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拒绝调上“人情味” 的酿豆腐专卖店
It was a perfect November afternoon as I looked forward to the impending year-end travel. With my 14-year-old child whose school holidays have started, I picked up my 12-year-old from school and decided to eat lunch at Ampang Niang Tou Fu (安邦酿豆腐located at 225 East Coast Road).
Little did I know that this simple decision for my craving for niang doufu (stuffed bean curd) would end up in an ugly revelation in the next 20 minutes, of the most un-customer-centric proprietor in the Joo Chiat / East Coast vicinity that I have lived and known for the past four decades, leaving me in rude shock for the rest of the day.
The problem started when my younger boy decided he preferred chicken rice.
While I sat down in this simple, no-fuss shop with my older boy waiting for our order to be served, my younger son came in with his packed chicken rice which he bought from the coffee shop a couple of units away. He did not want to eat alone. Mindful of the feeling of most food sellers but not wanting to reject my son’s desire to be with us, I told him to eat in such a way that the table would not be dirtied. He began eating sheepishly.
Sure enough, moments later, the waitress came and told me my son was not allowed to consume his food in their shop. I asked if she wanted my son to stand on the common pavement outside to eat his lunch? When she said it was her boss' instruction, I told her to send the boss to discuss with me.
While I understand it is not appropriate for teenagers and older persons to eat food bought elsewhere, surely this not-very-customer-friendly rule could be bent a little for younger children who are best not left out of the parents’ sight. Perhaps the boss had children himself and would be more understanding from a parents’ standpoint.
I soon found out how wrong and naïve I was.
Half a minute later, a man came to my table. I suppose he was the boss. In a plain and straight-forward manner, he declared to me that my lunch order had been cancelled! He put some money into my hand and seemed very at ease that he had just displayed the most fatal behaviour considered by the majority of the Singapore service industry - being absolutely un-customer-centric and inflexible.
I was appalled to find that in this friendly neighbourhood which I know inside out, there exists such an unfriendly shop that would not allow a child to eat food bought elsewhere while his family eats what it sells. Standing in front of me was this man who held on to his ‘No Outside Food Allowed’ rule to the extent of risking the reputation of his business.
His display of pettiness and arrogance put me in great disbelief that in a competitive neighbourhood known to have many interesting eateries that attract customers from near and far, he could afford to turn away customers in such a manner based on such an insignificant issue and have no qualms whatsoever!
I told him in the face I really ‘admire’ his courage and business ethics.
Later, walking outside the shop, I could only took comfort from what a next-door shop owner said when she heard me complaining: I was not the only customer to be treated badly by the owner of this eatery. Not long ago, there was a similar incident when a child was refused the enjoyment of a packet drink brought in. The parent had a big quarrel with the boss. The boss told them to leave without collecting payment for the half-consumed food.
Perhaps the grass root leaders of Joo Chiat could pay this Ampang Niang Tou Fu shop a visit and try to sway its hostility towards customers in order to maintain a good image for this constituency! Otherwise, it is best for this shop to go extinct lest it stands in the way of a nation that is building up a healthy system of service excellence.
A copy of today’s The Business Times featuring the special report on Business Excellence laid on my table as I draft this write-up. One of the 10 key attributes of the business excellence framework is Customer-centric excellence. Ironical? Maybe.
KKP
12 Nov 2010
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拒绝调上“人情味” 的酿豆腐专卖店
It was a perfect November afternoon as I looked forward to the impending year-end travel. With my 14-year-old child whose school holidays have started, I picked up my 12-year-old from school and decided to eat lunch at Ampang Niang Tou Fu (安邦酿豆腐located at 225 East Coast Road).
Little did I know that this simple decision for my craving for niang doufu (stuffed bean curd) would end up in an ugly revelation in the next 20 minutes, of the most un-customer-centric proprietor in the Joo Chiat / East Coast vicinity that I have lived and known for the past four decades, leaving me in rude shock for the rest of the day.
The problem started when my younger boy decided he preferred chicken rice.
While I sat down in this simple, no-fuss shop with my older boy waiting for our order to be served, my younger son came in with his packed chicken rice which he bought from the coffee shop a couple of units away. He did not want to eat alone. Mindful of the feeling of most food sellers but not wanting to reject my son’s desire to be with us, I told him to eat in such a way that the table would not be dirtied. He began eating sheepishly.
Sure enough, moments later, the waitress came and told me my son was not allowed to consume his food in their shop. I asked if she wanted my son to stand on the common pavement outside to eat his lunch? When she said it was her boss' instruction, I told her to send the boss to discuss with me.
While I understand it is not appropriate for teenagers and older persons to eat food bought elsewhere, surely this not-very-customer-friendly rule could be bent a little for younger children who are best not left out of the parents’ sight. Perhaps the boss had children himself and would be more understanding from a parents’ standpoint.
I soon found out how wrong and naïve I was.
Half a minute later, a man came to my table. I suppose he was the boss. In a plain and straight-forward manner, he declared to me that my lunch order had been cancelled! He put some money into my hand and seemed very at ease that he had just displayed the most fatal behaviour considered by the majority of the Singapore service industry - being absolutely un-customer-centric and inflexible.
I was appalled to find that in this friendly neighbourhood which I know inside out, there exists such an unfriendly shop that would not allow a child to eat food bought elsewhere while his family eats what it sells. Standing in front of me was this man who held on to his ‘No Outside Food Allowed’ rule to the extent of risking the reputation of his business.
His display of pettiness and arrogance put me in great disbelief that in a competitive neighbourhood known to have many interesting eateries that attract customers from near and far, he could afford to turn away customers in such a manner based on such an insignificant issue and have no qualms whatsoever!
I told him in the face I really ‘admire’ his courage and business ethics.
Later, walking outside the shop, I could only took comfort from what a next-door shop owner said when she heard me complaining: I was not the only customer to be treated badly by the owner of this eatery. Not long ago, there was a similar incident when a child was refused the enjoyment of a packet drink brought in. The parent had a big quarrel with the boss. The boss told them to leave without collecting payment for the half-consumed food.
Perhaps the grass root leaders of Joo Chiat could pay this Ampang Niang Tou Fu shop a visit and try to sway its hostility towards customers in order to maintain a good image for this constituency! Otherwise, it is best for this shop to go extinct lest it stands in the way of a nation that is building up a healthy system of service excellence.
A copy of today’s The Business Times featuring the special report on Business Excellence laid on my table as I draft this write-up. One of the 10 key attributes of the business excellence framework is Customer-centric excellence. Ironical? Maybe.
KKP
12 Nov 2010
