The Future Is Expensive Chinese Food
Super excited to release our ep this weekend where we explore the culinary identity with the former junior sous chef from one of Australia's best restaurants. One topic we discussed was customer willingness to pay for different cuisines, and in particular, the disparity between European and Asian cuisines. This article addresses this issue by drawing on Krishnendu Ray's idea of the "global hierarchy of taste", which states that "the more capital or military power a nation wields and the richer its emigrants are, the more likely its cuisine will command high menu prices". Eating out and the selection of a cuisine is more than what you feel like eating on a particular day - the intention and purpose of the meal adds another layer to that decision. For example, date nights are likely to favour quiet, more intimate experiences, which usually accompany a higher price tag as more effort is put into fostering that environment and delivering a "higher-end" experience. Conversely, your Friday night pres is more likely to take place in a loud and affordable (BYO duh) venue where $10 gets you enough dumplings to create a stomach liner that'll hold up against a tank. These associations have heavily impacted our eating habits, and have been reinforced through both repetition and consuming food media. Now don't get me wrong, I love BYO dumpling (hate the word drumplings though) because it encapsulates so much of what eating Chinese food is about - coming together and celebrating by sharing food. And whilst I'm not advocating for a plate of dumplings to cost the same as a steak, I do wish more people would spend time reassessing the value they assign to different cuisines. A typical Cantonese dinner will set you back at least $50-$60 a head because of the seafood course, and it would be amazing to see this as a standard option for dinner, instead of a pasta or tapas bar. Chinese food is incredibly complex and technique-driven, and I hope that this fact translates to a broader audience so it can become an option when you're searching $$$ or $$$$ on Zomato for your next celebratory meal.
Jeff
