'So insincere and insensitive': Netizens upset at Four Seasons Restaurant's halal buffet that ends before Muslims break fast

By now, most of you would be aware that Muslims worldwide have already begun to fast during Ramadan. As such, a number of dining establishments have rolled out specially curated menus during this significant period so that our Muslim friends can break their fast with a bountiful feast.

However, for one restaurant, this promotion did not pan out as well as they hoped it would.

On April 5, Four Seasons Restaurant announced on their Instagram and Facebook an a la carte dim sum buffet promotion that will run from April 5 to May 12.

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Both posts mentioned that diners could enjoy the deal from Mondays to Fridays from 11am to 5pm. In addition, the caption of the Facebook post included hashtags like #sghalalfood, #halaltag and #halalfoodhunt.

This sounds like a pretty good deal until you realise that Muslims can only break their fast when dusk comes around, which is way past 5pm.

The end date of the promotion also coincided with the end of Ramadan.

From the comments section, it seems like many netizens realised that too.

Multiple disgruntled netizens came forth to express their disappointment with the promotion, with some mentioning that the restaurant was being "insincere and insensitive".

"Wow.. who are you targeting? Definitely NOT Muslims," reads another angry comment.

In response to one of the comments on their Facebook post, Four Seasons Restaurant explained that while they were aware of the fasting period, the buffet was intended to be for all customers, "regardless of race to enjoy".

On Thursday (April 22), the restaurant uploaded another post onto their social media platforms to say that the a la carte dim sum buffet promotion has been extended beyond the stipulated end date of May 12. They also mentioned that the deal is now available on weekends and that they've added more menu items.

However, the buffet timings remains the same and will still be available till 5pm daily. This unfortunately means that our Muslim friends will only be able to partake in their dim sum buffet feasts once Ramadan is over.

melissateo@asiaone.com