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Following the series of Facebook posts by SMÖÖbar calling out a group of errant diners who dined and dashed after a night out at the bar along Prinsep Street, another F&B operator — Jyu Gae Bistro, located at Bras Basah Road — has come forth to share a similar episode at their establishment.

Stepped out for a smoke but did not return

Writing in a Facebook post on Apr. 13, Jyu Gae Bistro shared that two customers skipped out on a bill totalling S$289.98 on Mar. 11.

Detailing the events of the evening, the bistro wrote that the customers had told staff that they were stepping outside for a smoke break and would return to settle their bill.

The pair did not return.

The establishment did not pursue the individuals, choosing instead to wait for them to return to settle their bill.

"Initially, we thought that they might have simply forgotten about the bill as we have always believed in giving people the benefit of the doubt and second chances", Jyu Gae Bistro wrote in the post.

Jyu Gae Bistro says it has identified patrons

However, following the posts by SMÖÖbar, Jyu Gae Bistro shared that it has identified the two individuals "after verification with SMÖÖbar".

According to Jyu Gae Bistro, the two diners were part of the group involved in the SMÖÖbar incident on Apr. 8.

"These two individuals are habitual offenders who intentionally skip out on their bills," Jyu Gae Bistro claimed.

According to a staff of Jyu Gae Bistro, the pair ordered a bottle of Roku gin at their place, just like they did at SMÖÖbar.

"We hope that by sharing this post with the public, we can prevent more businesses from falling victim to these scammers," Jyu Gae Bistro noted in the post.

The staff told Mothership she hoped that with the awareness raised, it would also "encourage the two individuals involved to step out and make payment to us".

A police report has since been lodged by Jyu Gae Bistro.

It is unclear what information was exchanged between the eateries which led to the confirmation that the diners in both incidents were the same individuals.

Mothership reached out to Jyu Gae Bistro and SMÖÖbar on Apr. 15 for clarifications.

Explaining how they identified the individuals, the Jyu Gae Bistro staff shared:

"We contacted SMÖÖbar via Instagram after we read the online articles. They have captured [the diner's] faces and posted on their social media. That was when we discovered one of them was wearing the same white sandal. My staff also recognised one of the guys, so I asked SMÖÖbar if they can help us to identify whether they are same diners involved and they replied, yes. We were so upset and decided to file a police report against them, followed by posting online to share awareness."

The staff added that the bill is a considerably large amount for the eatery.

"Not only do we lose out on the revenue, we also lose the trust we had with them when they said they will return after their smoke break," the staff said.

Police confirmed with Mothership that a report has been lodged and that investigations are ongoing.

One case resolved, one case remains

In the SMÖÖbar case, the bill has since been paid off on the night of Apr. 13, the bar shared in an update on Facebook.

Top image via Jyu Gae Bistro