Singaporean man shocked to pay extra 80 cents for using his own container at a food stall, vendor says it is for labour charge

SINGAPORE: A man who recently ordered from a Pasir Ris coffee shop stall was shocked when the vendor charged him an extra 80 cents, even though his food was separated in his own container. 

The diner who experienced this had previously ordered roast pork and char siew rice at the same shop and paid S$7 for a dine-in meal. The following day, he ordered the same thing for takeaway and asked to put it in his own container; however, he was charged S$8, which he didn’t mind paying.

“I brought my own container and asked for meat, rice, and sauce to be packed separately. The final bill came up to S$8.80,” the man expressed. When he asked the lady in the shop about the additional payment, she then explained that it was for the labour charge for the separation of the items. For him, it was unreasonable. 

“I was rushing to work, so I didn’t pursue further,” the man admitted to Stomp. He is just sharing his experience so that diners around the area would be aware that there is such a thing as this. 

There was a similar case reported to Stomp last January 2024, when a diner also questioned why a noodle stall at City Plaza was charging an extra 50 cents for takeaway orders, even when customers brought their own containers. In response to a Stomp query, a spokesperson for Poon Nah City Home Made Noodle admitted that customers who bring their own containers are a challenge for the F&B business.

“First, I do understand that customers do bring their own containers for take-away, and we should recycle and save the world… But I hope you understand that for the F&B business, it is quite hard for us actually,” the spokesperson declared. 

The spokesperson expressed that when customers bring their own containers, they all get mixed up in the small kitchen space, and they wash all the containers before putting the food in. This is where the extra ‘labour’ fee comes in. 

“I just hope that they understand the charges that we have. There are customers who still bring their own containers, and after we explain, they do accept it too,” the spokesperson added. 

In other news related to the food business, a 24-hour coffee shop located at Block 3 Lorong Lew Lian in Serangoon is experiencing backlash from nearby residents due to the oily fumes and loud noises of its exhaust pipes, which were installed beside the residents’ windows. Read more here.