It’s common to feel a little frustrated when a bak chor mee stall runs out of your favourite pork lard. But one customer took to slamming his bowl of noodles on the tray return counter to express his displeasure, when the hawker stall he patronised ran out of the fried cubes.

Around 20 minutes before his closing time yesterday (Aug 8), hawker Aloysius Tan, 25, encountered a diner who wanted lard with his noodles. Aloysius, who runs bak chor mee chain MacPherson Teochew Minced Meat Noodle’s Toa Payoh outlet, had run out of lard and could not serve any to the customer.

In a post on Facebook group Hawkers United - Dabao 2020, he recounted that the customer was a regular who frequented his stall, usually around half an hour before closing.

Aloysius wrote: “When we [were] gonna be closed in 20 mins’ time, we ran out of pork lard [for the customer’s] yellow mee soup. [He] went to his seat, ate a bit, came back and asked for pork lard. We told him we ran out because we were near closing time [and he] headed back to his seat, grouchy.”

Threw bowl of noodles at tray return station 

According to Aloysius’s post, the customer “sat for a while” before bringing his still-filled bowl and tray to the tray return point and slamming it on the counter. “Causing a huge spillage at the tray-return point + breakage of our bowl,” noted Aloysius, who added: “What did the tray + bowl do to you bro? [laugh-crying emoji] The cleaner aunties then will need to clean up the mess. S$4.50 noodles need like that ah? Aiyoooo.”

CCTV footage included

He included CCTV of the customer throwing his food away. Dressed in a grey T-shirt, the man was filmed angrily tossing his tray and bowl at the tray return point. He stomped away, muttering to himself. A bewildered coffeeshop patron was spotted watching him leave. Aloysius also posted a photo of coffeeshop staff clearing up the mess left behind by the angry customer.

Netizens debate hawker’s public post

Aloysius’s post attracted a flurry of comments from netizens, one of whom opined that the hawker should have fried more pork lard to “standby” in case customers requested it.

In response, Aloysius wrote: “I don’t think hawker patrons should have the mentality that pork lard should be an entitlement anymore. It consists of exhausting frying when you’re frying batch by batch. [Request for it], if the signage shows, then ok. If the signage [doesn’t show that lard is offered], kindly ask. Easy to eat. Many people want. But to fry/cook? You willing to do? 25-year-old here. You want your son/daughter to take up this trade also? [Sic]”

He also responded to another netizen who wondered why he couldn’t set aside some lard in anticipation of a regular customer: “You need to understand this. This is not an office whereby I can save a file or slip the document somewhere to keep for him. It’s [kitchen service]. When it’s busy, it gets sold out, means it’s sold out [sic]. We cannot assume a regular will come EVERY single day.” 

Another netizen weighed in that the hawker shouldn’t have “shamed [his] regular like that”, to which Aloysius replied: “Hawkers don’t deserve such regulars. That’s that. Sorry, I don’t think the mindset of shouldn’t shame should be taken into [account] anymore in 2023 [sic]. Cameras are everywhere now. I chose this action to post here, I'll leave it here as it is.”

MacPherson Teochew Minced Meat Noodles (Toa Payoh outlet) is at #01-74, Blk 95 Toa Payoh Lor 4, S310095. Open daily 7am-2pm (closed on National Day). www.facebook.com/macphersonbakchormee

Photos: Aloysius Tan/ MacPherson Teochew Minced Meat Noodles