College students in Shandong have taken the high-speed train to Zibo barbecue on weekends. An article "College students organize a group to eat barbecue in Zibo" topped the hot search list in the city, with more than 5 million searches.

Zibo Railway Station was crowded with college students coming for a barbecue.

According to data from Zibo Railway Station, on March 4, more than 50,000 people arrived and departed from Zibo Railway Station in one day, setting a record in the past three years.

Watching the small charcoal fire at the open-air stall, waiting for the pork belly to squeak with oil, rolling out the tough pancakes, rolling out the skewers, and then pairing them with the local specialty "scallions" and dipping sauces, you can have a great meal, and you have to carry it away after you finish it.

Good kebab pancakes for the return trip.

A short trip, come for the barbecue and leave with the barbecue.

The temptation of delicious food is evident.

From attractions to food: the natural spread of traffic. Zibo Barbecue is inexplicably popular, but it is also reasonable.

Comparing it with the cultural and tourism topics that have been hotly discussed recently, it is not difficult to find that the Zibo barbecue craze is a microcosm of the retaliatory consumption and tourism boom after the epidemic.

Thousands of people occupied the top of Qianfo Mountain. Thousands of people raised their mobile phones to record the lighting of Chaozhen Tower on Daming Lake. They immersed themselves in checking in at the Shandong Art Museum exhibition. Hongjialou Church, which reopened after three years, was packed with people who came to take photos and check in as soon as it opened.

tourists... Even if they don’t leave home, they can easily feel the current travel craze while watching short videos.

In this boom of tourism recovery, the additional effect of online communication cannot be underestimated, and short videos are an important driver.

Driven by the idea of ??checking in, people are more willing to take photos and video records, and "visit here" on social platforms, thus fueling viral spread.

The popularity of Zibo Barbecue stems from the same logic.

On February 23, a blogger named "Mr_木" posted a video on Douyin, showing "the correct way to eat Zibo barbecue": fold the pancake in half and dip the dipping sauce into the crease.

, then roll with green onions and remove the grilled pork belly.

This video has received 191,000 likes. It is an early video about Zibo Barbecue that was released recently and has a lot of traffic.

Many people in the comment area expressed their interest in planting grass and @friends to meet and check in.

The most noteworthy point is that this video has been forwarded 224,000 times, which is higher than the number of likes. This actually does not conform to the general rules of communication.

You can imagine what kind of grass-planting effect this video has after being forwarded and shared.

The people who get the most attention are college students who have relatively more free time. They act as the main consumer force of Zibo barbecue.

The popularity of Zibo barbecue reaches its peak on the first weekend of March.

Some netizens summarized in the comment area, "One group of college students from Shandong are occupying mountains in Jinan, another group is heading to Zibo to eat barbecue, and another group is playing disco on Qingdao Wheat Island." Experienced college students have already figured out how to go from Jinan to Zibo

As for the consumption guide for eating barbecue, two people can take a round trip and enjoy an authentic Zibo barbecue for 200 yuan.

In the video shot by college students who went to check in, as soon as the barbecue restaurant opened, people who couldn't wait rushed in and quickly grabbed seats.

After tourist attractions are out of the circle one after another, it seems natural that the baton of traffic is passed to the hands of gourmet food.

But here comes the question, why was Zibo BBQ chosen?

Why Zibo BBQ "There is nothing that one meal of barbecue cannot solve. If there is, then two meals." Barbecue has always been an indispensable presence in the history of human diet.

In prehistoric times, the invention of fire allowed humans to bid farewell to the life of eating hair and drinking blood, and at the same time, it also gave birth to the original form of barbecue.

Barbecue appeared much earlier than boiling and stir-frying. Putting raw meat on fire to roast and cook cooked food can kill the bacteria in the raw meat and make human civilization take a step forward.

And people’s love for barbecue has been deeply engraved in their genes since then.

Regardless of ancient and modern times, at home and abroad, barbecue has never been absent.

Today, barbecue has become a major player in the summer night snack economy.

According to iiMedia Consulting data, barbecue will be the most popular category for nighttime dining consumption among the new generation in 2022, with 72.4% of consumers choosing barbecue for nighttime dining.

Barbecue can be enjoyed in beautifully decorated restaurants or on the streets.

Compared with other special delicacies, it is not only a kind of delicacy, but also represents a kind of street culture and has strong social attributes.

A few friends get together and have a barbecue. It doesn't cost much, but you can talk for a long time.

Shandong is also known as the "underrated barbecue mecca". Jinan barbecue, Qingdao barbecue and Zibo barbecue are also called the "three major schools" of Shandong barbecue. It can be said that Shandong people have a long-standing tradition of making skewers.

Specifically, when it comes to Zibo barbecue, Zibo is connected to six cities and has abundant ingredients, so you can learn from everyone's strengths.

At present, it is the only independent small oven pure charcoal smoke barbecue in cities across the country. Seven or eight mature meat skewers are placed on the small oven for re-roasting. The diners can judge the heat and enjoy the fun of grilling by themselves.

Its biggest feature is that it is a trinity of small pancakes, green onions and meat skewers. It has a rich taste in one bite. This eating method that is different from other barbecues is what makes Zibo Barbecue so special.

After a little combing, you will find that Zibo Barbecue has actually made its name early.

As early as 2020, singer Xue Zhiqian recommended Zibo Barbecue at the Wheat Field Music Festival in Zibo, and his star effect added fire to Zibo Barbecue.

Later, after well-known food bloggers such as Wulala and Pianyueshe Shiyuji visited the restaurant, Zibo Barbecue’s popularity in the barbecue industry gradually increased.