Shanghai restaurants resume dine- in

▶ Stores call for high- end food ingredients needed by local foodies

Restaurants in Shanghai reopened doors to diners on Wednesday after dining- in service was suspended for about three months due to an Omicron outbreak, bringing most high- end, expensive ingredients for the foodies in Shanghai and adding fresh momentum to consumption recovery.

A representative from a Japanese restaurant in downtown Jing’an district told the Global Times that they have prepared many advanced ingredients such as imported peony shrimp and sea urchins as before the recent epidemic outbreak to ensure supply for picky foodies.

“We have received a lot of reservations from customers for the weekend. We will do our best to meet their demand,” the representative said.

The return of Shanghai dining- in service may trigger a new wave of consumption of highend food ingredients and assist to boost the recovery of the catering industry in China, as it is among the top Chinese cities when it comes to spending power for expensive food ingredients, Zhu Danpeng, a veteran food industry observer, told the

Global Times on Wednesday.

Shanghai has allowed restaurants to resume onsite business in low- risk areas where no outbreaks have occurred in the past week from June 29.

On its first day of resuming dining- in service, onsite turnover at restaurants rose 293 percent compared with the previous week, according to data provided by Meituan.

Data revealed dining at Japanese restaurants surged by more than 252 percent from last week as the top choice for many as their first meal which is followed by hot pot, Cantonese cuisine and buffets.

In a shopping mall in Jing’an district, restaurants providing work lunch for white- collar workers have resumed their usual hustle and bustle and recovered to around 80 percent of its usual traffic, the Global Times observed.

In order to meet the COVID- 19 prevention requirements, the local commission of commerce has instructed restaurants to maintain distance between tables. Large- scale restaurants must cap their tables at 70 percent of their capacity, while smaller restaurants are ordered to operate at 50 percent capacity.

“It is expected that more areas will be opened to diners as the epidemic situation improves,” a restaurant waiter told the Global Times.

Some restaurants, however, have not resumed on- site meal or remained closed. Some staff told the Global Times that they were still waiting for notice from local food and drug administration and others said they would not resume in- store service for the time being due to shortage of hands.

“It is expected the business will pick up and restore to its normal level in mid- July,” Zhu said.