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BY CHERYL LIM
WHILE the city was not plunged into darkness like Sydney during Earth Hour, restaurants and hotels here pitched in to raise awareness of the fight against global warming and climate change.
Customers dined in near darkness, with light coming from the candles on their tables as bars and restaurants dimmed their lights between 8.30pm and 9.30pm last Saturday.
Earth Hour originated in Sydney, Australia, in 2007, but it has since become a global movement.
The Straits Cafe at Rendezvous Hotel Singapore was one restaurant that took part in the event.
Mr Kellvin Ong, general manager of Rendezvous Hotel, said: "The 135-person dining area was dimmed to save energy. Lit candles on the table allowed diners to see.
"They were guided to their tables by our service staff to ensure their safety."
Other restaurants such as the Island Cafe, located on the fourth floor of Tangs Orchard, also got into the act.
Island Cafe switched off all its lights except for "essential lights in the kitchen and at the cashier counter", its marketing and communications executive, Ms Cheryl Han, told my paper.
"We invited all our diners to have a romantic candlelit dinner during Earth Hour, to do our part in helping to raise public awareness of climate change," said Ms Han.
Another hotel, Parkroyal on Beach Road, also participated in the event "to highlight the plight of Mother Earth", said its spokesman, Ms Melanie Lee.
"Each one of us is a cause of global warming, but we also have the choice of changing the situation," she added.
Even foodcourts did their part.
Food Republic, which has three outlets here, shut off all its lights in the seating areas as patrons dined by candlelight.
Mr Willie Tay, Food Republic's senior vice-president, said: "It's our way of showing our appreciation to Mother Earth. The response was positive - the queues were still there in the foodcourts."
Besides making a statement on global warming, Earth Hour also left an impact on power bills. Ms Lee said: "We were running on 70 per cent occupancy last Saturday night. Most of our guests went to the lobby to join our countdown to Earth Hour and made use of the discounts at our restaurants.
"We estimate savings of about $300 from that one hour alone."
cheryll@sph.com.sg
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