Jurong East eatery has Chinese-only menu, manager felt no need for English since most customers are Chinese

An eatery in Jurong East, Xi'An Impression, came under fire recently for not having English on its menu.

Concerns raised included the perception of discrimination if potential customers could not read Chinese.

Lianhe Zaobao has since spoken to the manager of the eatery on Apr. 3, 2026.

He told them that he was surprised by the reaction, as he had not received such feedback in the eatery's decade-long operation.

He said that while the restaurant did not deliberately omit an English translation of the menu, almost all of the customers have so far been Chinese and were regulars.

As only one or two non-Chinese customers visited each week, he felt there was no need to include English on the menu.

He also brought up the issue of potential "awkward" translation issues where one food item in Chinese might be mistranslated to something that might confuse customers and "cause controversy".

The manager said that after the feedback, he will inform the owner, and perhaps add an English version when they next change the sign.

Another Chinese stall operator that Zaobao spoke to said they added English names as their customers are mainly locals, and that it was not only a pragmatic step to help customers order food, but also a sign of respect for the locals.

Image from Google Maps