What is "Taste of Shanghai"? Is it a Shanghai dish with thick oil and red sauce? Or is it a Shanghai specialty snack represented by the "Four King Kongs"? Jiefang Daily Shangguan News reporter learned from the recently held fourth "World Ingredients • Shanghai Taste" catering trend release ceremony that in recent years, driven by the "first store economy" and the spillover effect of the Expo, Haipai Catering has continuously integrated innovation through "buying the whole country" and "buying the world", and Shanghai has leapt to become China's well-deserved international gastronomic capital with the most world influence.
The 4th "World Ingredients , Taste of Shanghai" Catering Trend Release Ceremony was guided by the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, sponsored by the Shanghai Catering and Culinary Industry Association and the Shanghai Business Information Center.
Up to now, Shanghai has more than 220,000 restaurants from more than 40 countries on 6 continents, more than 40 kinds of cuisines at home and abroad, and even many other diets other than Chinese food, Chinese mainland only shanghai. In the first half of this year, Shanghai's first store economy continued to lead the country, with 513 newly opened stores, of which 325 were the first stores in the catering format, accounting for more than 60%, an increase of 70% year-on-year.
Yuan Lijun, director of the Shanghai Business Information Center, introduced that after four consecutive selections, "Shanghai Taste" has accumulated more than 300 restaurants on the list, which has become a "weather vane" for the development of Shanghai catering. Since the epidemic, not only zero stores, but also more than 50% of restaurants are planning to open new stores or plan to upgrade old stores, and in the first three quarters of this year, the business status of more than 300 listed restaurants has shown steady growth.
Why can "Shanghai Taste" achieve such a speed of development? Yuan Lijun said that "integration" and "innovation" are the two keywords for the vigorous development and growth of Haipai Catering.
First, with the spillover effect of the three CIIE, the use rate of imported ingredients in the "Shanghai Taste" listed restaurants has increased to 15% to 20% of the total, mainly concentrated in beef, seafood, ham, cheese products, condiments and other categories. For example, the high-end ingredient caviar that appears in western restaurants in the traditional impression has become more and more "pro-people" after being introduced into China by the Expo platform: the jingbang cuisine restaurant Sheng Yongxing's main dish "sliced skin roast duck" is commented by diners as "piled with caviar"; the homes feast of this cuisine restaurant combines "rustic" old yogurt with "foreign" caviar, integrating salty, sour and sweet taste.
At the 4th "World Ingredients • Taste of Shanghai" dining trend release ceremony, the French foie gras dishes brought by the Ben gang restaurant Silan Wuyi, the double cold plate of the nine-year-old Lanzhou lily and Iberian ham, and the South African caviar vegetarian roast goose and other "fusion dishes" were refreshing. At the same time, the spillover effect is not only reflected in the introduction, but also in the output, at present, with the introduction of breeding technology, Yunnan, Sichuan and other caviar producing areas are also exporting overseas while supplying domestic catering needs.
Second, with the increasing smooth flow of the domestic cycle, the "exclusive ingredients" in the domestic small production areas are no longer "raised in the deep boudoir", they are taking planes, high-speed rail, cold chain cars, and are constantly coming to Shanghai. Taking the "Shanghai Smoked Fish" of Shanghai's own dishes as an example, homes feasting chooses East Sea pomfret instead of bluefish, pomfret meat is more compact and fragrant than bluefish meat, chewy; Qidong Lvsi seafood, the "star" product of Jiangyang Frozen Products (Brand) Trading Center, adopts wild fishing methods, liquid nitrogen preservation, and maximizes the freshness of striped fish and pomfret; Heyu, as a counterpart enterprise in Shanghai, invests in the quinoa industry in Bachu, Xinjiang, so that it has the title of "mother of grain". Rich in high-quality protein and dietary fiber, quinoa has become a new ingredient used by the dessert industry in Shanghai.
Third, Haipai Restaurant is not only committed to "Western taste" in terms of ingredients, but also integrates Western-style "style" in service. In terms of plating, the "Taste of Shanghai" list restaurants widely use Western food presentation techniques such as "small amount of dressing", "clever use of sauce" and "per person per serving". In terms of service, many "Shanghai Taste" restaurants on the list, such as Yongfu, Jingxihui, Guangzhou, etc., have introduced wine waiting services to enhance the level of food and wine matching. In foreign countries, the sommelier must have basic aesthetic accomplishment, have a sensitive fashion perception, noble taste and appreciation, and the growth period of a qualified sommelier is at least four or five years. "In the Chinese food industry in Shanghai, the sommelier industry is almost blank, and it is recommended that vocational training institutions can strengthen the training in this area, which we all need very much." At the scene of the event, the heads of many restaurants said.
According to the reporter, in December this year, the "World Ingredients • Shanghai Taste" catering trend release ceremony will also enter Macao, China, and make the first stop for the "Shanghai Taste" to enter the Greater Bay Area.
Column Editor-in-Chief: Wu Weiqun Text Editor: Wu Weiqun
Source: Author: Wu Weiqun