The history of China’s hospitality industry and how its inns evolved over time
Private inns served travelling merchants in ancient China and grew in number and sophistication as the economy and infrastructure expanded
Just when I thought I had exhausted my appetite for buffets, a Sunday brunch at a French restaurant in Crowne Plaza Kuala Lumpur proved a delightful corrective. There was free-flowing sparkling wine, a generous spread and a parade of desserts that made restraint all but impossible.
I am told that another restaurant in the same hotel offers a Saturday “Straits of Malaya” buffet showcasing Malay cuisine. The prospect is enticing, though it will have to wait a few weekends. At my age, one must eat responsibly.
Between multiple courses that Sunday, I took a stroll – which is good for digestion, as one likes to think – through the relatively new hotel.
The Petronas Twin Towers, a mere 10-minute walk away, loomed impressively through the windows. The interiors of the hotel looked quite comfortable and luxurious. It smelled nice too – probably a signature scent concocted especially for the premises, de rigueur nowadays for any shopping centre and hotel worth its salt.
Such carefully orchestrated hospitality may feel modern, yet long before the rise of contemporary hotels, China developed a remarkably diverse world of private inns shaped by commerce and sustained by the enduring need for shelter along the road.