PUBLISHED ONJuly 17, 2024 5:21 AMByCandice CaiA zi char stallholder has apologised following a dispute with a customer over a piece of wire thread found in a plate of bee hoon.
A user by the name of Bellelina Chew had posted on Facebook group Complaint Singapore on Monday (July 15), describing the incident which occurred when she, along with her ex-husband and children, were dining at a coffee shop at Block 653A Punggol Drive.
Chew wrote that midway through dinner, her five-year-old son had indicated to his parents that his throat was hurting after eating some seafood white bee hoon.
She later discovered a piece of "aluminium" thread stuck inside the boy's throat.
Chew claimed that her ex-husband's complaint to the stallholder was met with a curt reply: "You already explained to me, what do you want me to do?"
"Quite pissed off with this kind of attitude," she wrote.
Speaking to Shin Min Daily News, Chew shared that the incident had happened on Sunday (July 14).
She added that in the frenzy, she did not manage to take a photo of the thread, which she said was about 1cm.
Chew said that she "did not wish to blow up the matter", but hoped that the stall's employees would exercise more caution in future.
Referring to the alleged poor attitude shown by the stallholder, she stated: "They should apologise or show some concern but they didn't," said Chew, adding that it was fortunate her son didn't swallow the piece of thread.
She was also concerned that other customers may encounter the same situation.
According to Shin Min, the 52-year-old stallholder, Xu Aizhu (transliteration), acknowledged that the incident had happened, explaining that kitchen staff will typically use a piece of steel wool to clean the wok after each dish is prepared.
As the incident occurred during the peak dinner crowd, her tone might have been a little harsh, leading to the misunderstanding.
"We acknowledge our mistake and did not intend to shirk responsibility. Things were probably busy at the time, so attention wasn't duly given to the matter. But the other party definitely was not ignored," said Xu.
Xu also claimed that after she responded to Chew's ex-husband, he had walked away immediately. "He didn't give me a chance to explain. But we will be more careful in the future."
candicecai@asiaone.com
