Couple lets dog sit by table at Tampines coffee shop with halal stalls, SFA & MUIS respond

A diner spotted a couple, who took their dog to a coffee shop at Block 844 Tampines Street 82, and allowed their pet to sit by the table.

The coffee shop had at least two halal food stalls in its premises.

The diner told Mothership that the dog was wearing clothes and was placed on a chair.

The owners apparently continued eating even when their dog kept barking, the diner said.

Cleaner tried to intervene

A cleaner at the coffee shop apparently tried to intervene by informing the couple that they were not allowed to dine in with a dog, the diner said.

But the cleaner got ignored, the diner added: “The uncle cleaning tables tried to tell them they were not supposed to dine in with dog but they just ignored him.”

The cleaner apparently remarked that it was not the couple’s first time bringing a dog to the establishment.

What SFA said

Based on the information it received, the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) said the dog was at the coffee shop’s outdoor refreshment area (ORA).

ORAs are situated outside the main structure of a building or food premises that are not enclosed, even if under shelter, and that can be reached without going through the food premises, SFA said.

In response to media queries, SFA said in a statement that since Jan. 1, 2025, retail food businesses, such as coffee shops, that are not serving pet food do not need to seek approval from SFA to allow patrons to bring pets along for dine-in at their ORAs.

It added that food businesses should still adopt good food safety practices, and that operators who allow pets at their ORAs are encouraged to provide clear signs showing where pets are allowed, signs directing patrons to the nearest handwashing facility, and hand sanitisers.

SFA previously said pets are still not allowed at hawker centres and their ORAs island-wide.

"This is in consideration that hawker centres are communal spaces, unlike ORAs of privately managed food businesses," SFA added.

What MUIS said

The Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (MUIS) said its Halal Certification Conditions (HCC) apply only to areas covered by a premises’ approved halal certification.

If a whole coffee shop is halal-certified, they cover its dining areas and outdoor refreshment areas, MUIS added.

If only an individual stall is certified, they cover just that stall, and shared dining areas fall under SFA’s requirements, MUIS also said.

The spokesperson said:

“Under the HCC, pet dogs are not permitted within halal-certified premises, including certified ORAs, except for guide dogs. The presence of a dog in a shared dining area outside an individual stall’s certification scope does not, in itself, constitute a breach of the stall’s halal certification conditions.”