MIXED RESPONSE TO NEW ROTI CANAI, TEH TARIK PRICES
KOTA KINABALU:
There have been mixed reactions from restaurant operators and patrons in the major towns of the State on the new prices of roti canai and teh tarik announced by the Sabah Indian Muslim Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
A random survey by The Borneo Post on Indian restaurants in the City found that some had reduced the prices while others were charging the old price.
A Indian restaurant operator in Api-api area said he was maintaining the old prices (RM1.30 for teh tarik and RM1.20 for roti canai) because the prices of the raw materials to produce both items had still not come down.
“We will lower the prices if the prices of the raw materials to produce both items are reduced in the supermarkets,” said the operator, who declined to be identified.
A patron, Mansur Sahak, 27, said restaurants here were still charging the old prices, adding he hoped they would bring their prices down by 10 sen soon.
But a civil servant said the Indian restaurant he regularly goes to had reduced its prices for roti canai and teh tarik.
“Some restaurants have reduced the prices of both items and some still maintain the old prices. However I hope that the prices will be standardised soon,” he said.
In Tawau, Indian restaurant operators said they will reduce their roti canai and teh tarik prices if the prices of raw materials are reduced.
Sirajuddin Kadir, who operates a restaurant in Taman Ambar, said the price of roti canai in Tawau had always been quite low at between RM1.00 to RM1.1O while a cup of teh tarik is RM1.20.
“Even with the fuel price hike, we never raised our prices in Tawan, so there is no need for us to reduce prices on both items by 10 sen,” he said.
However, he agreed that the prices could be further reduced if the prices of raw materials such as flour, cooking oil and other products needed to run an Indian restaurant could be reduced.
As for now our prices are considered cheap compared to those in West Malaysia even though the price of flour is more than 60 percent higher,” he said.
Mohammed Sleem Sharafuddin of Yassin Curry House at Sabindo Square here, said Indian Muslim restaurant operators here have met to discuss the price issue.
He said prices at Yassin Curry House will be reduced by 10 sen to RM1.l0 for roti canai and RM1.20 for teh tarik beginning today (Thursday)
“We definitely cannot compare the prices of roti canai and teh tarik with those in Peninsular Malaysia because the prices of raw materials there are lower,” he told Borneo Post on behalf of his elder brother, Nazeer Bin Mohammed, the restaurant owner.
According to him, a 25kg bag of roti canai flour which costs RM43. 50 in Peninsular Malaysia is RM6O in Sabah.
Patrons have not complained because they are aware of the market prices of the ingredients in Sabah, he added.
A local patron, Chan, 31, said the prices of raw materials like sugar and flour have not been reduced significantly, making it difficult for restaurant operators to lower their prices.
In Sandakan, the Chairman of the Sandakan Indian Muslim Restaurant Association (SIMRA), Abdul Bareee Bin Habeeb, said yesterday the Association’s members would meet to discuss their response to the public’s call on businesses to reduce prices of goods and services after the Government lowered the fuel price five times.
The Sabah Indian Muslim Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SIMCCI) announced in Kota Kinabalu on Tuesday that it would charge 10 sen less for roti canai and teh tarik with immediate effect.
