Popular hawker Butcher The Grill Bar closes, sought support last year due to struggling business

Teh Soon Tiong opened Butcher The Grill Bar in February 2023.

Some of the dishes that the hawker stall had on offer included Chicken Chop ($6.90), Bratwurst Chicken ($7.90) and Fish & Chips ($6.90).

Despite gaining a reputable 4.7 stars out of five on Google, the popular hawker stall, located at Tanglin Halt Market & Food Centre, has shuttered.

A check on its Instagram account confirms this closure, with its Instagram bio saying: "We are permanently closed."

On Monday (Jan 23), Facebook user GK Wong shared a post on the Facebook group Hawkers United - Dabao 2020 that the stall had closed.

The post, which came accompanied with a photo of hawker stalls with their shutters down, was captioned: "Butcher The Grill Bar is permanently closed."

Users reacted to the post in the comments section, with some speculating the reasons behind the Western stall closing down.

"I miss the stall, their food [was of] high quality," one Facebook user said. 

Another netizen suggested that the cost of ingredients and rental, along with "manpower problems", made this hawker choose to cease operations.

This was rebutted by a Facebook user who doubted that this closure can solely be attributed to rental.

"They were the ones who came asking for assistance and advice here months ago, for which many gave feedback," she added, referring to a Facebook post by the stall's owner, Soon Tiong, in October 2023.

In it, he shared about the hurdles he encountered as a hawker and that he was struggling to operate the stall.

Fighting for the business

Soon Tiong had shared then that he was already noticing a downturn in sales, equating to a 30-per-cent decline in the number of customers, last September.

In response to this, he tried new methods to attract customers.

This ranged from introducing budget-friendly menu options to distributing flyers to increase awareness of his stall.

There were even one-for-one offers and promotions, all installed in the hope of revitalising Butcher The Grill Bar.

Unfortunately, it seems that these efforts were in vain.

Soon Tiong's post has since been removed.

AsiaOne has reached out to Butcher The Grill Bar for more information.

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amierul@asiaone.com

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