If there’s one thing all Singaporeans know, it’s that food at tourist attractions is expensive.
And I mean “our-Asian-mothers-wouldn’t-pay-for-it” expensive.
However, I’m sure most of us probably wouldn’t expect a price tag of almost $30 just for a plate of biryani.
But that’s exactly what happened to a DJ in Singapore, as he had to fork out $29 for a plate of biryani at Jurassic Nest, the new dinosaur-themed food court at Gardens by the Bay.
Well, maybe that’s why dinosaurs are extinct.
Here’s what happened and what netizens have to say about the seemingly outrageous price tag.
DJ Paid $29 for “Biryani With Three Pieces of Mutton”
Jerald Justin Ko, the DJ, took to TikTok yesterday (2 January) to share his experience.
Ko, who is a DJ from Power 98, shared that he had purchased the plate of biryani from Bismillah Biryani, a stall at Jurassic Nest.
For those who don’t know, Bismillah Biryani is a chain that offers healthier but still delicious biryani and previously earned a Michelin Bib Gourmand rating in 2016. It has also been listed in the Michelin Bib Gourmand multiple times over the past few years.
The chain also has other stores at Dunlop Street, Shenton Way and UTown at the National University of Singapore (NUS)
In his video, Ko, 35, showed the plate of biryani he bought, which came with “three pieces of mutton” and some potato.
“Make a guess, biryani with three pieces of lamb… how much?” he said in the video before revealing the receipt of his purchase.
The receipt listed his order as a plate of boneless mutton biryani, and it cost $29.
He also showed a glimpse of the stall’s appearance in his video.
“Got a shock,” he added in his caption.
Ordered “Wrongly”, Rice Was “OK” and Mutton Was “Tough”
When responding to comments left on his TikTok video, Ko also clarified that he did not think that the biryani would be so expensive at first.
In particular, he explained that the price he saw on the menu was $22, but his meal ended up costing $29 as he asked for boneless mutton.
He also reviewed the dish; he said that the “rice was ok but lamb was tough”.
Which I’m sure doesn’t sound like a biryani worth $29 for most of us.
However, he added that he might head to the chain’s main outlet at Dunlop Street to compare how the same dish tastes at two different outlets.
Netizens’ Opinions
And it seems like Ko isn’t the only one who found his meal too expensive.
After uploading his video to TikTok, it went viral, and many netizens began leaving comments on his video.
So far, his video has garnered 123,300 views, 2524 likes and 518 comments.
Many netizens who left comments on his video also expressed that the biryani was way too expensive in their opinions, and some even said that the dish was a “ripoff”.
“The most I would pay for biryani is $10,” one user wrote.
On the other hand, several commenters also brought up the recent Goods and Services Tax (GST) hike, which saw the GST in Singapore increase from 7% to 8%.
Regarding the price, one TikTok user expressed that they would be willing to pay $29 for food at a food court, but would only do so if they were given “$29 worth of food, not $5 worth of food for $29”.
Ko replied in a light-hearted manner by saying that the “extra cost” was for him to “enjoy” the dinosaur show at the location.
One commenter even joked that the mutton used in the dish was “wagyu mutton”.
Different Prices at Different Outlets
Apart from the price point, another topic of discussion was the stall’s location.
As we all know, Gardens by the Bay is a tourist attraction, and as one commenter put it, Ko paid a “tourist price” for his plate of biryani.
And it seems like the “tourist price” is true, for the dish costs less at their other outlets.
A quick look at the menus available on Bismillah Biryani’s website will show that the boneless mutton biryani with potato dish costs $22.50 at their Dunlop Steet and Shenton Way stores.
And it’s even cheaper at the NUS UTown Stephen Riady Centre outlet, for the dish costs $20 there.
But yes, it costs $29 at their stall in Jurassic Nest.
Biryani’s Not the Only Expensive Item On the Menu
Other eagle-eyed netizens also pointed out something else indicated in the receipt: Two soft drinks that cost $7.
“The soft drink got gold leaves in it?” one user asked.
Another user pointed out that he could have bought a plate of mutton biryani elsewhere with the amount of money that he paid for his drinks.
Similar Incident Where Bedok Stall Charged Customer $24 for Nasi Padang
And it seems like Ko isn’t the only one who has forked out a hefty sum for food in recent weeks.
Recently, a customer of a nasi padang stall at Bedok Food Centre posted in the Complaint Singapore Facebook group after being charged $24 for nasi padang.
The customer had ordered fish roe, tofu and sambal goreng. The three items cost $20, $2 and $2 respectively.
Apparently, the stallholder had told the customer that the fish roe would be expensive.
However, the customer did not expect to be charged $20 for it.
Featured Image: TikTok (@jksg98)