'This is daylight robbery': Toast Box patrons upset with difference in menu pictures and actual items
SINGAPORE: Some Toast Box patrons have raised concerns over what they describe as a glaring mismatch between the chain's promotional images and the actual food served at outlets across Singapore, with some accusing the popular local café brand of 'daylight robbery'.
A customer named Steve told citizen journalism portal Stomp that he visited the Toast Box outlet at IMM on April 27. He ordered a S$7.10 set meal consisting of a hae bee hiam soft bun, two soft-boiled eggs, and a cup of coffee—a typical offering aimed at local breakfast lovers.
However, what arrived at his table didn't quite meet expectations.
'Look at the vast difference between the poster and the actual,' Steve said, 'This is daylight robbery.'
He added, 'Perhaps the poster suggests that the hae bee hiam is applied only to the edges and not the inside of the buns.'
Steve also noted that he reached out to Toast Box via Facebook Messenger to express his dissatisfaction but had not received a response.
The issue of alleged misleading presentation doesn't seem isolated.
Another disgruntled diner, Audrey, recounted a similar experience from an earlier visit to Toast Box's United Square outlet on April 10 at around 11:45 a.m. She ordered the braised pork rice set with a cup of coffee and a slice of cake for S$12.
'Think I just had my last meal at Toast Box,' she told Stomp.
Audrey claimed the portion of meat served was 'shockingly small' and far from what was portrayed in the promotional images. 'Food served with meat cut by 10% from the poster,' she said.
'It's truly disappointing, especially when you crave for the dish,' she added. 'Even though we all know the posters are impressions, this is just way too ridiculous.'
The complaints have sparked debate among netizens, with some echoing the sentiment and sharing their own underwhelming experiences. Others argue that marketing images are, by nature, stylised and not meant to reflect exact portions.
Toast Box has yet to issue a public statement responding to the complaints.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Independent Singapore
8 hours ago
- Independent Singapore
S'porean who took a long break from work now feels insecure about their skills and fears making another wrong move, seeks advice
Photo: Freepik (for illustration purposes only) SINGAPORE: A local Reddit user asked for some career advice on the platform, explaining that they are kind of at a loss, since they took a long break from work and now feel insecure about their skills. They are also struggling due to possible burnout, and no longer have the same energy they had when they first started working. In an Aug 15 (Friday) post on r/askSingapore, u/ OreoSpaceCat wrote that since the company they worked for failed and they were let go, they took a 'relatively long break.' At this point, they don't feel a lot of motivation to have a job just to 'survive' and still feel very tired, while at the same time feeling that they can't just do nothing. 'Previously, I pretty much took a leap of faith and tried pursuing my passion, which all sort of went downhill after the last job. And before that, I had just been trying out different jobs, but they all didn't feel like something I wanted to pursue in the long run, hence why I chose passion,' the post author wrote. And while they had once been 'super pumped about it and genuinely could see myself doing great in the long run,' they now feel that everything they're doing is wrong and that they've made a big mistake, given that they're not pursuing a stable job like others are. They now want to find even a part-time job unrelated to their studies, but feel afraid of choosing the wrong path again. 'How can I move past this hurdle or know I'm doing the right thing?' the post author asked. Fortunately, there are Reddit users who were willing to dispense advice and wisdom for the post author's situation. 'Find a job that you don't dislike, can be damn good at, and pays the bills. The keyword is 'don't dislike,' you don't have to like it, you just don't hate it,' a commenter wrote. Another encouraged the post author to build their self-confidence up again, saying that it 'comes with mastery and belief. Take small steps to build that up… allow those small consistent steps to compound. Give yourself 3 months, and you will see a huge difference. Do silly things, celebrate random stuff. Make a paperball basket shot, celebrate. Say hi to the bus driver and believe that you are a polite fella? Celebrate. And while doing all these, pick up some hard skills/ upskill. Excel skills? Sure. Learn to vibe code? Sure.' 'Having a part-time job is a good way to help you find out if you have enough interest to go full-time, unless you intend to go corporate. A lot of successful people go down several paths before landing on the right one. Don't be so hard on yourself, you are only mid-20s, it's still a long way to go!' advised a third. /TISG Read also: S'porean says he experienced culture shock when he moved from private sector to government work () => { const trigger = if ('IntersectionObserver' in window && trigger) { const observer = new IntersectionObserver((entries, observer) => { => { if ( { lazyLoader(); // You should define lazyLoader() elsewhere or inline here // Run once } }); }, { rootMargin: '800px', threshold: 0.1 }); } else { // Fallback setTimeout(lazyLoader, 3000); } });
CNA
a day ago
- CNA
Asia Tonight - Sat 16 Aug 2025
21:44 Min About the show: Top stories of the day with 'live' reports and interviews to keep you up-to-date on what's happening in one of the most dynamic regions of the world. Daily at 8pm (SIN / HK)
CNA
a day ago
- CNA
Asia Tonight - Fri 15 Aug 2025
46:59 Min About the show: Top stories of the day with 'live' reports and interviews to keep you up-to-date on what's happening in one of the most dynamic regions of the world. Daily at 8pm (SIN / HK)
