Compassvale hawker warned and penalised after splattering sauce all over customer: Koufu
A woman has called out bad service standards by hawkers after her helper was involved in an altercation with a coffee shop stall employee.
Stomper Samantha shared her helper's "distressing encounter" at Happy Hawkers at Block 289C Compassvale Crescent on Oct 25, at around 9am.
She said: "As a strong supporter of local hawker culture, I believe in championing the efforts of hardworking hawkers who dedicate themselves to serving delicious and affordable meals.
"However, a recent experience at a hawker stall in Happy Hawker has left me deeply disappointed and compelled to share my concerns about the declining standards of service at certain establishments.
"I had sent my helper to purchase chee cheong fun from a particular stall, and what should have been a simple takeaway order quickly turned into a distressing encounter.
"Upon arriving at the stall, my helper politely requested that the gravy be split with the chee cheong fun.
"Instead of receiving a courteous response, the stall assistant exhibited rude and hostile behavior. She could have simply explained if the request was difficult to accommodate, but instead, she reacted with visible irritation and frustration.
"As she prepared the order, her frustration escalated. She began slamming utensils and items around, clearly expressing her displeasure. This kind of aggressive behavior is entirely unnecessary and unprofessional, especially in a service environment.
"The final straw came when my helper was at the payment counter. The assistant, while handling the packet of food, squeezed it so hard that the packet burst, causing sauce to splatter all over my helper's face, body and clothes.
"Shockingly, rather than acknowledging the mess she had created or offering an apology, the assistant was silent and only apologised in fear of being reprimanded. She said sorry, but didn’t respond after my helper asked her why she was doing things so angrily. A passer-by had to offer my helper tissues to clean up."
According to Samantha, her helper was shocked by the incident and came home "shaking".
Samantha shared a photo showing her helper’s top stained with splatters of sauce.
The Stomper added: "The sauce was warm and thankfully not boiling hot, or it would have caused burns.
"Such behaviour is not only unacceptable, but also reflects poorly on the standards of service that we should be promoting in our local hawker culture. While we wholeheartedly support the efforts of our hawkers, incidents like this bring disgrace to the industry and tarnish the reputation of those who work hard to uphold quality and professionalism.
"I urge the management of Happy Hawkers and relevant authorities to address this issue seriously.
"We must ensure that all hawkers and their staff are trained not only to prepare good food, but also to provide basic courtesy and respect to their customers. The vibrant hawker culture that Singapore is known for deserves better representation."
Happy Hawkers is managed by F&B chain Koufu.
Samantha said she emailed Koufu's customer service team on the same day and received a reply on Oct 26, informing her that an investigation was being conducted.
In response to a Stomp query, a Koufu spokesperson said: "Upon receiving the feedback from the customer, the management conducted an investigation immediately and we have already replied to the customer.
"We sincerely apologise for the unpleasant incident that the customer has encountered and have taken the following corrective actions against the staff involved."
The spokesperson said "a warning and penalty" has been issued to the staff member involved, but did not elaborate on what the penalty was. The employee will also be sent for retraining to improve customer service.
"The management will closely monitor to ensure that such incidents do not happen again. Thank you," the spokesperson added.
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