It’s no secret that the restaurant industry in Hong Kong and Macau has been greatly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic in the past few months.
Not only have many restaurants in the two cities witnessed a sharp drop in business, some even had to shutter temporarily as there were just too few diners to sustain the decision to keep their doors open. This is for sure one of the toughest periods the industry has gone through.
Yet, despite the challenges, the restaurants and their teams have demonstrated a resilient spirit: some chefs have turned to offering takeaways to keep their staff and kitchens active, others are using their downtime and temporary closures to create new dishes, refine their cooking skills and re-organise their front-of-house team to elevate their service standards.
Every action they take has only one aim: to make sure the restaurant remains strong, if not stronger, and well-positioned for recovery.
In order to aid the restaurants in their effort to bounce back from the impact of the pandemic, Michelin and Chope on June 6 joined hands to announce the launch of the “Back In Business” campaign.
With this campaign, diners will receive a copy of the MICHELIN Guide Hong Kong Macau 2020 (while stocks last) with every fulfilled reservation made at 49 designated MICHELIN-recommended restaurants via Chope. Diners simply have to enter the promo code “BIB” when booking a restaurant through the Chope app or website during the month-long campaign, which runs from June 6 to July 5.
At restaurants including one-MICHELIN-star Cantonese restaurants Yan Toh Heen and Yat Tung Heen, and Megan's Kitchen, a Bib Gourmand hotpot restaurant, diners can also enjoy a complimentary dessert, a bottle of wine and/or a bottle of evian or Badoit water.
Nicolas Achard, managing director of Michelin Food & Beverage Asia, says: "With this campaign, we want to revive the convivial moments we once shared with friends and family in our favourite restaurants, and to show our support for the MICHELIN-Guide-listed restaurants that have fought long and hard to stay in the business,”
Together with a copy of MICHELIN Guide (while stocks last), the 20 diners who have made the most number of reservations will receive an extra hamper consisting amazing prizes such as:
- Receive a bottle of RSRV champagne or purchase it at half price
- A promo code to join the exclusive RSRV Club
- A set of evian limited edition water with a bottle designed by Virgil Abloh, the artistic director of Louis Vuitton's men's wear collection
- A pair of Nespresso chopsticks that is made from recycled capsules and represents the brand’s spirit of supporting sustainability
- Chilled single rib M6/7 Tomahawk from Westholme offered by renowned food supplier Angliss
“This campaign is meant to encourage restaurateurs and chefs to press on, to show them that both diners and industry players are grateful for their continued efforts,” Achard says. “With the support of our official partners who are key players in the F&B industry, namely Chope, evian & Badoit, Angliss, RSRV and Nespresso, I hope this collaboration will inspire others to stay together, and continue building a community to support each other.”
“By launching this campaign, we hope to see a further boost in reservation numbers at these MICHELIN Guide-recommended restaurants as well as for diners to reopen debates on who are Hong Kong and Macau’s best restaurants,” says Winder. “We are also excited to see who will be the most frequent booker and receive our grand prize!”
Adding that diners should take all necessary precautions and measures suggested by the local authorities when dining out, Achard says: “Hong Kong and Macau are one of the earliest Asian destinations to have a MICHELIN Guide, and the selections over the years illustrate the cities’ unique combination of culturally diverse modernity and deep-rooted Cantonese and Macanese culinary heritage."
"As most diners will be able to receive a copy of the MICHELIN Guide, I believe this will reignite their interest in exploring many more dining options even after the campaign month is over," he says. “When booking your favourite MICHELIN-listed restaurants, don't forget to try out new ones that you have not visited before."
