Man feels teenage daughter was 'bullied' into paying for overpriced mala with 'all her pocket money'

Is $15.30 for a regular meal at a food court expensive to you?

Just imagine how Stomper Ed's 14-year-old daughter felt when she was charged that amount for dinner at Aperia Mall's food court.

Ed told Stomp on Friday (Nov 3): "My child wanted to buy from other stalls but they were closed, so she bought mala last minute. She ordered instant noodles with a few ingredients, which cost $15.30.

"It's very expensive. It was her first time ordering from the stall and also her last time.

"The stall should have informed my child about the price before cooking. Telling her only after the food is cooked is like 'adult bullying child' and overcharging.

"What would happen if my child did not have enough money? She thought the meal would be less than $10 and was upset that she had to use up all her pocket money to pay for the meal."

Even though it has been some time since Ed's daughter visited the stall on Dec 31, 2022, at around 9.35pm, he was reminded of it again recently because of his friend.

Ed said: "Recently, my friend bought mala, also with instant noodles and similar ingredients, from another food court and it cost only $9.80."

The Stomper noted that food prices seem to have risen across the board even though the Goods and Services Tax (GST) "has not increased to 9% yet".

He added: "Some stalls I patronise at hawker centres have also increased their prices. Some even advertise one price but sell at a different price. Their excuse is that they have no time to update the prices on their signboards."