Gong Cha Allowed To Open 3 of Its Outlets On May 23

UPDATE (May 23, 2.40am): Gong Cha has announced via a social media post that they will only offer delivery service via GrabFood, Foodpanda and Deliveroo at their three dessert outlets tomorrow. It explains that takeaway service was removed to “support CB measures and ensure safety to [sic] all our customers”. It also urges: “Please DO NOT make a trip down to the stores directly. We sincerely apologise if this caused [sic] any inconvenience to you [sad face emoji]”. Oh well.

Good news for Gong Cha fans — the popular bubble tea chain has been given the green light to open three of its outlets from 10am tomorrow (May 23) for takeaway and delivery orders. A Gong Cha rep tells 8days.sg that the branches reopening are located at Causeway Point, Nex and Paya Lebar Quarter. Gong Cha currently runs 32 outlets in Singapore.

While the circuit breaker will be eased in phases from June 1, bubble tea shops are excluded from the list of businesses approved to reopen for walk-in customers. The BBT chains have been asked to close since the announcement of the circuit breaker extension on April 21, as shops selling predominantly beverages are not allowed to operate while CB is going on.

According to Gong Cha's rep, the brand had gotten approval from Enterprise Singapore to reopen the three particular outlets as they also serve desserts like soufflé pancakes and soft serve ice cream. The same menu of drinks and desserts will be offered at the three shops. But you should expect a 20-minute wait at the shop if you order the soufflé pancakes, as they are made a la minute.

As usual, the rule of safe distancing applies, and members of the public should take care to maintain sufficient distance and wear a mask when visiting the outlets. Gong Cha will be stationing safety ambassadors at the stores to assist with the crowd management, in view of the current CB measures . It adds that it “reserves the rights to stop orders if the queue becomes unsafe”.

Or use this ‘hack’ to skip the queue: pre-order your BBT via Gong Cha's app. You can customise your desired sugar level and toppings, select a preferred collection time for your order and make contactless payment via PayLah. Unfortunately you can't order soufflé pancakes via the app, as the rep explains the three dessert stores are Gong Cha's latest outlets, and their menus are not available on the app yet.

Alternatively, you can also order Gong Cha's BBT via their partnerships with Wolf Burgers, Chen’s Mapo Tofu, Sushi Express, Collin‘s Grille, Express by Chatterbox and Professor Brawn Cafe at Enabling Village in Redhill.

Details for the three Gong Cha outlets reopening tomorrow:

- #B1-44 Nex, 23 Serangoon Central, S556083
- #B2-15 PLQ Mall, 10 Paya Lebar Rd, S409057
- #02-K10 Causeway Point, 1 Woodlands Sq, S738099

Open daily 10am-10pm.

Information accurate at press time.

PHOTOS: AIK CHEN/ GONG CHA