New Year's Eve countdown: Marina Bay F&B outlets heavily booked, boosting staff levels for expected bumper crowds

SINGAPORE — Ahead of the return of the Marina Bay New Year’s Eve countdown, food and beverage (F&B) firms in the area are increasing staffing levels in anticipation of the expected large crowds eager to catch the first fireworks display there since 2019.

However, a few F&B operators have voiced concerns that the area might be so packed that customers who have made reservations might face difficulties getting through the crowds to their businesses.

Of the six restaurants and bars around the Marina Bay area that TODAY spoke to, all said that they had arranged to have additional manpower on hand for the expected boost in business on New Year's Eve.

"We are definitely excited for the occasion, and have increased our manpower by 20 per cent by engaging part-timers to support our service and kitchen operations," said Mr Kelvin Nguang, assistant operations manager of the issho izakaya at One Fullerton.

Mr Nguang added that the restaurant began receiving reservations for New Year’s Eve two months ago, and became fully booked out for the occasion two weeks ago.

He said that this is because the restaurant's location beside the Singapore River offers a wide view of the surrounding area.

Mr M. Rado, the public relations manager of Nusa, an Indonesian grill restaurant, said that family members of the restaurant owners are coming down to help out on New Year's Eve.

He said that they planned to bring in seven family members to boost manpower to 12 people, compared to the usual staffing of five to six employees at the restaurant.

He said that the restaurant is expected to be over capacity and expects 500 patrons on New Year’s Eve, double the amount of patrons the restaurant, which seats 110, sees daily. 

CROWD CONCERNS

Some businesses that TODAY spoke to highlighted concerns about the expected high level of attendance, saying that they are worried their guests might have a hard time getting to the restaurant.

"We hope that (our guests) have their reservation that they can show the police and crowd control to make sure that they can get to the restaurant because that's what they were doing in previous years," said Ms Angela May, culinary director at DHM, which manages the French restaurant L'Entrecote at Customs House near Fullerton Bay.

"We (will) contact all our guests and remind them to bring their confirmed reservations to show any security to get in the area," she added. 

The Singapore Police Force (SPF) has said that when the capacity of these areas reaches planned safety thresholds, the area will be closed to ensure public safety, meaning entry to the area will be cut off.

That means revellers will be able to exit the area, but not re-enter it.

The SPF has advised members of the public to check out their live crowd map via their information portal, Crowd@MarinaBay, to get a sense of real-time crowd levels and stay updated on area closures around Marina Bay before making their way to the vicinity for the festivities.

The public is also advised to be patient and follow instructions given by marshals and officers deployed on the ground.

An estimated 500,000 people are expected to turn up at this year’s Marina Bay countdown, according to the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). This figure is based on the previous attendance of the last Marina Bay countdown in 2019, which saw similar numbers.