Netizen calls out Tiong Bahru hawker for leaving cooked chicken overnight, but turns out to be wrong

The New Paper
Dec 27, 2023

Food left in the open does not keep well, especially in our climate.

So it is no surprise that netizen Terry Leong felt horrified when he saw what he thought were cooked chickens left hanging overnight in a hawker centre kitchen.

Mr Leong on Dec 20 shared in Facebook group Complaint Singapore that he saw a hawker at Tiong Bahru Market & Food Centre close his stall with cooked chicken hanging in the cooking area.

"I noticed something hanging at the back of the shop. When I walked closer, I saw cooked chicken hanging under the exhaust. They had been hanging there since afternoon," he wrote. 

Netizens who saw his post shared his concern and urged him to file a complaint with the relevant authorities.

However, hawker Wang told 8world that the hanging chickens were mere plastic replicas she bought while she was out shopping one day.

Ms Wang said she uses the plastic chickens as props and to let customers know that the stall uses steamed chicken in the curry chicken noodle.

"I saw these beautiful chickens while I was out shopping, so I bought a few to put in the stall," she explained, adding that it is impossible for hawkers to leave cooked chicken hanging in a stall overnight without the food going bad.

"My chickens are sold out every day. I don't sell chicken that has been kept overnight. I hope this does not cause a misunderstanding with my customers."