Awesome GrabCar driver takes Stomp intern on coolest ride ever

Sai Vidhya
Tuesday, Jan 24, 2017

"Good service is something unexpected you provide somebody or someone with -- by going the extra mile."

This definition of 'good service' belongs to GrabCar driver Gerard Bakar, 38, who has been living by this ever since his first day on the job in August 2016.

From serving warm sandwiches, kuehs and hot coffee or tea for breakfast every morning, to an efficient docking system for phone charging, and even diaper supplies and games for kids -- Gerard certainly goes the extra mile for his passengers every single day.

Here comes the best part, everything is FREE -- apart from the ride of course. You still need to pay for that.

So you might be wondering what started all this?

During his first few days on the job, Gerard frequently picked up passengers to the CBD area in the mornings, and always overheard customers' complaints of missing breakfast/feeling hungry. And ever since, he started his day by purchasing freshly made sandwiches/ kuehs prior to his morning shift -- to provide breakfast for them.

"I later realised that you can't have your morning breakfast without your daily dose of caffeine, so I started serving hot coffee and tea as well," said Gerard.

Today, Gerard's onboard mini snack bar serves five different types of coffee, six different types of tea, three different types of instant cereal, milo, loads of nostalgic snacks (Super Rings, Tora, Fish Murukku etc), home-made pastries -- all of this, on top of 'breakfast'.

He even has his own in-ride menu -- which was a pretty hilarious read as well.

Just last Wednesday (Jan 18), Stomper Yanie got a chance to experience Gerard's cool GrabCar, and alerted the Stomp Team to her experience with the onboard mini snack bar.

Upon listening to her experience via a telephone interview, the Stomp Team grew curious and decided to send Stomp intern Vidhya to experience a ride in Gerard's GrabCar for herself on Monday (Jan 23).

Said Vidhya:

"I had loads of fun, and Gerard was really warm and friendly -- always making sure that I was having a pleasant journey.

"He has a collection of nostalgic snacks, some of which I have never seen before -- but they sure tasted great.

"He also has seasonal gifts/snacks for his passengers during the festive season. Since it's the Chinese New Year period now, he's giving out little red packets with fortune cookies inside them, and he also serves home-made pineapple tarts too!"

Said Gerard:

"I am aware that many other drivers are not keen on passengers eating in their vehicles because they do not want their cars dirty, and maybe that's because they clean their vehicles once a week, or fortnightly.

"For me, it's like cooking. You can't expect your kitchen to be clean when you're cooking, so you just clean it after. I clean my car on a daily basis once I end my shift at 1am."

"As for spending money on my customers, it isn't a big deal. My main priority is for customers to arrive at their destinations safely, and for them to be happy with the service. It makes me happy when I see their tummies filled before work. It makes me feel as if I did something right.

"Most of the money I use to purchase the items are through tips from customers -- so by purchasing these snacks, I'm giving back to them in a sense."

"I'm currently looking for even more ways to enhance my GrabCar -- free WiFi maybe? I'm still finding a way around it."

Check out Vidhya's experience in Gerard's GrabCar in the video below!

I guess you could say happiness is a not a destination but instead a journey on Gerard's GrabCar.