Most coffee shops yet to allow groups of 5 to dine; some say hard to control entry, do vaccine checks

Almost all 110 hawker centres presently managed by NEA or its appointed operators have rolled out measures to allow groups of five people to eat together. However, to date, only a small proportion (about 5 per cent) of the 2,200 coffee shops and canteens run by private operators have done so.

This means that there are still many coffee shops and canteens that allow patrons to dine only in pairs. These will include privately operated canteens, such as those in certain schools or workplaces, that are licensed by the Singapore Food Agency (SFA).

Some coffee shops told TODAY that labour constraints and the layout of the premises were among the difficulties they face in checking the vaccination status of customers and monitoring their entry and exit.

Coffee shops such as one that TODAY visited at Fernvale in Sengkang West on Thursday (Jan 13) said that there was just not enough manpower to carry out the vaccine-related infection controls, especially during peak periods.

Ms Serene Tan, the supervisor of the coffee shop, said: “During busy times, we cannot do everything and it’s hard to check every table.

“We don’t have enough people and the coffee shop is so big. The workers are already struggling because they also need to make sure the trays are cleared,” she added.