Manhattan Fish Market apologises after denying family Mother’s Day offer because ‘the father is missing’

SINGAPORE — It was supposed to be a Mother's Day celebration, but it turned into a disappointing experience for a family after they were denied a promotion because the family was "not complete".

In a Facebook post on Wednesday (June 5), Ms Mellissa Seah described an incident she and her family encountered at Changi Airport Terminal 1's Manhattan Fish Market restaurant.

Ms Seah wrote that she was at the airport that day to send off her mother before a flight.

At the time, the restaurant was running a promotion offering a complimentary fish and chips to mothers who dine with their families. It also had “the least crowd”, she added.

Ms Seah’s group decided to enquire about the promotion, but were allegedly told: "You're not entitled to this because your family is not complete. The father is missing."

Ms Seah slammed the restaurant’s response in her post, pointing out the existence of alternative family structures — such as families who have lost parents due to illness, those with children raised by grandparents, and LGBT families.

"While the rest of society is taking steps to make Singapore a more inclusive place, it is disappointing that a brand like MFM still has the mindset that a complete family unit is one that is made up of father, mother and child," wrote Ms Seah.

She added that it was “not by choice” that her family “isn’t complete”.

“Thank you MFM for reminding Mom that she is at fault for not maintaining her marriage so that the family can be complete. Marriage breaks down and sometimes (it’s) better to go separate ways to make a family complete again,” she wrote.

A spokesperson for Manhattan Fish Market apologised for the incident, saying that there was a "gap in the relaying of information to our crew”.

"We have contacted Mellissa to apologise for causing unnecessary distress to her family," said the spokesperson in a statement. "Mellissa's family definitely qualifies for the promotion."

"We will lay out clear steps in our training processes to ensure that all crew receive adequate and clear instructions before we begin any new promotions," the spokesperson added.