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The raging pandemic and prolonged lockdowns have caused many restaurants and businesses to close shop.
However, Thong Kee Cafe has figured out how they can adapt to stay afloat during these trying times — by using a fancy queue system!
The 33-year-old kopitiam is no stranger to the locals who flock to the restaurant for a cup of kopi and roti bakar.
They have come a long way since their first establishment in Bentong and have now branched out to Sri Hartamas, Sri Petaling, Puchong, Glenmarie, Kepong, Pandan Indah, and Sea Park.
Thong Kee’s experience and innovation has not only helped its business grow, but also survive the COVID-19 pandemic.
Image via Ryan Liew (Facebook)
Earlier this year, Thong Kee introduced a new system to organise their orders and dine-in management in order to comply with the standard operating procedures (SOPs) and ensure their customers are safe and happy
The numbering system which they refer to as the ‘TK Queue System’ is for dine-in, takeaway, and pick-up customers.
These customers are separated by their respective order lanes and numbers so that the kopitiam does not get overcrowded and orders do not get mixed up. It also helps with maintaining social distancing and adhering to the COVID-19 SOPs.
The TK Queue System requires dine-in customers to wait for an available table and they will be assigned to one with a ticket. The table will be locked for that particular customer and they should not be switching tables on their own without informing the staff for sanitary purposes and to prevent order mistakes.
Takeaway customers may walk in through the express lane and queue up for their order there. A receipt number will be provided after the order is complete, and customers should wait in the designated takeaway area to be served accordingly.
Meanwhile, the pick-up lane is for food delivery services such as GrabFood, foodpanda, and even ShopeeFood. However, Thong Kee went one step further and included their own in-house app for customers to order and pick-up without queuing up.
Image via Thong Kee Cafe 溏记海南茶室 (Facebook)
The fancy numbering system caught netizens’ attention when a Facebook user shared a photo of the queue screen in Thong Kee’s Pandan Indah branch
The post, which garnered 1,800 likes and 2,000 shares at the time of writing, received many praises from netizens.
You can find out more about Thong Kee’s new system from their website, Facebook, and Instagram.
Image via Thong Kee Cafe 溏记海南茶室 (Facebook)