Singapore Restaurant closes for good amid COVID-19 crisis

The Singapore Restaurant & Lounge, a restaurant that hundreds used to flock to on the weekends, closed its doors last month after nearly 25 years on Whalon Street.

Dirk Kiefer, a food consultant hired by the restaurant, said the COVID-19 crisis had a major impact on the business and its 78year-old owner Wallace Chung.

“He doesn’t have any options left,” Kiefer said. “We tried to reopen to do take-out, but because of the backlash to both the Chinese community and a fear of workers becoming infected we just couldn’t operate.”

Kiefer, speaking on behalf of Chung, said there were several factors leading to the closure, but nothing was more detrimental than the pandemic and the fear of eating at Asian restaurants.

On top of rising costs and the health risks for employees, the decision was made to move on from the business.

The restaurant, which opened in 1995, served dozens of typical Chinese-American dishes, operated a full bar, and had live music performed most weekends.

Kiefer described the Singapore Restaurant as a historic landmark in the city that would often have about 300 customers on its busiest nights.

With the restaurant’s closure, Kiefer hopes it won’t be forgotten by residents.

“People from all over would tell me about Singapore,” he said. “This landmark provided many lasting memories to families and

local patrons. There are so many memories and history inside.”

Kiefer, who has worked with Singapore since 2017, said Chung is heartbroken that he has to close the restaurant.

“The restaurant was his baby,” he said. “Wally is a beloved pillar of the community and that place was a destination in this city.”

Kiefer also cited ongoing issues with the city’s Board of Health and Geronimo Commercial Properties, which owns the building, when discussing the reasons for closing.

The next step is to sell the content of the restaurant, he said, which will be available to the public during the week from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Kiefer said he recently set up a GoFundMe page for Chung after he lost everything due to the pandemic. Individuals looking to donate can go to gofundme.com/f/singaporerestaurant.

SENTINEL & ENTERPRISE FILE PHOTO After nearly 25 year, Fitchburg's Singapore Restaurant & Lounge is closing, primarily because of the loss of revenues associated to the state's lockdown because of the pandemic. In this file photo from 2017, its owner Wallace Chung stands in the dining area at the restaurant.