, confectionery or desserts; hairdressing and barber services; and retailers of pet food and pet supplies have been closed as part of the stricter measures.

Some businesses can resume operations from May 12, subject to restrictions.

All food outlets selling packaged snacks, cakes, confectionery and desserts, home-based food businesses, as well as barbers and hairdressers can reopen, subject to restrictions.

Hairdressers may only offer haircuts, while dining-in remains banned. Pet supply stores and retail laundry services, which have been restricted to online sales and deliveries since tighter circuit breaker measures kicked in, can reopen physical stores.

[embed]https://www.facebook.com/mcdsg/photos/a.161567683889813/3054729781240241/?type=3&theater[/embed]

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.

For the latest updates on the coronavirus, visit here.