Follow us on Telegram for the latest updates: https://t.me/mothershipsg

Update: The Singapore police said they are looking into the dispute.

---

The food and beverage industry has been in for a rough ride the last two years, but it appears not all paying customers are playing ball to make a difficult situation any less difficult.

Commotion at Fat Po in Punggol

According to a Facebook post put up on the Hawkers United - Dabao 2020 Facebook group on March 13, two diners at Fat Po -- a Tebing Lane restaurant in Punggol near the container park -- were seen allegedly behaving in an unruly fashion, culminating in the destruction of property and even threats of physical harm to staff and a fellow patron.

The post, a written account of the incident that allegedly happened as witnessed by a fellow Fat Po patron, also contained several photos of the two customers involved.

The incident took place at dinner time on Saturday night, March 12.

The post has been shared more than 2,400 times in half a day.

What happened

According to the post by the eyewitness, two men arrived to dine in at Fat Po allegedly without queuing up or waiting to be served, and were seen helping themselves to a table.

Based on the photos, the two men occupied the table in the open air section that is between Fat Po and D’Rubinah, an Indian restaurant that is directly opposite.

The eyewitness said the two customers then ordered a jug of beer and some food.

Started to smoke

However, something started brewing when one of the men began smoking while seated at the table, even though it was a non-smoking establishment.

A staff then told the smoker he was not allowed to light up while seated within the eatery's premises.

This was despite it being an outdoor seating area.

Smokers can light up if they move away from the premises, and this requires walking several metres away towards the open air car park just beside Fat Po.

Allegedly didn't put out cigarette

According to the eyewitness, the smoker was then seen asking the staff about the location of the nearest toilet, in an apparent bid to buy time as his cigarette was still in his hand.

One of the staff, described by the eyewitness to be "really damn patient" and believed to be the manager, continued to persuade the smoking customer to not smoke while seated in the restaurant.

The smoker then finally stepped out.

This turned out to be the beginning of his other antics.

Bought satay from another eatery

The smoking customer then came back to Fat Po with satay bought from another establishment.

The staff saw it, according to the eyewitness, and "nicely told them" that food not purchased from Fat Po are not allowed to be consumed within the eatery's premises.

The customer who was smoking earlier then allegedly raised his voice, saying that he and his friend were very hungry and had to eat the satay there and then.

In response to the staff's request not to consume the satay, the customer was allegedly heard asking where they should sit to eat their satay instead.

The staff continued to explain that the owner of Fat Po would reprimand his employees for letting customers consume food from other establishments.

And it was explained that there could be other implications that might involve the authorities if anything untoward happened to customers after they consumed food not prepared at Fat Po.

The two customers then allegedly promised not to eat the satay, but then allegedly continued to eat it, as seen in the photographs taken by the fellow diner.

Shouted at staff

When the staff came out to serve the two customers their food, he saw them eating the satay but did not intervene further, as his persuasion had fallen on deaf ears.

However, the two customers were allegedly displeased with the staff for putting their food down on the table and walking off.

They allegedly shouted at the staff that his attitude was bad and the staff had to walk back to them.

Smashed plate on ground

The customer in black was then seen allegedly taking the plate of food served by Fat Po and smashing it on the ground.

A few staff then went over to quickly clear the food and broken plate off the ground.

But the other customer in white then allegedly stood up and was seen by the eyewitness to have pushed the female staff.

The customer in white then picked up the chicken from the ground, but it was not clear why he did that.

This part of altercation was caught on video by another fellow diner.

The customer in white could be seen pushing the female staff at least twice.

According to the Facebook post by the eyewitness, when the female staff supposedly asked, "Why did you push me?", the customer allegedly tried to aggravate her further.

Allegedly threatened staff and fellow patron

The manager then apparently told the duo that they did not have to pay for the meal and they walked off, but not before the customer in white allegedly threatened to beat one of the male staff up.

At this point, one customer stood up and shouted: "Would you stop harassing him?"

This part of the altercation was also caught on video.

The male staff dressed in black could be seen backing away from the customer in white who kept moving forward while talking without a mask on.

As seen from the photos and videos, the other patrons at Fat Po at that time were well aware of the commotion and altercation as it unfolded.

The customer in white then allegedly challenged the customer who intervened to a fight, according to the eyewitness.

The customer who intervened then called the police.

The duo then apparently left quickly before the police arrived.

Fat Po response

Some five hours after the initial post by the eyewitness was put up, Fat Po issued a statement on Facebook saying it has made a police report and is appealing for witnesses to step forward.

The eatery also thanked fellow customers who intervened and protected the staff: "Thank you to the customers and public for standing up for our staff when they were bullied by these patrons."

"Our staff are trying their best to provide you with a safe, comfortable and memorable dining experience. They do not deserve to be served with physical and mental abuse."

Responses

The Facebook post by the eyewitness attracted up to 500 comments within half a day.

The responses unanimously panned the abusive behaviour of the two customers, with some commenters highlighting that the two men looked like they were dressed in cycling outfits.

Other commenters also reminded others in the thread not to end up doxxing the individuals involved and to leave the matter to the authorities.

Follow and listen to our podcast here