Demand for tingkat services has heated up in recent months and reached its peak during the circuit breaker period, when most of Singapore stayed home.

Providers of meal delivery services said they saw up to a 100 per cent increase in requests for tingkat meals, with demand surging just before April as Singapore entered the circuit breaker.

Kim Paradise managing director Clement Tiang said that before the Covid-19 pandemic, it used to provide daily tingkat meals to about 5,000 people, or about 2,500 households.

But when the circuit breaker started, this jumped to 10,000 people daily in just two weeks.

"The logistics became so intense that we had to rent more vehicles to do deliveries," said Mr Tiang, 46, adding that while they had prepared for a surge, the increase went beyond expectations.

Kim Paradise, one of the largest tingkat providers in Singapore, has been in the industry for more than two decades.

Mr Tiang said: "We even had to reject some orders because it was hitting 11,000 meals at one point."

For smaller player FattyDaddyFattyMummy, inquiries for its tingkat services started coming in around February, when work-from-home plans began kicking in.

"When the circuit breaker came in April, orders went up and increased by about 30 per cent in May," said the catering firm's director, Ms Fion Lim, 39.

Before the pandemic, it served about 500 tingkat meals daily. When Covid-19 hit, this reached almost 750 meals, said Ms Lim.

"We had to reject orders because we had reached the maximum capacity, and we didn't have enough manpower.

"If we had taken in the extra orders, it would compromise the quality of our food and service," said Ms Lim.

She employs about 12 people, but safe distancing restrictions in the kitchen based in Woodlands made it hard to hire more workers.

FEEDING THE DEMAND

Tingkat catering, which Kim Paradise touts as an option for households which want "proper and home-cooked" meals, usually appeals to working couples, the elderly and families with young children, said Mr Tiang.

But as of late, new customers have come on board, including front-line staff and those who work from home. "We have existing customers who introduce family or friends to us," said Mr Tiang.

More people staying home during the circuit breaker period played a big part in the rise in tingkat orders, said those in the industry.

Mr Tiang said: "If people do not cook, one of the options is to order tingkat. Most people do not want to eat hawker food or order delivery from restaurants every day."

Ms Lim also said some families chose to order tingkat as staying home all day, every day, and having to prepare all three meals proved to be too "overwhelming" for them.

For FattyDaddyFattyMummy, which has been in the industry for four years, there was a significant increase in orders for its Love, Tingkat! menu, which offers healthier options.

"We believe consumers are more interested in eating healthy now as they see it as one of the ways to prevent illness," said Ms Lim.

In recent weeks, however, demand for tingkat has dropped, as more people return to the workplace and venture out to dine at hawker centres and eateries.

Ms Lim said demand has dipped to about 600 orders a day.

For Kim Paradise, daily orders have gone down to about 6,000 meals, said Mr Tiang.

STILL FEELING THE HEAT

Despite more orders for tingkat meals, business has not necessarily been booming for tingkat operators, who often have a catering and buffet arm.

With limits on social and business gatherings still in place, the demand for mass catering and buffets is currently close to zero, said both tingkat providers.

Mr Tiang said bookings for catering are down almost 90 per cent for his company, and the local catering industry, which overall raked in more than $400 million per year, has taken a hit.

"The buffet sector makes up such a big part of industry sales. While our tingkat side is doing well, it doesn't make up for the losses in the buffet sector," he said.

Similarly, while FattyDaddyFattyMummy has been serving up more tingkat meals, it has been all quiet on the buffet front.

"There is zero business, even though the seventh month period is usually the best time for catering businesses," said Ms Lim.

Tingkat orders make up about 70 per cent of her business, and the remaining 30 per cent has been bolstered by meal orders for a small foreign workers dormitory.

"When the dorm order ends, that is when the real battle starts because no buffet orders are coming in and who knows when they will resume," she said.