They said the price of Ramadan buffets had to be increased slightly because of rising costs and higher prices of raw materials.
Intan Tantiyana Puteri Jaafar of the World Trade Centre Kuala Lumpur said the sale of Ramadan buffet packages was very encouraging thus far, despite a RM10 increase in price.
“Demand for Ramadan buffets is still high, for example for the ‘early bird’ vouchers alone, half of the RM5,000 vouchers provided are already sold, and we expect more people to make reservations after the first week of fasting,” Intan, who is a marketing communications director, told Bernama.
“Last year, hall bookings were always full even during the second and third weeks of fasting with the strict (standard operating) procedures in place and a high number of Covid-19 cases,” she said.
Ramadan buffet prices are believed to have gone up by 15%-20% following a rise in the price of raw materials and operating costs.
Intan said the easing of restrictions in the transition to the endemic phase of the outbreak had allowed more companies to book Ramadan buffets.
A restaurant boss, Azuan Omar, said that despite the slight price increase, bookings were at 50% to 60% for some days during the fasting month, while another restaurant spokesperson, Nurul Azni Jalilah, said many Ramadan buffet orders came in the form of sponsorship for orphans to break their fast.
Busy time at bazaars
As Muslims prepare to begin the fasting month, crowds thronged markets, bazaars and shopping centres as customers made final preparations to usher in the holy month.
Weekend shoppers mostly sought basic necessities, said traders.
In Putrajaya, people thronged the Precinct 8 wet market from as early as 8am.
There was also a huge crowd at the Chow Kit Market in Kuala Lumpur, causing traffic congestion in Jalan Pahang, Jalan Raja Alang and Jalan Raja Bot before traffic police stepped in.
In Selangor, the Section 6 market in Shah Alam was busy from as early as 4.30am.
In Seremban, Negeri Sembilan, the ‘mantai’ tradition for Ramadan and Aidilfitri brought long lines of market customers buying beef from early in the morning.
A butcher Fadhil Asnawi Zaaidin, 30, said he provided seven cows for ‘mantai’ at the Ampangan Market.
In Melaka, a housewife, Nor Azizah Hassan, 54, suggested that the government hold market carnivals more often, especially during Ramadan to help the people obtain items at a cheaper price.
A butcher in Kota Bharu, Zakaria Awang, 69, said he had slaughtered 10 cows since 3am to meet the demand.
In Pahang, Nor Hafsah Omar and her husband Syafik Ab Rahman had their hands full to keep up with bookings for ‘cincau’ (grass jelly) from customers.
The couple said they prepared 400 packets of cincau and 300 bottles of cincau drinks for sale.