Grab-a-crab? Anger at Singapore restaurant’s arcade-style claw machine

The restaurant’s CEO said he was surprised at the reaction, as a similar promotion at two eateries he operates in China was a success

A video of the pink machine emblazoned with a picture of a smiling red crab under the phrase ‘come and catch me’ went viral after being posted this week

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A restaurant worker loads crabs into the seafood restaurant’s claw machine in Singapore on Wednesday. Photo: AFP

Published: 3:58pm, 24 Oct 2019Updated: 5:41pm, 24 Oct 2019

A restaurant in Singapore suspended a bizarre promotional stunt on Thursday where customers use an arcade-style machine with a mechanical claw to catch live crabs after it sparked uproar online.

A video of the pink machine, containing the creatures and emblazoned with a picture of a smiling red crab under the phrase “come and catch me”, went viral after being posted this week.

Crabs inside the claw machine at the seafood restaurant. Photo: AFP

Similar to machines where people pick up soft toys, the game sees customers pay S$5 (US$3.67) to use a joystick to move the claw over the creatures before lowering it to try and grab one.

If successful, the customer can have the Sri Lankan crab cooked on the spot free of charge, choose to take it home, or leave it at the House of Seafood restaurant to eat another time.

But internet users condemned the game as cruel after the specially produced video promoting it went up online.

A man takes a photo of the crab claw machine. Photo: AFP