Seafood restaurants thrive during CNY amid eased Covid-19 restrictions

KUALA LUMPUR – The easing of Covid-19 movement restrictions since the third quarter (Q3) of last year has been a relief for Chinese seafood restaurant operators who are seeing their businesses returning towards pre-pandemic levels during this year’s Chinese New Year (CNY) celebrations, especially in the Klang Valley.

In Kg Sg Kayu Ara in Petaling Jaya, the Lala Chong Seafood Restaurant stands as a testament to a food and beverage business showing signs of recovery as customers thronged the eatery on the eve of CNY and during the first two days of the festive holidays.

Lala Chong founder Yim Sie Chong said CNY was certainly more vibrant at the restaurant this year compared with last year when the government limited reunion dinners as well as visits to families.

Although business revenue has not fully returned to pre-pandemic levels, Yim noted that his outlet was fully booked for reunion dinners on the eve of CNY.

Prior to the pandemic, Lala Chong had a capacity of over 60 tables, which can fit up to 15 patrons each, but the government’s standard operating procedures (SOPs) had reduced the seating arrangements at each table by half.

Now, Lala Chong is allowed to host 50 tables at the venue, and this has forced it to hold two separate sessions for the reunion dinners as the restaurant was fully booked.

He also said his business did not close during this CNY season as it was an opportune time for Lala Chong to thrive as it did before the pandemic.

This is the time for us to recover the revenue that was lost during the lockdowns,” he told The Vibes, which visited the restaurant on Wednesday evening.

“We are hoping that we will never have to face another lockdown ever again, but we understand the reasons why it had to be done.”

Yim said his outlet was hit hard by the restrictions when the first lockdown hit business in 2020.

He said this meant that the management of the restaurant had to devise creative ways to ensure Lala Chong’s survival. The business, he said, resorted to offering deliveries via P-hailing services and ramped up takeaway meals, as well as packed frozen food.

Fortunately, Yim – who established the Muslim-friendly Lala Chong in 1995 – said he was able to retain over 30 staff throughout the movement restriction order in 2020 and 2021.

“They worked on rotation, so everyone was able to keep their jobs and we did not have to cut overheads,” he said.

As for the increase of prices of seafood supply during the festive season, Yim said Lala Chong did not increase the prices of the dishes served to customers. Instead, he opted to absorb the additional costs.

The Vibes made rounds in Sri Hartamas, SS20 Damansara Utama, Kg Sg Kayu Ara, and Atria in Damansara Jaya to find at least a dozen Chinese-owned restaurants operating during the public holiday on Wednesday.

Understandably, many of the restaurants had declined to speak to the media during the evening as they were busy preparing to entertain droves of customers hours ahead of their arrival.

Meanwhile, another seafood restaurant called Delay No More in Plaza Damas, Sri Hartamas, had also seen an uptick in patronage during the festive season.

Its manager, Annie Lau, said the easing of restrictions this year has allowed the outlet to host reunion dinners, with certain SOPs.

“We received quite a number of bookings this year and this is a sign that things are returning back to normal,” she briefly told The Vibes when met at the premises.

Similar to Yim, Lau said the restaurant outlet she manages has seen some of its revenue being affected by price hikes during the festive season, but the additional costs were not passed on to the customers.

She added that prices of certain food items had soared between 15% and 30%, which puts a strain on income for the restaurant.

When asked about the affects of the Omicron variant of Covid-19 – which has sparked fears of tightened movement controls – Lau said it did not appear to deter customers from dining in.

Lau, who has been managing the outlet for about five years, said the number of patrons returning to the outlet was more than three-quarters of the numbers seen before the lockdowns, indicating that business is well on its way to recovery. – The Vibes, February 6, 2022