Part 8: Home cooking is the new special occasion.
Having friends or colleagues round for dinner is now a lifestyle trend for many young people.
Convenient dining options abound in Chinese cities today are one of the many perks of the dense urbanization and plethora of digital services like food delivery. Lining up to eat at the latest wanghongdian, slurping noodles in the street and getting one’s favorite meal delivered at home have all become the new normal for city dwellers in China. In fact, in 2017 the sum of money spent eating out in China exceeded Sweden’s entire economic output that year.
However, because of all the convenient options the city offers, the option of cooking at home often seems to be the most impractical one. Yet eating isn’t just a functional activity, but a social one, too.And the desire to gather at the table to unwind and socialize with friends hasn’t wavered. What’s changing is the act of cooking at home.
What a generation ago was a nightly ritual of having dinner at the kitchen table has become a lifestyle trend for younger generations sharing it on social media. People in big cities earning more money eat out more often, and as a result may cook less often at home — but the rare occasions when they do cook are all the more special for it.
“Sharing a meal at home has become a sacred moment in our daily lives. The gathering and ritual of cooking becomes something worth celebrating, worth sharing,” says Pan Xiaoyue, the founder of a meal-kit startup that enables people to cook at home more. She believes “rituals are even more important when you’re busy.” And the feedback she has got from customers is that new recipes and eye-catching plating suggestions are as important as convenience. In other words, the pleasure of cooking and hosting guests at home is the true motivator.
Moreover, the home-meal setting has transcended the intimacy of the family to become a place for entertaining friends and colleagues. “We originally positioned our products for everyday family meals, but soon realized that our users were buying our meal-kits to serve them during dinner parties and business dinners they hosted at home,” says Amy Tang, who left a career in the luxury-goods sector to start Jiaxi, a premium meal-kit startup. “A few years ago if you were a businessman and wanted to impress your clients, you’d invite them to a fancy restaurant, but now the new luxury is to host them in your home,” she adds.
On the other hand, the trend of cooking less at home means that people aren’t buying as much kitchen equipment, which makes it harder to prepare more elaborate meals at home. Of course, in China there are apps for that, too. Take Hao Chushi, which allows you to hire a chef whenever you host a dinner party. Log on via WeChat or Alipay, select your location and view the profiles of chefs in the area. With just a few clicks you can choose a chef based on his or her portfolio, select the cuisine — Shanghainese, say, or Cantonese — and even ask the chef to buy ingredients and bring cooking utensils. Prices are relatively low, starting at 119 RMB, or about $17 dollars, for a three-person dinner (paid using your phone, of course).
This is a 12-part series on Food Megacity: how urbanization and technology are changing the way China eats. The full series can be found here.
