{"id":20429,"date":"2022-03-15T13:09:54","date_gmt":"2022-03-15T05:09:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/varsity.com.cuhk.edu.hk\/?p=20429"},"modified":"2024-04-17T11:42:51","modified_gmt":"2024-04-17T03:42:51","slug":"a-good-deal-rice-with-two-dishes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/varsity.com.cuhk.edu.hk\/index.php\/2022\/03\/a-good-deal-rice-with-two-dishes\/","title":{"rendered":"A good deal : Rice with two dishes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Takeaway shops selling rice with two dishes are thriving amid the pandemic. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carrie Lock<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the catering industry is struggling to survive in the pandemic, some start their business selling takeaway meals with rice and two dishes to turn misfortune into fortune.  One of them is Hong Kongers Family Food (\u9999\u6e2f\u4eba\u5169\u9938\u98ef), a family-run food business which opened in September 2021. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cCustomers prefer buying takeaway food to reduce infection risk. Our business has benefited from government restriction which bans dining-in after 6pm,\u201d Ada Tsang Wai-yi, the 26-year-old daughter of the takeaway shop owner says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe were worried about the risk of running a takeaway food shop amid the pandemic. Our family needs to make a living. We thought the pandemic would not affect takeaway food shops much, so we decided to move our business to Quarry Bay as planned,\u201d she continues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tsang\u2019s family operated a takeaway food shop selling rice with two dishes in Tseung Kwan O for two years until July 2021. They now continue running it in Quarry Bay, where many offices are located, due to lease expiry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The takeaway shop sells around 250 to 300 meal boxes a day, each box costing HK$32. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur shop is mostly visited by white collar workers. During lunch hour, there is always a long queue outside our shop,\u201d Tsang says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Customers are queueing outside \u201cHong Kongers Family Food\u201d in Quarry Bay during lunch hour.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The number of food factory licence applications increased from 1,528 in 2019 to 2,021 in 2021, according to the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department. All takeaway eateries selling rice with two dishes with no seating are required to apply for the food factory licenses. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It took half a year for Tsang\u2019s shop to apply for the license. \u201cWe hired a license consultant to help us with the license application so the whole process was easier,\u201d Tsang says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Competition is getting intense when more takeaway shops selling rice with two dishes join the market. Tsang\u2019s shop faces three competitors in Quarry Bay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur shop is in a small alley whereas other takeaway shops are in the main street. In the first month, we did not earn much as not many people noticed our shop,\u201d Tsang says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe joined different food delivery platforms and launch new dishes every month to attract and retain customers. Gradually, the profit grows. Our turnover is now over HK$100,000 every month,\u201d she adds.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
A meal box with two dishes – chicken wings and radishes with pig blood curds and fishballs.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Rice with two dishes going viral online<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The popularity of takeaway shops selling rice with two dishes spikes online. Andrew Wong Yuk-hay, a 44-year-old social worker, set up a Facebook concern group about rice with two dishes in December 2020. The group has about 65,000 members.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wong says 5,000 Facebook users requested to join the rice with two dishes concern group within ten days after the government announced banning dine-in services after 6pm in restaurants on 5 January. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think takeaway food has become popular mainly because of the government ban on dine-in services after 6pm. Many people get off from work late, so they tend to buy takeaway food,\u201d Wong says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wong recalls he had rice with two dishes at a factory canteen for the first time when he was a Form Seven student working as a summer part-timer in Ngau Tau Kok.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A map of takeaway shops selling rice with two dishes <\/a>with information about pricing and shop location is created based on information Wong gathered from his Facebook group members.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
A map of takeaway shops selling rice with two dishes including information about pricing and shop location.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The cheapest meal plan of rice with two dishes is sold at HK$17, while the most expensive one costs HK$55. Sham Shui Po, Yau Tsim Mong and Tuen Mun districts are the districts with the most takeaway food shops, according to the map.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA lot of people want to know whether there are any takeaway food shops near their neighbourhood. The Facebook group can provide them with this information,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI am motivated to run the group as rice with two dishes connects people with different backgrounds and political stances, allowing them to communicate without hostility,\u201d he adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wong also shares a dish picking tip. \u201cIt is wiser to order meat patties or steamed fish. The shop operator cannot secretly give you less portions as the customers can count the number of meat patties and fish in their meal box,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Leung Chung-hei, a 29 year-old driver, joined the group in December 2020. He says he did not consume rice with two dishes frequently before the outbreak of COVID-19.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI eat it more often during the pandemic because there are more shops selling rice with two dishes which provide consumers with more choices,\u201d Leung says. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Leung takes pictures of rice boxes he bought and shares eateries information in the Facebook group. \u201cMy favourites are chicken wings and fried chicken with lemon sauce,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cheap price is another reason why he consumes rice with two dishes more frequently.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNowadays, it costs at least HK$40 to buy a lunch box with only one dish from a fast food chain restaurant. It is wiser and cheaper to buy rice with two dishes from takeaway shops,\u201d Leung says. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

An affordable option for grassroots<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rachel Lau Yin-shan, a community organiser of the Society for Community Organisation (SoCO), says takeaway shops selling rice with two dishes provide an affordable option to help ease financial burden of the grassroots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe demand for rice with two dishes has indeed increased under economic recession. The salary of the grassroots has been reduced and the minimum wage has not been reviewed for three years. Their income cannot catch up with the inflation rate,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe demand for rice with two dishes has indeed increased under economic recession. The salary of the grassroots has been reduced and the minimum wage has not been reviewed for three years. Their income cannot catch up with the inflation rate,\u201d she says.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Lau points out many low-income households working in retailing, catering and construction are troubled by unemployment, underemployment and leave without pay during the pandemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWorking mums have to stay home looking after their children as online lessons are conducted. They cannot work to make money,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs the government banned dine-in services after 6pm, there are more takeaway shops selling rice with two dishes at a cheap price. Grassroot customers find it more cost-effective to buy takeaway than cooking at home,\u201d Lau adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Customers are choosing which cheap meal boxes to savour.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Health tips from Dietitian<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Registered dietitian Chloe Lee Wai-hang offers some health tips for eating rice with two dishes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe choice of dishes matters most. If we select two dishes with high calories, we may gain weight,\u201d Lee says. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

She points out that dishes with excess fat, high sugar and sodium levels are unhealthy as well. Absorbing excess saturated fat and trans-fat may raise people\u2019s cholesterol level, while food with high sugar and sodium levels may increase people\u2019s blood glucose level and blood pressure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSteamed pork patty with salted egg yolk, sweet and sour pork and scrambled eggs with shrimps are the top three unhealthy dishes,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lee says the best combination for a rice box with two dishes is to order one vegetable dish and one meat dish. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMushrooms, broccoli, celery, tofu and bitter cucumber are good choices. Also, avoid choosing fatty meat like meat patties and beef briskets, lean meat such as fish and chicken fillet would be a healthier choice, \u201cshe says. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Five Healthiest Dishes (Average calories) per 100g<\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
Shiitake mushroom with broccoli \u5317\u83c7\u897f\u862d\u82b1 (48 kcal)<\/td><\/tr>
Stir-fried chicken fillet with celery \u897f\u82b9\u7092\u96de\u67f3 (92 kcal)<\/td><\/tr>
Stir-fried bitter melon and beef \u6dbc\u74dc\u7092\u725b\u8089 (94 kcal)<\/td><\/tr>
Stir-fried fish fillet with broccoli \u897f\u862d\u82b1\u7092\u9b5a\u584a (110 kcal)<\/td><\/tr>
Spring beans with minced pork \u6b16\u83dc\u8089\u9b06\u56db\u5b63\u8c46 (130 kcal)<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Edited by Angel Woo
Sub-edited by Leung Pak-hei<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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