Why are popular eateries popular?

The SCMP notices the success of two dishes-plus-rice (mostly take-away) restaurants and asks: ‘Why are Hong Kong eateries selling ‘poor man’s meals’ bucking closure trend?’ 

The paper’s sleuth-like reporters solve the mystery…

The growth of such businesses has defied a wave of closures among food and beverage establishments in Hong Kong…

…Gary Ng Cheuk-yan, a senior economist at the Natixis Corporate and Investment Bank, said the rise of this-this rice dining’s popularity over the past few years was largely due to the affordable prices amid broader economic uncertainties.

“Such economic uncertainties mean that consumers are much more prudent when spending, choosing more value-for-money options,” he said.

Who would have thought that entrepreneurs could do well – and even pay some hefty rents – by offering what customers want at prices they find attractive? (Perhaps management theorist Peter Drucker, who defined a company as ‘an organization that makes a profit by meeting a public need’, or something like that.)  

As one customer explains, it’s not simply price, but convenience and genuine appeal…

…“I have a soft spot for this-this rice. I come here for lunch two to three times a week as it’s the closest thing to home cooking.

(Also, I would add, a great way to get quick rice and greens to go with a protein dish you’re making yourself.)

The people behind these no-frills lunchbox places seem to have two things in common. First, they are not civil servants or op-ed writers desperately wondering how to stop Hongkongers from shopping in Shenzhen. And second, they did not open independent bookstores.

Which brings us to an HKFP report on recent tax audits for small bookshops…. 

The directors of the five companies spoke to HKFP on condition of anonymity due to fear of reprisals. While the IRD has completed audits of some companies, others are still under investigation. Among the five, three were established over eight years ago, while two were set up within the past five years.

Brian, a director of an independent bookshop that opened less than half a decade ago, told HKFP that the IRD informed him the company was under tax investigation in late 2024, soon after the company filed its first tax return. 

“Our accountant found it strange. While the IRD can probe tax affairs over the past seven years, it is uncommon for the IRD to investigate newly established companies,” Brian said in Cantonese. “Ours is such a small-scale operation, and the profit is small; is it worth auditing from an economic perspective?” 

…Lily has been running an independent bookshop for more than eight years. Since it was established, business has been tough, recording losses in most financial years. The IRD had never investigated her company until early last year.

According to an IRD document Lily showed to HKFP, the tax authorities began probing the company’s tax assessments over the past six years. It took the bookshop almost a year to answer all the questions from the IRD. 

Lily said the audit was completed late last year after the company was fined “a tiny amount of money” for some understatement of income. 

AP on the new regulations expanding restrictions on prison visits…

Under the new rules, effective Friday, magistrates can issue warrants on application by correctional service officers to bar exchanges between specific legal representatives and persons in custody if the judges believe such connections could harm national security or cause bodily harm to any person, among other reasons.

The department can also restrict certain visits, including those made by specific chaplains, for purposes such as maintaining national security, preventing crime and facilitating inmate rehabilitation.

…In a discussion of the changes with lawmakers this month, Hong Kong Secretary for Security Chris Tang said some prison visitors specifically went to see inmates who were jailed for their roles in “the black violence” — a phrase officials use to describe the 2019 protests — and they continued to stoke anger against the government. 

…Brandon Yau, secretary of the prisoner support group Waiting Bird, said it seemed some authorities believed former demonstrators of the 2019 protests were still planning organized resistance in jail, but that it doesn’t match reality.

…“It seems they (authorities) are doing something further to create an atmosphere that they would continue to target and suppress the political prisoners who were convicted for their roles in the social movement,” he said.