How much would you pay for a cup of sugarcane juice from a hawker centre?
A diner who walked away from a stall at Holland Village Food Centre S$5 poorer thought his drink was "ridiculously expensive".
Thought it was a joke
60-year-old Liu took his complaint to Shin Min Daily News, explaining that the encounter took place on Feb. 21 at 6pm.
His order? A "medium" sugarcane juice, with lemon and less ice.
When it came to payment, he was astounded when the hawker said she would only charge him S$5.
"At that time, I thought she must be joking. I couldn't believe it was actually S$5!"
When asked why it was so expensive, she told him that ingredient prices have risen.
Liu told Shin Min it was his first time patronising the drink stall, and lamented that before this, he never had such a costly sugarcane beverage.
His particular order -- medium sugarcane juice, with lemon and less ice -- doesn't cost more than S$3 at other drink stalls, he elaborated.
Felt the price was outrageous
Liu also ordered a bowl of beef rice from the neighbouring stall, which cost S$6.
The portion and taste was satisfactory, and when compared to the drink, highlighted the outrageous price of the beverage.
Sharing his experience in a Facebook post, he found that many agreed with his sentiment.
Some friends even jokingly asked if the sugarcane was imported from Netherlands.
One comment read: "Hawker centres are where ordinary citizens can find their meals, but if even going to the hawker centre is a stressful experience, what exactly is the problem?"
Hawker claims prices are clearly displayed
Shin Min spoke to the stall owner.
75-year-old Michael stated that he has never received any complaints in the 15 years that he has been operating the stall.
He added that the prices of items are clearly displayed at the stall, and did not receive any feedback about the prices in the past few days. If patrons are not satisfied, they can speak to him directly, he said.
Over the first and second day of Chinese New Year, prices were raised by 30 cents, but they reverted to usual prices after those days.
The Chinese paper observed that the stall used empty cups to show customers what each size looks like and it only offers three different sizes: regular, large, and extra large or limited edition.
The price for each size as well as various add ons were clearly listed on a laminated menu: regular drinks cost S$2.50, large drinks cost S$3.50, and limited edition or extra large drinks cost S$4.50.
For regular and large drinks, less ice costs an additional S$1 while the addition of lemon costs an additional 50 cents.
Liu said that he asked for a "medium" sugarcane.
However, since the drinks stall does not offer medium-sized drinks, it's likely that Liu ordered a large sugarcane juice (S$3.50). And his requests for lemon (50¢) and less ice (S$1) brought the cost of his drink up to S$5.
Top images via William Lu/Google Maps and Shin Min Daily News. Names were transliterated from Mandarin.