Restaurant in Chinatown in the soup for flouting Covid-19 rules

A restaurant in Chinatown has been ordered to suspend operations, after a check after midnight last Saturday found patrons consuming alcohol past the 10.30pm restriction.

Wang Zi Chu Fang also failed to ensure diners were limited to groups of five and that a 1m space was left between them, the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) said in a statement yesterday.

The joint operation by STB and the Singapore Police Force found that the restaurant had provided customers with drinking games, which food and beverage outlets are not allowed to do without an amusement centre licence.

The establishment was fined in July for breaching safe management measures.

STB also issued $1,000 fines to Bistro Du Le Pin at Orchard Plaza and Wang Dae Bak in Amoy Street for not ensuring that customers kept a safe distance apart.

Enterprise Singapore (ESG) said in a separate statement yesterday that it had fined five restaurants and a beauty salon for flouting safe management measures, following a sweep last month.

New Udon Thai Food at Golden Mile Complex was fined $2,000 for failing to ensure a 1m space between groups of diners, its second infringement since June.

King of Fried Rice and Leng Saap @ Rot Fai Market at Golden Mile Tower, and Little Myanmar Restaurant and Yanant Thit at Peninsula Plaza were fined $1,000 each for the same offence.

Beauty salon Mei Mei Beauty at People's Park Complex was fined $1,000 after it was found to be offering threading services where the thread is held in the beautician's mouth. This practice is currently disallowed, ESG said.

If these businesses continue to flout the rules, they may face higher fines, suspension and even court charges, the agency warned.

Under the Covid-19 (Temporary Measures) Act, first-time offenders may be fined up to $10,000 and jailed for up to six months, while repeat offences may incur a fine of up to $20,000 and imprisonment of up to 12 months.

When The Straits Times visited Golden Mile Complex at dinner time yesterday, crowds were seen at eateries including New Udon, though groups were kept to a maximum of five.

In its statement, ESG urged firms to play their part in keeping staff and customers safe amid the Covid-19 pandemic, such as by intervening when groups of customers intermingle.

Members of the public should also be socially responsible and comply with the measures put in place at establishments, it said.

• Additional reporting by Mark Cheong

This article was first published in The Straits Times.

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