Some ready to eat out in larger groups, but others play it safe

When she heard that larger gatherings would be allowed from yesterday, Mrs Veronica Ong quickly made plans to eat out with her family and friends.

The last time the 72-year-old ate in a restaurant with a group of more than five people at the same table was about a year ago, and she was afraid curbs may be reintroduced.

"I hope the Government can give us some bonding time with our families and friends," said Mrs Ong, who had dinner at TungLok Signatures in Clarke Quay last night with nine other people, including family members and some friends.

The retiree said: "Eating at home is different, the ambience is different. It's great to eat out at the same table together. When you split tables, it is hard to enjoy the food because you have to order a small portion and you have to order the same dishes for each table."

From yesterday, groups of up to 10 fully vaccinated people are allowed to dine at food and beverage establishments, including hawker centres and coffee shops, where vaccination-differentiated safe management measures checks have been implemented.

Operators that do not have such checks can seat smaller groups of up to five fully vaccinated people, but random spot checks will be conducted to ensure that people are abiding by the rules.

The Straits Times checked out eateries in Paya Lebar, Eunos, Ang Mo Kio, Bishan and the Central Business District at lunch time, and found that 90 per cent of the diners were in groups of five or smaller.

Those in larger groups of more than five were mainly colleagues or family members.

Ms Irene Wong, who is in her 50s, was having lunch at shopping mall Paya Lebar Quarter with two friends.

She said she did not intend to make plans for outings in larger groups for now, preferring to play it safe instead. "We're still very conscious as the virus is still circulating within my family."

The Covid-19 week-on-week infection ratio remained below one for the 28th day at 0.69, the Ministry of Health said yesterday.

But the number of daily cases in Singapore and those hospitalised had risen compared with Monday. Four deaths were also reported.

Ms Nancy Teresa Ann, 38, who works in the healthcare sector, said that as much as she wanted to, she was hesitant to take off her mask outdoors or to dine out in groups of more than five people.

"With the Omicron variant still present and cases still being fairly high, I'd like to still follow the same rules that were set in place before," added Ms Ann.

When Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced the easing of rules on March 24, he said that with more interactions, there may be another wave of cases. Variants could also emerge. Should the situation change, Singapore may have to tighten restrictions again.

Meanwhile, restaurants here say they have received bookings for larger groups on the first day of the relaxed rules.

Seafood restaurant HolyCrab at Arcade @ Capitol saw two large groups last night - one of 10 people and the other with nine.

One of its VIP rooms, which had been used as a temporary storage space, has also been cleared and cleaned to welcome larger groups, said the chef and director of the restaurant, Mr Elton Seah.

"We are definitely excited. But then again, there's a little bit of anxiety on the demand, like whether my staff can get used to serving groups of 10 people," he said, adding that the restaurant was about half full last night.

He will be bringing in part-timers on weekends, and is also looking to hire more people.

While restaurants are elated at the new measures, they said removing the 1m safe distancing between dining groups would be an added boost.

 • Additional reporting by Shermaine Ang, Fatimah Mujibah, John Elijah Gan, Cheong Chee Foong