The Chinese government has introduced a new "alcohol ban," with multiple provinces cracking down on improper wining and dining. This has caused unease among officials and a significant drop in traffic for high-end dining establishments. A restaurant industry insider in Beijing told the "Sing Tao Daily" that the new "alcohol ban" has not yet impacted mid-to-low tier dining, but high-end seafood restaurants that cater to official banquets have been hit hard. Some restaurants, experiencing a 20-30% drop in customers, are planning to "downgrade" and offer individual meal packages to attract patrons.
It’s not just official banquets being affected. “Now even ‘teacher appreciation banquets’ and ‘graduation banquets’ are entirely gone,” complained a restaurant owner in Anhui. He mentioned that his restaurant had bookings for teacher appreciation banquets spanning four days, "but now they’ve all been canceled. I suggested that they dine one table at a time, but they said (internal rules for dining) limit tables to no more than three people. What can I do about that?”
Owner: Impact Worse Than the Pandemic
He lamented, “A lot of people dine out to handle small matters among friends and build relationships. The impact of this new ‘alcohol ban’ is harsher than the pandemic.”