In order to curb catering waste, more and more small portions and half portions of dishes are on the menu and on the table. With the emergence of these "reduced dishes", some customers' doubts also arise: "Why is the price of small dishes not half of the original dishes?" "What is the difference between small dishes and half dishes?" "Half dishes" Are the dishes cooked in a large pot and then divided into half? Can the serving time and quality be guaranteed? "With these questions, the reporter went to Guijie for a visit.

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Question: Why is the price not reduced by half when the quantity of dishes is smaller?

Explanation of Doubts: There is a difference in the weight of small portions and not half portions

The launch of "reduced dishes" is in response to the CD-ROM campaign to curb food waste. However, some citizens reported to reporters that some restaurants' "reduced dishes" have smaller portions, but the prices are still quite high, and there is suspicion of a disguised price increase. Some netizens also left messages saying: "The key to developing small-portion dishes is price. Small-portion dishes are absolutely popular, but you must not let the portion size decrease and the price remain so high or not lowered enough."

In response to Regarding issues that citizens and netizens are generally concerned about, the reporter checked with the Guijie Chamber of Commerce and the Guijie Management Committee of Beixinqiao Street and found that the problem caused to citizens and netizens the feeling that the quantity is small and the price is high. The problem lies in "small portions" and "half portions" on the definition. A small portion is not a half portion, and there is a significant difference in weight.

At 4pm yesterday, several heads of member units of the Guijie Chamber of Commerce in Beixinqiao Street began a new round of street patrols. Fang Xuhu, the person in charge, said that according to their statistics, more than 30% of the more than 110 catering companies in the Guijie Chamber of Commerce have launched small-portion dishes for consumers. Most of these restaurants that offer small-portion dishes are larger chain companies. It is expected that more catering companies will join the ranks of small-portion dishes in Guijie in the future.

The reporter visited a number of restaurants on Guijie Street, which specialize in Sichuan cuisine and hot pot. On the restaurant menu, the reporter noticed that different merchants marked the reduced dishes differently. Some said "small portion" and some clearly marked "half portion." Among them, the price of a half-portion dish is almost half the price of the original dish, while the price of a small-portion dish is 60 to 70% of the original dish.

At the Hongxiangzi restaurant, which specializes in Sichuan cuisine and crayfish, the reporter saw that the dishes here were marked as "small portions." Restaurant staff said that compared to the title of half dish, small dish is actually more appropriate. "The small dishes launched in our store are mainly popular dishes with larger portions such as Maoxuewang and Bullfrog. The reason why we price them this way is because the portions of small portions are indeed much larger than half."

In the back kitchen, behind a chef, two portions of bullfrog have been put into baskets on the kitchen table for later use. The reporter noticed that although the dishes were all the same, the number of bullfrogs in the two baskets was obviously different. "The two baskets contain 10 and 6 bullfrogs respectively. They need to be made into gluttonous frogs of different sizes." The staff said that the quantity of small dishes is mostly based on the feedback of previous customers and the remaining quantity of dishes for return meals. Figures derived from comprehensive statistics. Take the small portion of bullfrog as an example. This dish is priced at 69 yuan, has 6 bullfrogs, and is mainly for a customer group of three to four people. The large portion of bullfrog is priced at 99 yuan, has 10 bullfrogs, and is mainly for 8 people. The above customer groups.

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Question: Why does the price of half a dish cost one yuan more?

Explanation: Mostly because of the cost, which is generally acceptable

The reporter found that most of the dishes that usually label small portions are Chinese restaurants, while those that provide half portions of dishes are mostly hot pot restaurants. Moreover, in terms of the half-portion dining experience, diners have more options to choose from and can achieve the purpose of saving money. However, the reporter also noticed that the portion of the half dish was half of the full dish, but the price was 1 yuan higher. Where is this extra 1 yuan?

The Xiaolongkan Hot Pot Restaurant located on Guijie Street has launched many half-portion dishes. The price of the dishes is half the price of the original dishes plus 1 yuan. The reporter randomly interviewed some diners, and they said they noticed that the price of half a dish was 1 yuan more, but the price was still acceptable.

The shop owner Mr. Fang said that the extra 1 yuan is to subsidize the additional consumption of manpower and tableware.

He told reporters that even guests eating at the same table will have quite different choices and tastes of dishes. For example, some customers love pig brain flakes, while others cannot accept it. “If you follow the whole portion, If you come to sell it, it will cause food waste, or you will give up ordering this dish because you are worried that you will not be able to eat it. The appearance of half dishes solves the problem of taste differences to a large extent and also gives customers who are new to the store. An opportunity to try the dishes. ”

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Question: Should half the dish be divided into half after frying?

Dispelling doubts: Cooking small dishes in a small stove does not slow down the serving time

The emergence of reduced-volume dishes not only avoids waste, but also gives consumers more room for choice. However, when a large dish is divided into two, the number of orders taken by the kitchen at the same time is bound to increase. Some consumers are worried about this. If everyone orders small dishes, will it slow down the meal delivery speed and affect the dining experience?

In the cooking area in the back kitchen of Hongxiangzi Restaurant, in addition to the common large woks, you can also see many small pots and stoves. "We used to have big pots and big stoves here, and it was difficult to control the heat when making small dishes. In order to cope with the introduction of small dishes, we removed the two large stoves and replaced them with small stoves with 8 burners. With these small stoves, One chef can take care of ordering multiple small dishes at the same location, which not only saves manpower, but also fully guarantees the speed of meal delivery and the quality of the meals," the staff said.

Fang Xuhu, head of the Guijie Chamber of Commerce, said that the chamber of commerce will provide guidance to companies on which dishes are more suitable for small portions, how to price better, and guide consumers to choose small portions. "Some restaurants now offer small portions that are more than half of the original dishes, and their prices will also be higher. We will also pay attention to the pricing of these dishes for dine-in and take-out during daily inspections. In addition to ensuring the prices of both, , In addition to unifying the quantity of dishes, it will also prevent the price increase from being introduced in small portions.”