Chicken rice hawker chain launches 1-for-1 promo to celebrate Lawrence Wong's inauguration

The hawker chain known for its "1-for-1" and "seniors eat free" deals is back with yet another promotion, putting its own twist on celebrating incoming Prime Minister Lawrence Wong's inauguration on May 15.

In a Facebook post on Thursday (May 8) OK Chicken Rice announced that it will be running a "triple blessing" event at its new Eunos and Kallang outlets, which open on the same day.

All customers who dine in on the special day can get two meals for the price of one, or 50 per cent off their a la carte bill if they spend over $15, it says.

Take your pick from a variety of rice and noodle dishes which can range from $4.50 for chicken cutlet rice or noodles, to $20 for half a chicken.

In addition to the 1-for-1 deal, seniors above 60 can eat for free from 5pm to 8pm.

Speaking to AsiaOne, 44-year-old Daniel Tan, owner of OK Chicken Rice and Humfull Prawn Laksa, said: "[This way] they can watch the inauguration together at our two new stalls." The swearing-in ceremony will take place at 8pm on May 15.

Explaining that it is common for the chain to do community events when it opens new outlets, Daniel said he decided to run a "combined promotion" as the day of his outlets' opening coincided with the swearing-in ceremony.

"It's not our usual style to use big names to draw attention — but we have hopes and dreams for the new government, represented by Lawrence Wong," Daniel added.

The hawker chain regularly gives out free food to seniors, with the most recent instance being on Labour Day.

Back in 2020, the Ang Mo Kio outlet of the chain garnered media attention for delivering over 10,000 free meals to hospital staff during the Circuit Breaker, operating at a loss during the pandemic.

Although the stall had called for donations of $4 from the public for one packet of chicken rice, it also matched the donated amount and absorbed any remaining costs.

Just last year, Daniel also launched a campaign to help smokers kick the habit by giving out free vouchers for both of his hawker chains to those who indicate their commitment to quit smoking.

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bhavya.rawat@asiaone.com