Hawkers at Bukit Merah food centre press on amid TB fallout

Business remains slow for stall owners who say they are facing toughest decline yet

After months of being shuttered when one owner suffered an aneurysm, western food stall Wow Wow West reopened on Jan 16 at ABC Brickworks Market and Food Centre.

However, the festive welcome back the stall was hoping for was dampened by the lasting effects of the mandatory tuberculosis (TB) screening in Jalan Bukit Merah, which has turned many customers away from the food centre.

More than 2,000 people signed up for TB screening in Jalan Bukit Merah, after 10 new cases were detected there.

Screening was mandatory for residents and workers at Blocks 1 and 3 in Jalan Bukit Merah, ABC Brickworks Market and Food Centre, and Thong Kheng Seniors Activity Centre @ Queenstown as their potential risk of exposure was higher.

While it was once hard to even get a seat among the sea of people at the popular food centre, there are now many empty tables during lunch and dinner.

Ms Chris Lim, a chef at Wow Wow West, told The Sunday Times that a queue would usually form outside the store at 2pm, with wait times lasting 30 to 45 minutes.

After news of the TB screening broke, business dropped by 30 per cent to 40 per cent, and 90 per cent of orders on the day of its longawaited reopening were for takeaway.

Mr Lachron Chan, at char siew rice stall Fatty Cheong, said queues of more than 20 people have shrunk to only three or four at a time. The shop's daily sale of 80kg to 100kg of char siew by 6pm has dropped to 40kg to 50kg.

Ms Lim and Mr Chan are worried the dip in business, which started on Jan 5 when news of the TB screening broke, will stretch past January. Mr Chan hopes the situation will improve by Chinese New Year, when customers usually order large quantities of char siew and roast duck for their celebrations.

While this is not the first time the hawkers have faced a dip in business, this has been the toughest, they said.