Students, white-collar workers and families filled the tables during a recent dinner rush at a branch of Saizeriya – a Japanese-owned chain of Italian restaurants – in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou.
In the same shopping district, a queue stretched outside a Sushiro conveyor belt sushi restaurant at 8pm. “We waited two hours for a seat, but it was worth it,” said one diner.
“This combination of affordability and dignity perfectly fits consumers’ psychological needs during the ongoing economic downturn – they want to save money but also dine decently,” said David Wong, a management lecturer at Hang Seng University of Hong Kong and a long-time independent observer of China’s economic and social changes.
“Through central kitchens, meticulous Japanese-style supply chain management and standardised workflows, these brands achieve a balance between low-cost operations and high customer retention.”
Saizeriya’s latest menu offers black pepper beef tomato pasta for 14 yuan (US$1.97), stewed mussels for 22 yuan, and grilled chicken thighs for 19 yuan. The Torikizoku grilled chicken-skewer chain implements the same uniform pricing system it uses in Japan at its Shanghai stores, charging 18 yuan per dish or drink.
