MARK O'NEILL in Shanghai
A restaurant in one of the mainland's most popular tourist cities has cashed in on the Iraq war, naming dishes after the main protagonists and more than doubling its clientele.
Staff at the Ming Jiang Lou (the House of the Great General) restaurant in Hangzhou said that on the first day of the war they placed sandbags at each of the side entrances and planted palm trees. Employees have also donned military fatigues.
In the main restaurant they have hung a large map of the Middle East, with Iraq marked in red. There is also a map of Iraq on the second floor, with models of two tanks and two Apache helicopters next to it. The menu offers 24 war dishes, including Saddam sweet, Bush little fry, Powell super-salted fish, Apache perch and Tomhawk missile bamboo shoots, selling for between 20 and 35 yuan (HK$18.80 and HK$32.90) a dish, a staff member said yesterday.
"We did it to attract customers and show the special dishes we can make," said a chef named Shen. "In some fancier rooms, for a slightly higher price, you can eat the war dishes and watch the live coverage of the war on television.
"It has been a great success. Our clientele has more than doubled.''
The two most controversial items are a pigeon dish called anti-war messenger and Nasiriyah hot pot, a spicy Sichuan dish featuring pieces of chicken and duck.
Another, with carrots and spare ribs, is designed in the shape of a tank.
Shen admitted that the cuisine was all Chinese and had no relation to Iraqi food.
Chinese television has broadcast live news of the war in an unprecedented way, making it more accessible for the public than previous overseas conflicts.
A restaurant in one of the mainland's most popular tourist cities has cashed in on the Iraq war, naming dishes after the main protagonists and more than doubling its clientele.
Staff at the Ming Jiang Lou (the House of the Great General) restaurant in Hangzhou said that on the first day of the war they placed sandbags at each of the side entrances and planted palm trees. Employees have also donned military fatigues.
In the main restaurant they have hung a large map of the Middle East, with Iraq marked in red. There is also a map of Iraq on the second floor, with models of two tanks and two Apache helicopters next to it. The menu offers 24 war dishes, including Saddam sweet, Bush little fry, Powell super-salted fish, Apache perch and Tomhawk missile bamboo shoots, selling for between 20 and 35 yuan (HK$18.80 and HK$32.90) a dish, a staff member said yesterday.
"We did it to attract customers and show the special dishes we can make," said a chef named Shen. "In some fancier rooms, for a slightly higher price, you can eat the war dishes and watch the live coverage of the war on television.
"It has been a great success. Our clientele has more than doubled.''
The two most controversial items are a pigeon dish called anti-war messenger and Nasiriyah hot pot, a spicy Sichuan dish featuring pieces of chicken and duck.
Another, with carrots and spare ribs, is designed in the shape of a tank.
Shen admitted that the cuisine was all Chinese and had no relation to Iraqi food.
Chinese television has broadcast live news of the war in an unprecedented way, making it more accessible for the public than previous overseas conflicts.
