• Restaurants reinvent their buffet lines as self-service buffets are still banned in Phase Two 
• One operator, Manle Hotpot, has shut down a store because of revenue loss 
• Buffet places, with less seating capacity, see rising operating costs and declining sales 

SINGAPORE ⁠— With self-service buffets still banned in the second phase of Singapore’s economic reopening, restaurants here have reinvented their buffet lines, with some going a la carte, so as to resume operations within the rules. 

One restaurant is rolling trolleys of food around, so that diners do not have to gather at common areas to help themselves to the food.

But those that have opened their doors since last Friday (June 19) have seen takings fall by up to 60 per cent, compared with pre-Covid-19 levels.

At least one buffet restaurant has had to close an outlet permanently owing to high costs. Another has decided to stay shut until Singapore enters the third phase of its reopening.

Singapore moved into Phase Two of its economic reopening, when stay-home curbs were lifted further. Most food-and-beverage (F&B) outlets have been allowed to reopen, but buffet options with self-service lines are still suspended.

The restrictions on businesses and activities will continue to be eased gradually until Singapore reaches “a new normal” in the third phase. This is where the country will stay until an effective Covid-19 vaccine or treatment is developed.

Japanese hotpot chain Suki-ya has emptied its buffet bars and turned to other ways to keep customers safe while retaining its buffet model.

The buffet chain, operated by F&B group Creative Eateries, has rolled out trolleys in its outlets. On these trolleys, pushed around the restaurants by crew members, are condiments and vegetables. 

The food on the trolley is kept covered to maintain hygiene and ensure they are not left exposed, Creative Eateries said.

Diners may order food items from staff members if they are not available from the trolleys. On the tables are cutlery packed in plastic bags after they had been sanitised.

Ms Bonnie Wong, Creative Eateries’ chief operating officer, said: “These measures require more manpower and increases our costs, so we will likely gravitate back towards self-service models when we don’t need such precautionary measures anymore.”

Yue Long Men Hotpot in Chinatown has moved away from self-service stations and introduced an a la carte buffet.

Customers order ingredients from staff members, who will serve them, and all tables and chairs are disinfected after each use. 

While the store’s regulars have returned, owner Benjamin Zheng said that the eatery has not seen new customers, as some are still worried about being exposed to the coronavirus.

Kingdom Food Group, which operates buffet chains I’m Kim Korean BBQ and GoroGoro Steamboat & Korean Buffet, has also moved to an a la carte system at its five restaurants. Customers place their orders via order sheets instead of picking up their food at the buffet lines.

This has necessitated a 40 per cent increase in manpower at its outlets. 

The F&B operator has, however, decided to keep two outlets closed temporarily: I’m Kim Junior at *Scape youth park on Orchard Road and GoroGoro Steamboat at The Centrepoint mall.

Mr Kevin Chui, general manager of Kingdom Food Group, said: “We are not able to operate these two outlets due to the very low footfall at these malls, the cost involved and resource constraints, especially with the current a la carte buffet style, which is tedious, unproductive and manpower-intensive.” 

While its restaurants saw better-than-expected crowds this past weekend, sales still dropped between 50 and 60 per cent because of safe-distancing rules that require groups of diners to sit 1m apart.

NO RUSH TO REOPEN

Other buffet restaurants are not in a hurry to resume operations.

The Minor Food Group (Singapore) is preparing to reopen its buffet restaurants Buffet Town International Buffet Restaurant and Kiseki Restaurant on Friday. 

Diners at the two restaurants will be able to order food from e-tablets, and the stores will have table service, the group said. 

Buffet lines and cooking stations will be replaced with food displays, which customers can view as they enter the restaurant. 

Minor Food’s chairman and chief executive officer Dellen Soh said that table service would increase the restaurants’ manpower by 30 per cent, even as their capacity has dropped by 50 per cent. 

“Fortunately, we have the Jobs Support Scheme to tide the company through during this difficult period,” Mr Soh said.

The Jobs Support Scheme is a government wage subsidy scheme that helps businesses retain employees who are Singaporeans and permanent residents during the Covid-19 pandemic. 

While other buffet restaurants make plans to reopen, Chilli Padi Nonya Cafe’s buffet restaurant along Heng Mui Keng Terrace in Buona Vista will not reopen until Phase Three.

Its director Patricia Lee said: “There aren’t many residences in the area and we are surrounded by offices. So even if we open, not many customers will come as they are working from home.” 

Although this means that the restaurant is not earning revenue, none of its staff members has been laid off. They have been deployed to a central kitchen receiving bento orders from corporate clients. 

In addition, the restaurant’s landlord has waived half of its rental, lowering operating costs, Ms Lee said. 

But for Manle Hotpot, its store at Downtown East in Pasir Ris has permanently shut because of revenue loss.

Mr Aston Soon, owner of Astons Food & Beverage Specialities, which owns Manle Hotpot, said that customers would probably shun buffets for now as well. 

Its second outlet, which sells Teochew porridge at City Square Mall in Little India, is preparing to reopen in a week or two with an a la carte menu instead of a buffet service.

“Most important, it is safety first,” Mr Soon said. 

“We hope to see (our customers) when we finally open. As of now, we have no choice, but we may consider going back to the buffet again when it is safe and viable.”