GrabFood doubts authenticity of clip that shows non-halal restaurant appearing in halal search results

Grab remains dubious about a viral clip that showcases a supposed glitch which makes a non-halal restaurant appear when searching for halal options on its food delivery feature.

The video itself was shared on the All Singapore Stuff Facebook page last Thursday — a screen recording of a GrabFood user thumbing through the results of halal options in the Punggol and Sengkang vicinity. The video shows that the Punggol branch of Rise & Grind Coffee Co. appears as one of the halal picks, despite the cafe selling decidedly haram (forbidden) entrées. 

The caption that accompanies the “reader-contributed” video warns the Muslim community to be alert when ordering food through food delivery apps here. Though the post doesn’t name GrabFood outright, the recording unmistakably shows the app’s interface. 

“Remember to check the menu thoroughly first as due to some glitch found in the app, some non-halal merchant is included in the halal category when a manual search is done as seen below,” the post noted. 

Insubstantial 

It is unclear how the alleged user managed to get that result (or if it even is genuine), but our own attempts on the app failed to elicit the same outcome. 

When queried by AsiaOne, Grab was also doubtful of the clip. A Grab spokesperson assured that Rise & Grind Coffee Co. was not tagged as halal, and that their attempts to replicate the result also failed. 
 
“There were also no known app glitches, so we are unsure of the authenticity of the video,” wrote a Grab spokesperson. 

The unverified assumption about a GrabFood “glitch” takes on an even more sensitive aspect, considering that it’s the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, a period when Muslims are extra devout and careful about their diet. 

Regardless, most if not all Muslim customers would be mindful enough to not make the mistake of ordering non-halal food — they wouldn’t pick an option from any restaurant that has pork on its menu. 

ilyas@asiaone.com