14 May (Monday) was quite an exciting day for Facebook user Siew Ping whose ‘Amazing Spiderman’ story went viral.

Now, I love a good Poke bowl. Seriously, it is one of my go-to meals and I love it to the death.

And Aloha Poke is a place that I frequent.

But with food, especially raw foods like poke bowls, there is an unspoken contract that the food must be kept safe to eat and free from all contaminants. 

So when a spider was discovered in one of their bowls, it went viral immediately.

Here are 8 things you should know about the amazing spider found in Salmon bowl.

1. What are Poke Bowls?

Firstly, this is to clarify what the dish actually is to those that have not yet jumped on the poke bowl trend.

Originating from Hawaii, Poke Bowls are colourful, fresh and healthy. They are like salad bowls with raw fish (sashimi style) and sauce all tossed together!

And Poke Bowls are very, very delicious!

Let me bring your attention to one keyword in this dish: RAW.

With any type of food item dealing with raw ingredients, they must be fresher, safer and cleaner than even cooked foods because there is no heat introduced to kill off germs and bacteria.

2. The ‘Amazing Spiderman’.

Facebook user Siew Ping dubbed her experience on May 10 (Thursday) the ‘Amazing Spiderman’.

Because when she used Deliveroo to order a Standard Nalu Salmon Bowl from Aloha Poke, things got bad really quickly.

At the bottom of the bowl she found one of those…unwanted surprises that we were talking about.

A big, dead spider just chilling out there. Limp and mushy from having soaked up the dressing.

3. She handled the situation very gracefully.

In this day and age, it’s very easy to fly off the handle on social media, and post vicious, ignorant and even hate comments on practically everything, and regret a few days later.

Which is why we really have to take our hats off to how gracefully Siew Ping handled the issue.

Especially since she had every reason to get angry and spew vicious comments or remarks at Aloha Poke!

She simply stated in her Facebook post on May 11 (Friday) that this was something that happened, and that while spiders may not be as bad as other rodents or insects, Aloha Poke should be extra vigilant especially since their business involves handling and serving raw food!

4. Aloha Poke’s Response

Again, in a world where it’s easy to shift blame and make excuses, and to let anger take over all decisions, we must also commend Aloha Poke for dealing with the situation very professionally and swiftly.

It turns out that their salad supplier had received similar feedback.

They issued an immediate apology and have since closed down their Deliveroo Editions kitchen at Katong for inspection by the NEA.

They will also be sitting down with their business partners to discuss operational and food handling procedures.

In addition, the co-founder even spoke to Siew Ping’s husband and apologize, and to inform them if Siew Ping or anyone who has eaten the salad fall sick over the next few days.

Oh yes, of course, Siew Ping was fully refunded as well as given $20 Aloha Poke credits (which she has said she won’t be using – fully understandable since it can be a traumatic incident).

5. Siew Ping’s closing remarks

Instead of escalating the matter (or threatening to sue), Siew Ping put to rest this incident in a very calm, level-headed manner.

She placed responsibility on the F&B Point-of-Sale as they are directly handling the food. She just wants to trust the people giving her her order that she has paid for.

Whatever food hygiene, contamination and cleanliness issues, she wants to trust that these individuals will be careful and bring up concerns to the relevant people behind the scenes, without the consumer having to worry.

She also very graciously acknowledged that this seems like a very isolated incident which obviously needs looking in to.

She closes her statement on her Facebook page by saying that this matter can officially be put to bed!

6. It’s a unique store

Now, this is a tad confusing so let me explain.

This happened in a Deliveroo kitchen called Deliveroo Editions. It’s like a kitchen catered for F&B outlets to cook and deliver their food to people near Katong (since they might not have a restaurant there).

In other words, you can’t entirely say that the kitchen belongs to Aloha Poke.

But of course, Aloha Poke being the professional business is still taking full responsibility.

By the way, it has an “A” rating for cleanliness.

 

7. New Store!

Aloha Poke has recently opened two new outlets – one at Westgate and the other at Takashimaya for all your Poke Bowl needs.

These two outlets have a 10% discount until the end of the month, so have a try!

Like we said, their kitchens and operations will be cleaner and safer than they have ever been!

8. A Singaporean Success Story

Now, this may be another point in this article that you may think has nothing to do with the incident.

But bear with me!

Aloha Poke was founded by four Singaporeans and has become quite the success story, pulling in revenues of $3.8 million in 2017.

They have even opened an outlet in Perth, Australia recently.

They have proved themselves to be capable, responsible and above all, accountable to their customers and this is something we should not take for granted in a world that is very profit-driven!

They have also been very eloquent and swift in their professional handling of one of their first food issues since they opened in 2015.

This incident should not have happened.

But it did.

And the people behind the business have dealt with it commendably (so has the Siew Ping).

This is how the Internet should be, no?

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