Slavic restaurant explains why it's tricky to be halal-certified, netizens appreciate transparency

Since dropping out of university to help with the family restaurant, Mark Zubovskyy has been receiving queries on whether the food establishment is halal-certified or not.

Many of the queries came in the form of comments on the social media app TikTok.

So last Friday (Aug 4), the 21-year-old provided a response in the form of a 70-second long clip.

"Bottom line is, no we are not [halal-certified]. But not because we don't care or don't want to be inclusive," Mark explained.

The nature of the cuisine at Kapitan, Mark's family restaurant, makes it a challenge to be halal-certified. Kapitan specialises in Slavic cuisine.

@kapitansingapore Replying to @wazowski Here are some requirements as a restaurant to get halal-certified and the challenges we face to attain it. We seek the understanding of everyone. #fyp #halal #slavic ♬ original sound - KAPITAN

Mark goes on to explain that the halal certification process is not exactly straightforward.

The first challenge for Kapitan if it were to be halal-certified is staffing requirements.

There would need to be a minimum of two Muslim staff employed by the restaurant.

According to Mark, Kapitan simply do not have the resources to hire more staff as it is a small family-owned business.

"The people working at the restaurant are mainly my family," he said.

Also, in order to qualify as a halal restaurant, all raw material used have to be halal-certified.

This would pose a challenge given the type of food served at Kapitan.

"It's difficult to be halal as some of the authentic traditional dishes contain non-halal raw ingredients such as pork," he shared.

Another point to note is that Kapitan serves alcohol.

Drinks are part of the Slavic culture and Kapitan is a bar and restaurant concept, where a wide range of alcoholic drinks are served.

Mark also mentioned that drinks "plays a huge part" in the restaurant's revenue.

In the comments section, netizens expressed their appreciation at Mark's mature handling of the topic.

"Sound completely reasonable. Also, amazing breakdown and explanation!" one TikTok user commented.

A few other Muslim netizens expressed their well wishes to Mark and the restaurant, hoping that one day it'll consider being halal-certified.

"We'll definitely try to do something for our Muslim friends in the near future," Kapitan replied, in the comments section.

That's as encouraging a reply as one could get.

So keep those eyes peeled, there might just be a halal-certified Slavic food joint in the not-so-distant future.

ALSO READ: 'Mad respect for you': Ice cream boss explains why his cafe isn't halal-certified, wins netizens' approval

amierul@asiaone.com

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