The opening ceremony of Ginza Danmiya Restaurant was a great success beyond imagination.
This is not only because Ning Weimin thought everything through, he really put a lot of thought into planning and put in a lot of effort to prepare.
It was also because the time, location, people and people all had the right climate for this event.
To be honest, it is actually the result of the convergence of all favorable factors.
Let’s talk about weather first.
Thirty years from now, if we talk about Japan’s bubble era, the Japanese people were crazy about consumption.
People's first impression is that Japanese people go shopping like crazy Chinese tourists.
But in fact, compared to spending on "buy, buy, buy", Japanese people in the bubble era spent the most on food.
This is normal.
Because the yearning for delicious food is the biggest commonality of all human beings, not to mention that this desire is so basic and real.
It has to be said that compared to other desires, the enjoyment of food and drink is actually the easiest to realize and the easiest to satisfy.
Therefore, once people become rich, the first thing they will spend money to compensate for is their stomach.
And we will continue to invest in this aspect to enjoy the upgraded version.
Starting from the initial purpose of satisfying cravings, to eating healthily, eating high-end, eating culture, eating identity, and eating novelty, we advance all the way!
To put it bluntly, eating! It is the basis of all desires and an absolute necessity!
People often only think about other things when they are full and done eating.
This is why in the bubble economy, Japan's catering industry will become the first real industry to achieve the 20 trillion target.
Why is the output value of the Japanese catering industry so much higher than that of the department store industry and the construction industry?
In fact, starting in the mid-1980s, with the Plaza Accord destroying Japan's manufacturing industry, the Japanese government was forced to implement policies to increase imports and expand domestic demand.
Later, as the yen continued to appreciate and the living standards of Japanese people improved accordingly, the so-called "Gourmet Climax" came.
And it swept the entire Japan at an extremely fast speed.
In 1985, there were only about 400 foreign catering companies in Japan.
By 1991, this number had exploded sevenfold, reaching more than 3,200.
At that time, TV programs also began to appear in batches with variety shows interspersed with various types of food, and even food programs appeared. At the same time, a number of famous restaurants and famous chefs became popular.
Even McDonald's in Japan, as soon as it entered the 1980s, got rid of the half-dead situation of having only 45 branches in Japan throughout the 1970s, and finally opened up in Japan.
In 1990, this world-famous fast food company had expanded nearly 20 times in Japan, with 778 branches.
Total sales reached 177.5 billion yen, with average single-store sales of 230 million yen, making Japan the region with the highest single-store profit for McDonald's in the world.
From this we can see how crazy the unprecedented prosperity of Japan’s catering industry has reached.
Since the 1960s and 1970s, the Japanese catering culture that advocates simple home-cooked food has also undergone major changes.
On the one hand, the catering industry pursues luxury and western style.
On the other hand, family meals have begun to be taken out.
In this way, Japan’s “100 million middle-class people” became “100 million foodies”.
There is no doubt that Ning Weimin came to Japan to open a branch of Tan Gong Restaurant at the right time, just as the big trend of catering consumption was about to hit Japan.
He used palace cuisine as a gimmick and adopted a luxurious style, aiming to create the most expensive Chinese restaurant in Japan.
This just caters to the Japanese people's eagerness for novelty and the increasingly strong consumption demand for high-end catering.
From the perspective of supply and demand, Japan, especially first-tier cities such as Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka, does have a real need for fresh and exotic food.
After all, even companies like Dongjiye have plans to organize overseas trips for their employees.
This is enough to show that the era when Japanese people are not short of money has begun!
Under such a premise, it is really easy for any catering company to do business, and there is basically no possibility of losing money.
And although Japan is an island country with strong xenophobia, because China and Japan have a long history of cultural exchanges,
The Japanese have always had great respect for Chinese culture and historical heroes.
For example, Confucius, the heroes of the Three Kingdoms, the founding fathers, etc.
Needless to say, the Emperor of China and the Queen Mother of the West are also among these historical celebrities.
Therefore, the Japanese really can't stand Ning Weimin's gimmick of promoting palace cuisine, using the decoration and furnishings of Tan Palace Restaurant to tell stories to guests, and using all kinds of details to pave the way for a cultural atmosphere of dining.
When I arrived at the opening ceremony today, I saw that Tan Gong Restaurant looked like this.
Not to mention little people like Taniguchi and Kagawa, even people from Sumitomo Bank are full of curiosity about Chinese palace cuisine.
You know, the bigger the company is, the more socializing it is to treat guests to dinner, but it doesn't care much about how much money it costs.
However, Japan's high-end restaurants, either high-end restaurants, sushi restaurants, or Western restaurants, are really too monotonous.
These people have long been tired of eating and seeing, and of course they are eager to see new things that are different from their old perceptions.
Therefore, among the guests present today, almost all Japanese people in the business community are full of expectations and full of attention.
In this case, after the celebration began, Matsumoto Keiko spoke as a shareholder of the restaurant and explained in public the reasons and process of how she became "connected" with Danguo Restaurant.
Naturally, it immediately struck the hearts of the Japanese people, and achieved a remarkable effect of thunderous applause and laughter.
It can be called "taking advantage of the opportunity".
First of all, in order to liven up the atmosphere at the scene, Matsumoto Keiko explained simply and humorously that it was because of "greedy".
She said that she often ate roast duck when she went to the Chinese capital, and she also liked the royal cuisine passed down from the Ming and Qing dynasties, but she could no longer eat it after arriving in Japan.
She couldn't help but feel sorry for this, and also felt sorry for the Japanese who had never tasted these delicious dishes.
Then, Matsumoto Keiko began to cater to the vanity of Japanese guests.
She said that today's Japanese people have the ability and deserve to taste high-end cuisine from all over the world.
So in order to let people in Japan also eat roast duck, and to let the Japanese people taste the delicious and noble palace cuisine, this became her original intention to join Tan Gong Restaurant and bring authentic Chinese palace cuisine to Japan.
She believes that the dishes at Tan Gong Restaurant represent the more glorious side of Chinese food culture and are also one of the symbols of the tradition of the ancient Chinese capital.
Moreover, many Japanese have actually heard of the names of Beijing Roast Duck and Imperial Dishes, but have never had the chance to taste them.
If Dan Gong Restaurant's branch in Ginza can satisfy everyone's desire to love Chinese food culture, this will be enough to make her proud.
All in all, regardless of whether Matsumoto Keiko’s speech is true or false, it is quite strategic.
It can be said that the imperial cuisine and the Japanese are both praised to the heavens, and it is a bit like the two swindlers from "The Emperor's New Clothes" trying to kidnap the food in style.
According to the lingo of playing small drums in Beijing, this can be called "pushing on", which essentially means "making a fuss and raising a yangzi".
The great thing about it is that you can use the face issue of "knowing the goods but not the goods" to flatter the guests.
It gives everyone an extra layer of scruples to judge, so we have to be more tolerant.
After the banquet starts and the dishes are served, let alone how outstanding the food at Tan Palace will be.
Even if it's not to their liking, the guests won't care too much if something goes wrong.
Let's put it this way, as long as Ning Weimin's palace cuisine is not too bad and tastes so bad that these guests will be disappointed.
I believe you will be able to gain praise in one fell swoop, and even win many real customers who are willing to spend money.
Secondly, let’s talk about the geographical location.
It has to be said that at this time, the Chinese food market environment in Japan is still very good for Tan Gong Restaurant to start a business.
If we look at it as a whole, let alone comparing it with thirty years later, it is much better than five years later in 1990.
It can be said that it is a blank sheet of paper, allowing Ning Weimin to draw the most beautiful and latest picture.
For no other reason than because Japan has just opened visas to the mainland these days, and most of the people who come from the mainland first are international students who want to study, and there are very few migrant workers with chef skills.
Therefore, most of the Chinese who open Chinese restaurants in Japan are "old expats" who settled in Japan a hundred years ago or people from Hong Kong and Taiwan.
Most of what they serve are Cantonese cuisine or "Chinese cuisine" that has been improved on Japanese cuisine.
Not to mention that the level is not high in the first place, purely authentic other cuisines are very rare.
For example, in Tokyo, there is now the Tianjifang Restaurant, a Tianjifang Restaurant jointly run by the Tianjin Foreign Economic and Trade Commission and a Japanese company, which can be regarded as a relatively pure northern dish.
But this restaurant only knows how to follow the script. The Tianjin dishes they cook according to traditional techniques are not very popular among Japanese diners.
Judequan, which opened in Tokyo in 1979, was quite popular.
However, due to the high operating costs in Japan, the store was chosen to be smaller. In fact, it has only existed as a supernumerary canteen for the embassy since its opening, and it was difficult to meet the needs of Japanese diners.
In addition, the three families in Beijing were "gathered together" and divided into two.
Wangfujing and Hepingmen "Judequan" belong to the Jingcheng Catering Company, while Qianmen "Judequan" belongs to the Jingcheng Hotel Corporation.
These three stores have been fighting fiercely over "authenticity" and "registered trademarks" in China, and have no intention of developing business overseas.
This "Judequan" restaurant in Tokyo closed down after not lasting more than a few years, and the chef had long since withdrawn from his original employer.
In this way, things become more valuable when they are rare.
The main palace dishes like Dannomiya Restaurant are currently unique in Tokyo, and they are condescending, which is very advantageous in terms of novelty.
It has almost become the only and best choice for Japanese people who are eager to taste "authentic" Chinese food.
There is no difficulty at all in establishing an authoritative brand of "authentic Chinese royal cuisine".
No matter how expensive the price is, because there is no comparable object, many Japanese people can only accept it.
And to be honest, most Japanese people are actually pretty easy to fool.
Probably because of the different living environment, the Japanese have not experienced our "turbulent years" and do not know that not telling the truth to strangers is the best protection.
Japanese people are generally a bit straight-forward, and they don't want to believe what others say.
Otherwise, it will not happen in the future. A large number of Chinese people going to Japan can easily gain the respect and trust of the Japanese just by bragging and claiming to be the descendants of historical celebrities.
The little devils who had never been fooled before met the cunning Chinese people for the first time, and they really fell for this trick. They had a great time being played like monkeys.
So in this case, when the opening ceremony proceeds to the second part of the on-site demonstration.
Several chefs from Tan Gong Restaurant took to the stage and performed several Chinese dishes in front of the public.
This scene is considered a routine basic operation in Dangu, but in the eyes of the rare and strange Japanese, it is like a magical magic.
The first dish is Kung Pao Chicken prepared by Xu Chunyan, the leader of the pastry team, and Master Wu, a foreign aid from Emei Restaurant.
Xu Chunyan is responsible for making sugar decorations, and Master Wu is responsible for cooking.
In full view of everyone, Xu Chunyan was using traditional sugar painting techniques to make an exquisite sugar flower basket.
Chef Wu also showed off his skill of flipping the iron pot with a large spoon. His decades of work are like acrobatics, making the dishes in the pot fly up and down.
Then, just when the Japanese were dazzled and didn't know where to look, let alone whose skills they should praise.
Xu Chunyan has completed the production with ease and placed an exquisite sugar flower basket in the middle of the plate.
At this time, Master Wu, who had already cooperated with the practice many times, also found the right time to finish frying his dish.
So the two were combined into one, and a plate of Kung Pao Chicken that was as beautiful as agate stone was placed in a sugar flower basket and a white plate.
The little Japanese devils who witnessed the whole process were all dumbfounded.
And when this dish was placed on the table under the stage, the Japanese guests seemed to have just woken up from a dream and expressed their appreciation.
The reporters who originally just wanted to get some entertainment news went crazy, and they all rushed forward to compete with the guests for a spot in the audience.
The camera's flash was flashing wildly, as if this was not a restaurant opening, but a catwalk.
And I have to say that this dish must not be tried by Japanese people, because Japanese people cannot eat spicy food, let alone Sichuan peppercorns.
If they want to eat it in one bite, they will have to step into a pit, and that will be a big problem.
In fact, this was indeed the case, when this dish was distributed to the guests in the front row to taste it.
Many people who were lucky enough to taste it were immediately anxious, as if their tongues were burned, and they were hurriedly looking for water to drink.
But this dish has captured the human taste buds so reliably. It is a classic dish that kills people regardless of race.
The Japanese were addicted as soon as they tasted it.
It immediately awakened their deep-rooted desire to be abused.
Regardless of whether they were men or women, they couldn't help but try it again with fear, and they couldn't help but give a thumbs up and say it was delicious.
It was as ridiculous as it was ridiculous, as pitiable as it was pitiful. It was really a collective incarnation shaking, feeling pain and happiness at the same time.
Anyone who has witnessed this scene with their own eyes will definitely believe that the PUA of Huaxia Cuisine is the supreme existence among PUAs!