SINGAPORE: A diner took to social media on Wednesday (Sep 11) to share a rather frustrating experience he had while dining at a hawker centre—regular customers cutting the queue and getting preferential treatment.
In a post on r/askSingapore, a Reddit forum, he pointed out that he had seen this happen many times and felt that it was unfair to the other patrons who patiently waited in line.
According to him, these regulars, often older individuals or middle-aged uncles and aunties, would casually engage the hawker in friendly conversation before sitting down and getting their orders served ahead of everyone else.
He then asked others in the community, “I know you get what you pay for for hawker food right, but just doesn’t seem right to me. Hypothetically speaking, if you are a hawker, will you let “regular customers” cut queue?”
“It’s their right to serve whoever they want in whatever order they wish.”
In the discussion thread, several Singaporean Redditors agreed with the diner, saying it’s frustrating to see regulars cutting the queue. They felt that everyone should wait their turn, no matter how close they are with the hawker.
One Redditor shared that if this happened to her, she would “loudly question the hawker and stop patronizing them again.”
Another remarked, “It annoys me when hawkers allow old people to cut queue. My queue became longer when I had more than 3 old people cut queue.”
On the other hand, there were others who acknowledged the hawkers’ perspective, explaining that if these regular customers have been consistently buying from them, it’s understandable that hawkers might want to show their appreciation by giving them a bit of priority.
After all, these regulars are likely the ones who have supported the business for years, so hawkers might see it as a way to foster loyalty and goodwill.
One Redditor said, “If I were the hawker, sure, I will cook for my regulars first, especially if they order the same thing day in and out and I know their orders by heart. After all, for hawkers, they are counting on their regulars rather than the one-off customers.”
Another added, “This is more to do with the hawker themselves, nothing you can do. It’s their right to serve whoever they want in whatever order they wish.”
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