Not 3 not 4: 'Cai fan' stall assistant charges $4 for $3 chicken, arguing it's a bigger piece

With inflation on the rise, every dollar counts. 

And that's probably why this man was miffed when he realised he'd been charged an extra dollar for his plate of 'cai fan' from the Kopitiam outlet at the Singapore General Hospital. 

The man, surnamed Long, told Shin Min Daily News that he visited the hospital last Monday (Feb 27) as he had a minor stroke. Before being hospitalised, the 70-year-old retiree went to have a meal at the food court. 

"I ordered a piece of fish, steamed egg with minced pork and a piece of chicken. But when I checked the receipt, the chicken had been charged as 'pork', and it was a dollar more." 

According to the receipt, Long paid $8.10 for the meal. 

As this 'cai fan' stall had clearly labelled the price of each individual dish, Long asked the staff why he'd been charged extra. 

To his dismay, the staff explained that the extra dollar charge was because he'd picked the biggest piece of chicken, he said. 

Long did not refute the staff's claims, as he was feeling unwell and wanted to return to the clinic. 

[[nid:619295]]

"I thought about it later and it didn't seem right. [The chicken] was supposed to be $3, and they didn't say that there would be an extra charge for the bigger pieces. 

"The staff was the one that helped me to pick the dishes, and the piece of chicken I had wasn't much bigger than the rest." 

Even though he wasn't too particular about the extra charge, Long decided to inform Kopitiam about the incident. He was subsequently refunded $1. 

When a reporter from Shin Min visited the mixed rice stall, the staff said that the extra charge came about because Long had picked a piece of chicken breast.

If he had picked the chicken thigh, it would have been $3 as stated on the price tag. 

A spokesperson from Kopitiam confirmed with the Chinese daily that Long has been refunded, and that necessary action will be taken against the stall in question. 

AsiaOne has contacted Kopitiam for more information. 

Budget meals at coffee shops 

To tackle the issue of rising food prices, Senior Minister of State for National Development Sim Ann shared in Parliament last Thursday that all older rental coffee shops due for renewal in May will need to provide four budget meal and two budget drink options for diners. 

These budget meals at coffee shops will be priced at between $3 and $3.50, while the drinks will cost around $1 to $1.15. 

They must also be full meal options and not side dishes or snacks, and must be from two or more different stalls.

In addition, two of these budget meals must be rice-based, and at least must be halal. 

Coffee shops must also serve a minimum of two budget drinks – kopi-o (black coffee) and teh-o (black tea).

This new measure means that budget meals will progressively be offered at all 374 rental coffee shops by 2026, up from the current 72. 

HDB will also offer a five per cent rental discount off the market valuation-based renewal rents for one year.

"This will make the availability of cheaper food options in coffee shops more certain and pervasive," Sim said.

ALSO READ: $5 or $9? Man gets varying charges for same 'cai fan' order on different days

claudiatan@asiaone.com