‘Food may be essential as fuel for the body. But good food is fuel for the soul,’
– Malcom Forbes, American entrepreneur and politician.
ONE of the best things about the holy month of fasting is Ramadan bazaars. From traditional delicacies to viral desserts, it comes as no surprise that patrons would be spoilt for choices when visiting the Ramadan bazaar.
I, too, find it so tempting to buy all those delicious food but keep reminding myself not to splurge too much, as I know I would not be able to devour all of them during iftar.
The best thing about the Ramadan bazaar is that it provides a great help for working women who have to rush home in the afternoon to prepare iftar food for their families.
It is so convenient that they just stop over at any one of the Ramadan bazaars along the way without having to worry about what food to cook for the day.
When it comes to convenience, some sellers offer Cash on Delivery (COD) services to the customers to deliver their food at home.
This arrangement benefits both parties as the customers need not worry about rushing home to buy their food while the sellers are assured that they get to generate some income for the day.
However, I have recently seen several viral postings of poorly prepared food and beverage that were sold at some Ramadan bazaars. One of the most common postings are of ‘karipap angin’ or empty curry puff and ‘murtabak bakar’ or burnt murtabak.
It must be frustrating for the customers who are looking forward to feast on the delicacies during iftar but end up eating a sub-standard quality of food for which they paid quite a bit at the bazaar.
In fact, my mother was a victim too when a rojak ayam she bought turned out to have gone bad and stale, so she ended up throwing it away instead of risking a possible food poisoning.
I believe the local councils are doing a superb job in ensuring all sellers are complying with stringent food safety and hygiene protocols, however there is a need to address the quality of what they are selling.
Ensuring that sellers are offering good quality food will not only provide the customers with their money’s worth, but it could encourage good relationships that will benefit the sellers in the long run.
On another note, over-pricing food and beverage was also frequently mentioned by most people when they get their food at Ramadan bazaars.
We can understand that the price of raw materials is increasing and inadvertently the cost is being passed down to the customers.
Personally, I do not mind paying more for food if it is worth it. However, it is not the case when the food that you purchase does not match the price that you paid for.
On top of this, there have also been several postings shared on the social media platform on the deserted Ramadan bazaar.
This year, there are many new Ramadan bazaar sites around the city. I guess competition is stiff as some of the sellers are forced to close down operation following lack of customers patronising the particular bazaar.
On the flip side, it is good to see that things are finally back to normal at the Ramadan bazaar after a two-year hiatus because of the outbreak of Covid-19.
In the spirit of holy month of Ramadan, various organisations have embarked on charitable programmes such as distributing ‘bubur lambuk’ to the public and other forms of donation to the less privileged.
An act of kindness in line with the teaching of Islam which encourages Muslims to embark on charitable deeds. This act of kindness is clearly being practised in the holy month of Ramadan as we believe that the rewards one receives are greater in comparison to other times of the year.
