Chinanews.com, November 10, according to the US "World Journal" report, overseas, "cheap and large portion" is the general impression of Chinese food to the outside world. Chinese restaurant operators often "price based on quantity" and launch cheaper meals in order to attract more customers. Many customers, but as the new crown pneumonia epidemic continues, restaurants have lost most of their customers.
Chen Zuozhou, the administrative director of the Chinatown Business Reform District in Manhattan, New York, said that Chinese people should have confidence in themselves and should not be underestimated.
Chinese food in Chinatown is mostly high-quality and low-priced. A meal costs about US$10. Some fast-food restaurants have roasted rice for less than US$5 to attract customers. Every day they open their doors and queues are crowded; many people are attracted to it before the epidemic. Since then, enjoying affordable meals has also become an advantage for Chinese restaurants. However, after the epidemic, such advantages have become a "sorrow" for restaurants. In the case of rising costs for ingredients and labor, restaurant operators still dare not increase. Price, afraid of scaring away the guests.
Although the New York City Council legislation allows restaurant owners to increase the "epidemic recovery fee" by up to 10%, most Chinese restaurant owners in Manhattan Chinatown are afraid to collect it, and the restaurants that are still operating can be said to "do a day and lose a day." .
Chinese restaurant owner Lin Jack said that the impression that Chinese food is cheaper than other dishes has been deeply rooted in people's minds.
Take the restaurant as an example. The original price of a slice of noodles was 9.65 US dollars. During the epidemic, the cost increased. Coupled with the fear that change will increase the contact between shop assistants and customers, it has now risen to 10 US dollars. Even so, some customers still think it is expensive.
Lin Jack said that if most Chinese food companies increase their prices, they will increase by a fraction. Few people dare to increase by one or two dollars at a stretch.
After the New York City Council allowed the business owners to charge the epidemic recovery fee, even if the Chinese restaurant business charges the maximum 10%, it will only charge about one dollar more. "If I am a consumer, I don’t think such a fee is excessive, but How do you know the customer’s heart? Maybe if you charge the extra dollar, he won’t want to patronize it again."
The Chinatown Business Reform District conducted a survey of 300 Chinatown restaurant operators in late October and found that 99% of the operators did not charge the epidemic recovery fee.
Chen Zuozhou said that the prices of meals in other non-Chinese restaurants are more expensive, and the costs have risen, and these restaurants have naturally increased their prices; he took Asian cuisine as an example, and the prices of Japanese and Korean meals are much higher than Chinese meals.
"The same beef, Chinese food needs to be shredded, dice, and marinated. There is a lot of work, but we dare not accept it or we dare not accept it," Chen Zuozhou said. In short, the Chinese should have confidence in themselves and not be arrogant.
(Yan Jiaying)