Using live guppies as amusement at Geylang Prawn Fishing Restaurant (above) is socially irresponsible, says a reader. -- ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE
Iam writing to express my concern over the use of live guppies as amusement for children at Geylang Prawn Fishing Restaurant (Out With Racquets, In With Rods, LifeStyle, Nov 22).
Just as the use of dogs or cats forpublic entertainment with ropes or nets in a commercial setting would unlikely be welcomed by the public, I hope guppies would be given the same consideration.
There is no justification for the continued use of live animals for entertainment.
I hope the owners of Geylang Prawn Fishing Restaurant will exercise some social responsibility and stop the cruel practice.
Veronica Lim Lay Koon
Out with racquets, in with rods
A new 24-hour indoor prawn fishing eatery is calling the Singapore Badminton Hall home
Tan Yi Hui, Straits Times 22 Nov 09;
From the outside, the Singapore Badminton Hall in Guillemard Road looks like it always has. But inside, it is a different story: Prawns with big heads have taken up residence.
Where people once practised their drop shots and smashes, the Geylang Prawn Fishing Restaurant sprang up last month.
Half the old cavernous sports hall has been converted into a 24-hour prawn fishing haven, owned by Ms Amelia Lua and her husband David Ang, both 45.
They were previously in the tourism retail industry.
The other half is a kid's carnival ground with different owners.
There are about 10 prawn-fishing spots in Singapore, in such areas as Punggol and Sin Ming, but Ms Lua says theirs is the only indoor one.
'My husband and I both love prawn fishing and we used to go to a farm in Pasir Ris,' she says. 'But sometimes it rains and our trip gets ruined.
'You don't have to worry about the weather with an indoor facility.'
Indoor prawn-fishing is not a new concept, however.
In 1994, The Straits Times reported on a now defunct, air-conditioned Golden Pond Taiwan Prawn Fishing Foodcourt at the former Apollo Centre in Havelock Road.
But Ms Lua is confident about her $1-million investment. She says the place sees up to 100 customers a day, with the figure doubling on weekends.
Patrons are a mix of young and old, and she has already secured a corporate booking for 200 people on Christmas Eve.
Prices start at $15 a person for one hour and go up to $30 for three hours. Fishing rods and bait are provided and then it is up to the prawn-fisher's luck or skill.
Six ponds, each measuring 5m by 8m, have been dug into the existing floor and are packed with prawns ranging in length from 10cm to 20cm.
But customers cannot see the crustaceans as the water has been darkened with food dye. Ms Lua says: 'This is to prevent people from 'cheating'. If they can see the prawns, everyone will crowd around the part where there are more of them.'
The prawns on offer are a freshwater species commonly known as 'big-head prawns' from Malaysia.
Along the terraces, where badminton fans used to cheer on players, are tanks with more prawns to replace those that people catch.
There are also dining tables where guests sit at and relax, have a beer or sink their teeth into their catch.
Diners can barbecue their prawns for free at pits outside the hall or send them to the kitchen where, for another $10 or so, the catch is turned into dishes such as black-pepper and chilli prawns.
A sheltered beer garden at the back sits up to 200 people. Besides prawns, other menu items include beverages, western food and snacks such as otah and satay.
When LifeStyle visited last Wednesday night, the place started filling up at about 9pm with people ranging from seniors to families with kids.
Besides prawns, entertainment for the young ones include small tanks with guppies to catch.
Regulars such as Mr Alan Tian, 40, who is self-employed, likes the indoor concept so much that he visits four times a week, and fishes for up to three hours each time.
He adds: 'There is ample parking space and this place's prawns are bigger than at other places. I can catch up to 2kg worth of prawns in one night.
'Furthermore, this is an indoor area, so smoking is prohibited. In other places, people smoke while they fish and I don't like being surrounded by the smoke.'
Prawn fishing the new sport at Badminton Hall
Shuli Sudderuddin, Straits Times 29 Nov 09;
It can take in 2,800 spectators and has 14 courts, but the former Singapore Badminton Hall's new game is prawn fishing and eating.
A 24-hour restaurant, complete with the chance to reel in prawns for your dinner, opened last month in the iconic venue which is now called Guillemard Village.
The change of service prompted one reader to write to The Sunday Times. Ms Theresa Tan, 42, who is self-employed, is upset that the hall - built in 1952 - is no longer in play as a sports centre.
'The courts are all in place already. It can possibly be used for other indoor sports like sepak takraw, gymnastics or netball training. In fact, it can even be used for community or grassroots events and functions when necessary,' she wrote in an e-mail.
A 30-year lease to use the place, held by the Singapore Sports Council (SSC), ran out last year.
The cost of renewing the lease for both the former Singapore Badminton Association building (now a foodcourt and health spa) and hall was high, said Ms Rhonda Koh, director of the integrated marketing communications division of the SSC.
After careful consideration, the SSC and SBA felt that the money could be better spent to improve the sport here, she added. The SBA is now renting space at the Singapore Sports School in Woodlands.
SBA's chief executive Edwin Pang said the school is a conducive training ground - it has 12 courts - but the national players have to share facilities with the school's own students. It is a situation which does not score high marks with national shuttler Kendrick Lee, 25.
'I grew up playing at the Singapore Badminton Hall and I feel quite sad that we had to move,' he said. 'While we had the courts to ourselves in the hall, in the Sports School, sometimes, I feel like we don't get enough time on the courts.'
The SBA - which is slated to have a new badminton hall at the upcoming Sports Hub in Kallang - is also losing out in terms of revenue.
Said Mr Pang: 'We used to get income from the restaurant and spa that rented the space at the Singapore Badminton Hall. That helped us pay our professional players and coaches, and fund our organisation and participation in tournaments.'
The SBA now has to net more sponsors for certain competitions, like the Li-Ming Singapore International Series.
Mr Pang noted that the old hall had shock-absorbent flooring - a plus for players - and a seating gallery to go with competitions.
Another problem has been lobbed into the SBA court. It has to vacate its Sports School facilities during the Youth Olympic Games next year.
The SSC is helping to find a solution, said Mr Pang of the disruption which will last about three months.
Meanwhile, could sports make a return to the hall in Guillemard?
The Singapore Land Authority (SLA), which owns the property, said it 'will consult with the planning authority and other relevant agencies' when Guillemard Village's tenancy ends.
The SLA said the approved uses are as offices, food and beverage outlets, preschools and language centres as well as for sports and recreation.
But some sports will soon take place in the Guillemard site.
The management of Guillemard Village said it is holding Chinese martial arts classes for children during the year-end school holidays.