A local eatery at the Esplanade Mall was recently the victim of two dine-and-dash incidents in two consecutive days.
The owner wrote in to Mothership in hopes of warning other restaurants to be wary of such diners, especially during busy periods.
Dine-and-dash incidents on the rise
Olivia Koh-Teo, who runs Old School Delights at the Esplanade Mall with her husband, said that dine-and-dash incidents have been getting increasingly common.
The eatery has been at the mall since 2017.
Calling it "disheartening", Koh-Teo said that the perpetrators of the two incidents included a middle-aged male patron, as well as an older customer in their 70s.
She added that in one of the two cases, the escape seemed to be planned "meticulously", with the patron taking his leave when no one was looking.
Footage from the restaurant's CCTV shows a man in a white shirt scrambling to exit under the barrier, before grabbing his belongings and leaving.
Video courtesy of Olivia Koh-Teo
Still, Koh-Teo said she hoped the diners had "sincerely [forgotten] to pay and not with the intention to cheat".
She added that in the past, there have been diners who genuinely forgot to pay for their meals. However, these customers typically return to the restaurant to make payment afterwards.
Feels "jaded"
Koh-Teo shared that the eatery, like other F&B businesses, is still recovering from over two years of losses during the pandemic with margins that are "paper thin".
"Despite being a struggling restaurant, we do trust our customers to pay after their meal at the counter and enjoy a little chat about the food," she said.
However, Koh-Teo said that this system may become a thing of the past due to the dine-and-dash incidents, and the eatery might require customers to pay upfront before their meal in the future.
She added that she did not make police reports for either of these cases.
However, she has done so in the past when a boy pretended to make payment via PayLah!, but actually transferred the money to a different account.
"I admit I feel jaded and honestly, there are so many times I wanted to close down a struggling eatery. My husband and I hardly spend time with our kids, except for Tuesdays when the eatery is closed for rest day. I do wonder if this is all worth it.
I sincerely hope that eateries will be more wary of dine and dash patrons, and not be overly trusting like us."
Top photo via Joy KC/Google Maps and courtesy of Olivia Koh-Teo