Chinatown resident 'protests' against cooking fumes from nearby restaurant

What's that smell? 

Frustrated about the cooking fumes outside her flat, a woman living in Block 533 Upper Cross Street decided to express her disdain by displaying a message across her windows. 

"NEA SFA HDB JBTC (local authorities) bullying the residents... Cooking fumes every day," she wrote in Chinese. 

Although she refused to speak to Shin Min Daily News, her neighbours told reporters the middle-aged woman lived alone.

Wang, the woman's next-door neighbour, told the Chinese daily that he was also affected by the cooking fumes, adding that they were especially strong around lunch and dinner time. 

The 62-year-old retiree pointed out that the exhaust pipe from the restaurant extended up to the fourth floor, hence affecting the residents living in the block.

Shin Min also spoke to other residents and shop owners in the area, but they appeared to be more tolerant of the odour. 

"I have to open the windows to dissipate the smell, it usually takes about half an hour," said another resident.

The boss of a nearby store told Shin Min that the fumes would appear at around 6pm every day. However, the 33-year-old felt that the smell was bearable. 

According to a resident who declined to be named, the authorities visited the woman about two months ago but did not receive a response from her.

Restaurant installed fume extractors 

The person-in-charge at the restaurant, Chen, told Shin Min they've not received any complaints from their customers or owners of the neighbouring shops. 

"I believe the authorities have received complaints [about the cooking fumes] 

"They've sent someone to conduct checks before, and requested that we reduce the amount of fumes we emit, so we've installed extractors in May." 

The restaurant also cleans its exhaust pipes every three months.

Despite efforts to reduce the inconvenience to residents, Chen said that cooking fumes were inevitable due to the nature of their business, and hence asked for the residents' understanding and forgiveness. 

Chen said she wasn't aware of the resident and her 'poster', but urged residents to give their feedback to the restaurant directly so that they can investigate and resolve the issue. 

Stink left others fuming

Elsewhere, other people said they had to put up with the unsavoury smells drifting into their homes.

In August, some residents in Hougang took issue with a stinky tofu stall at a night bazaar. 

A woman surnamed Yang, who lived about 300m away from the bazaar, told Shin Min then that the smell drifted into her living room and kitchen. 

One of Yang's neighbours "thought it was the smell of a carcass". 

Despite the complaints from residents, the organiser of the bazaar Wayne Lim stood by the decision to include the stinky tofu stall as it added to the diversity of dishes at the bazaar. 

"When you go to night markets in Taiwan, there's always stinky tofu. We want to have it so that those who can't go overseas can still visit our night bazaar and enjoy the dish," Lin told AsiaOne.

"Furthermore, it's not easy to find stinky tofu in Singapore". 

ALSO READ: 'Cooking smell' probe in Yishun flat: HDB finds no wrongdoing after complaint over alleged illegal food catering

claudiatan@asiaone.com