Hong Kong protests force many restaurants in Central, Wan Chai and Causeway Bay to close permanently
With landlords keeping rents high and the Hong Kong protests forcing owners to keep doors closed, many shops and restaurants have lost too much business to stay open
Stand-alone restaurants in Hong Kong which are not part of a big dining group are finding it increasingly difficult to keep their doors open amid ongoing political protests.
One in 10 shops in the retail heart of Causeway Bay are now reportedly vacant and hundreds of restaurants have closed, or will soon close, because of the resulting downturn in tourism, coupled with a sharp decline in corporate events and local spending.
There is a lot less tendency for guests to dine out or to spend money given what is happening in Hong Kong, especially on the weekends
One such stand-alone restaurant, Daarukhana, had to close its doors recently after only one year in business. “The protests killed us,” said Sanat Patel, founder of the award-winning fine-dining Indian restaurant which was located on Thomson Road.
“We were located in the middle of all the protests and lost too much revenue as we couldn’t open on numerous days from the beginning of June,” he continued. “We had just one restaurant but even the big restaurant groups are having trouble as of now. It has been over four months since the protests started.”
Closing up shop
One restaurant group we talked to, which did not want to be named, agreed with Patel, saying the drop in tourism and lack of corporate events in many of its restaurants in the Tsim Sha Tsui and Central areas were affecting business.
“There is a significant decline in tourist arrivals and, in addition, as we cater for a large amount of corporate activity, the reduction in business travellers to Hong Kong is also affecting this segment,” a representative said.
I suspect most restaurateurs will put a hold on all their new restaurant or cocktail bar projects due to all the uncontrollable conditions of Hong Kong … it’s survival of the fittest
Mr Chan (not his real name), who owns a public relations company that represents numerous restaurants and bars, said: “The food and beverage sector has been hit quite hard since the protests in June – that, combined with the summer season [when many leave for holiday].