In a sudden price rollback reminiscent of the 1990s, a 15-piece dumpling meal for 5 yuan and a bowl of noodles for 4 yuan have sparked a craze for affordable dining in major cities in China. Following the success of the “Five Yuan Dumplings, Four Yuan Noodles Restaurant” in Guangzhou, a wave of low-priced food establishments offering items like 6-yuan chicken leg rice and 5-yuan oily noodle have emerged nationwide. But can these businesses really make a profit selling food at such low prices? Many imitators have ultimately faced closure.
Earlier this year, a restaurant in Guangzhou named “Five Yuan Dumplings, Four Yuan Noodles Restaurant” made headlines by attracting customers with its throwback pricing strategy. The stark contrast between prices in top-tier cities and single-digit pricing instantly turned this small eatery into an online sensation, drawing in a large number of customers eager to experience the nostalgia of the 90s prices.
Now, the owner of this restaurant has opened another establishment called “Eight Yuan Pig Trotter Rice” and even offers complimentary soup. The restaurant, located about a kilometer away from the original store and closer to a major road, serves a variety of dishes including the signature pig trotter rice, along with roast duck, barbecued pork, white-cut chicken commonly found in Cantonese fast food establishments, and three soup options, all priced at single digits. Although the new store has only been open for half a month, the business model and menu structure are still being fine-tuned.
Inspired by the success of the “Five Yuan Dumplings, Four Yuan Noodles Restaurant,” similar low-priced dining establishments have cropped up across the country, offering items such as 6-yuan chicken leg rice and 5-yuan oily noodles.
Opposite the “Five Yuan Dumplings, Four Yuan Noodles Restaurant,” the owner of a roast meat shop converted his store into a discounted fast food eatery, pricing dishes like salt-baked chicken rice, hand-shredded chicken rice, and salt-baked pig’s trotters rice between 6 to 8 yuan. In the Tangdong village in the Tianhe district of Guangzhou, a “6-yuan chicken leg rice” establishment has also emerged, offering a meal including chicken leg, fried egg, vegetables, and rice for 6 yuan.
In Xi’an, a noodle shop has joined the trend by offering a “Six Yuan Oily Noodle” dish. According to a report by Shanxi’s Urban Express, this shop was inspired by the success of the Guangzhou “Five Yuan Dumplings, Four Yuan Noodles Restaurant” and garnered popularity online, leading to the transformation of two to three nearby shops into “Five Yuan Oily Noodle” eateries.
A consumer from Zhenjiang, Jiangsu, mentioned that a restaurant named “Five Yuan Dumplings, Four Yuan Noodles” appeared in the local area in April shortly after the explosion of the “Five Yuan Dumplings, Four Yuan Noodles Restaurant” in Guangzhou, almost perfectly replicating its products.
Moreover, a search on “Dianping,” a popular review platform, revealed that cities like Shenzhen, Guilin, Wuhan, Huizhou, and Hangzhou have also seen the emergence of similar food establishments like the “Five Yuan Dumplings, Four Yuan Noodles Restaurant,” with many sporting signs indicating they are “New Stores.”
The owner of the “Five Yuan Dumplings, Four Yuan Noodles” restaurant, Zhang Kun, mentioned that the initial investment for his establishment was not significant. By deliberately selecting a storefront already equipped with basic furnishings, Zhang saved on expenses like wall decorations and flooring, only needing to add tables, chairs, basic decorations, kitchen appliances, refrigerators, and utensils to open for business. The total cost of setting up the store was approximately around 10,000 yuan.
However, turning a profit once the restaurant is operational is the ultimate goal. According to data from Red Catering, as of the first quarter of 2026, the average consumer spending in the food industry was 32.9 yuan per person. In contrast, the customer spending in low-priced eateries is only in the single digits, less than a fifth of the general average. With prices set so low, in order to make money, expenses must be kept significantly low.
The three major cost components in the food industry are ingredients, rent, and labor. The survival of places like the “Five Yuan Dumplings, Four Yuan Noodles Restaurant” relies on squeezing out profits from every aspect of these components.
The owner of the “Six Yuan Oily Noodle” restaurant in Xi’an mentioned during a live stream that their store is located in a relatively remote area outside the third ring road of the city, with relatively low rent at around 4,000 yuan per month for a 100-square-meter storefront.
During the initial stages of operation, Zhang Kun focused on minimizing labor costs as much as possible. He started the business alone, and later his mother joined to help out, reducing the need for additional labor.
Despite the high sales and low costs, Zhang Kun openly stated that due to the low prices and dependence on high volume traffic, low-priced dining establishments are destined to make marginal profits at best, earning hard-earned money.
While consumer spending remains subdued in China, the competition in the food industry is intensifying. In recent years, price wars in the Chinese food industry have been escalating, with more and more businesses struggling with thin margins or resorting to running at losses in exchange for higher traffic. Data from the Red Catering Industry Research Institute indicates that over 3 million food stores across the country closed down in 2025, with the average survival period of a food establishment further shortening to approximately 15 months.
As of the first quarter of 2026, the number of stores in various sub-categories, such as snacks, Chinese meals, baked goods, hot pot, barbecue, Western cuisine, and Asian cuisine, has been on the decline, particularly showing contraction in the snack and Chinese meal segments for several quarters. This indicates that the competition in the food market continues to intensify.
On social media platforms, there have been reports of various imitators of the “Five Yuan Dumplings, Four Yuan Noodles Restaurant” sharing news of their store closures. For instance, a “Six Yuan Dumplings, Five Yuan Noodles Restaurant” in Shenzhen hastily changed hands just two months after opening, reflecting the fate of many imitators.
This is not the first time that low-priced dining has caused a stir in the market. Back in early 2024, the rise of 2-yuan bread and 17-yuan freshly cooked rice noodles attracted numerous “foodie entrepreneurs” with their low investment and high popularity. According to Phoenix Weekly, from 2023 to 2025, 2-yuan bread shops expanded at a rate of over 4,300 stores annually.
However, many entrepreneurs soon realized that low-priced dining requires high standards for location selection, customer flow, and cost controls. Once the traffic diminishes or customer base dwindles, it becomes challenging to sustain operations. In recent years, a large number of imitators have had to shut down their businesses, with some even facing financial ruin, highlighting the high rate of attrition in the low-priced dining industry.