Will a Cooking Competition Bring Back Diners?

The restaurant sector is holding a culinary competition

With fewer visitors coming in and locals going across the border or overseas on short jaunts, Hong Kong's hospitality sector is desperately trying to lure more "bums in seats", and has come up with a snazzy idea to try to tackle the problem.

The restaurant industry has come with a cooking event called the "Golden Chopsticks Creative Culinary Competition" where dining establishments need to come up with new dish ideas by October 31.

Lawmaker Tommy Cheung Yu-yan admitted the competition will not be able to "tackle all ills", but will encourage restaurants to try new things.

"We have had complaints from our customers in the last couple of years, and they probably could not see anything new compared to... if they travel to the Greater Bay Area," he said.

"[We want to] stimulate restaurateurs and hoteliers to think of new dishes so that customers from Hong Kong, where they come to our restaurants, they would have something new, and they probably want to come back again."

But isn't that what restaurants do periodically, come up with new dishes to entice diners to come back and try? Or have Hong Kong eateries been resting on their laurels this whole time and not had to think of new dishes to serve?

As much as the catering sector is trying very hard by holding this competition, it's not going to bring customers back by the droves; consumers are very price sensitive these days with inflation and high interest rates. So when dining out is at a fraction of the cost across the border because ingredients and labour are so much cheaper, how can Hong Kong restaurants compete with such low prices?

It could be back to the drawing board again soon...