Serving More Than Lunch: The Hidden Work of RV Stall Managers

Spending an entire day at school can be draining for not only the students, but also the staff at the school, such as teachers. And when someone is drained, food is the best option to recharge your batteries and keep yourself going throughout the day. And where do students and staff get food from? The school canteen of course!

School canteens are something every school has. For student or staff members to have enough energy for their daily routine at school, the school canteen is often the first place they would go the moment break starts.

With the various food options from different stalls, quick and easy access, and cheap prices compared to food sold outside the school, it is no wonder most people choose to eat at school canteens. It’s all thanks to the canteen stall vendors, who prepare all the food required to feed the entire school population. That does raise the question, however, what is it like for someone to manage a canteen stall in a school canteen?

To answer this question, we’ve scheduled an interview with one of the managers of stall 14, Baker @ RV Stall, Ms Dorene, who manages the stall with another uncle, Mr Luck and has been doing so for 13 years. The owner of stall 7, the Chinese Delights stall, Ms Kanokwan Srikham, has been managing her stall for an even longer period of time,the stall having turned 35 just recently. She manages the stall together with two aunties, Ms Yang Song Fong and Ms Ng Baby.

Some people have early lunches to avoid the Lunch Rush hours, and Baker@RV has exactly what they need!

It’s right after morning assembly, and Chinese Delights is already seeing their first customers for the day!

After managing their respective canteen stalls for more than a decade, both of them have valuable experience and insights regarding their jobs.

When I first arrived, Ms Dorene was still managing the stall with various students still queuing despite it being past the lunch rush, but she still managed to find some time to put her work down temporarily for the interview.

As for Ms Srikham, I visited her stall in the morning right after the morning assembly. But surprisingly, she already had a short queue of staff members ordering food from her stall. 

Really shows the popularity of both of their stalls!

Ms Dorene said that the main job was to prepare the food for any RVians eating breakfast at the school, before preparing more food meant for the lunch hour for the students and staff. She also said that she usually reaches the school at 5 am, and is usually done preparing the food by 6 am for anyone craving for breakfast. 

Ms Srikham usually wakes at 3:30 am and arrives at the school by 4 to 4:30 am, which is quite impossible to think about as a student.

I also asked them about how they handle the lunch hour, which is usually around 11:40 am to 12:40 pm, where most students would’ve gotten off lessons for lunch and headed to the canteen. Ms Dorene waved her hands and expressed how there isn’t much to talk about regarding how she and the others managing the stall handle the lunch hour, while Ms Srikham gave a similar response, saying there isn’t much to talk about regarding how they handle busy periods.

“I just do my tasks accordingly to handle the queue,” Ms Dorene said in response to my question, while Ms Srikham said that she just tries to serve the food out more quickly, as there is usually a long queue at her stall.

Managing a canteen stall is definitely not as easy as Ms Dorene and Ms Srikham make it sound. Not only must you arrive at the canteen to prepare the food on time for RVians looking for a quick breakfast before their lessons, you must also prepare the huge amount of food needed to feed the school population during lunch hours.

I then asked them about the difficulties they may have encountered throughout their numerous years in managing the stall. Ms Dorene said that she has some difficulties indeed, but not just about her own responsibilities. She said that long queues are a common difficulty that she has to face every school day, but also elaborated about the students not preparing their payment method and/or food options in time.

“When the students look at their phones and haven’t decided on what to eat or prepare their money, it forces me to rush my work,” said Ms Dorene.

Ms Srikham was more enthusiastic, and told me that she didn’t have any major problems besides the long queues at the stall. She loved the job, she told me.

However, there are some issues regarding being a canteen vendor. In a CNA article, it was stated that canteen vendors often don’t make a lot of money, due to the fact that the prices of the food in the stall cannot be increased without the school’s permission, and that there were fewer opportunities to sell their food, due to weekends and holidays.

When asked about this, Ms Dorene told me that being a canteen vendor is definitely not a job one should be looking for if their aim is to make money.

“However, it’s a nice place to work when you are older, as it’s less stressful,” she elaborated.

Ms Srikham was more positive when I asked her this question.

“There isn’t a problem with the money we have,” she said. “We can work together and divide the tasks, and we have many holidays and weekends to rest.”

Ms Kanokwan Srikham, Ms Yang Song Fong and Ms Ng Baby manage one of RV’s oldest stalls together with a smile on their face!

Both of them also elaborated enthusiastically that the most enjoyable part about their job is the interactions they have with the students who visit their stalls.

“When I see feedback from the students about how they love the food we make, and how they are always so caring about our health as well, it really warms my heart,” said Ms Dorene.

Ms Dorene preparing food early in the morning for any hungry RVians looking for a quick bite!

“It feels like a second home to me, where students all queue up at my stall to eat my food,” Ms Srikham said happily.

After hearing the responses from the vendors, it’s clear that managing a canteen stall is not for everyone. However, there are still many valuable experiences and interactions that stall vendors gain daily, and building a bond with the students and staff is very fulfilling to them. The next time you see them, remember to greet them with a smile on your face, and appreciate what they do!