Dai Pai Dong

''Dai pai dong'' () is a type of open-air food stall. The term originates from Hong Kong but has been adopted outside Hong Kong as well. The official government name for these establishments is "cooked-food stalls", while the more common name of ''dai pai dong'' literally means 'big licence stall' in Cantonese, referring to the stalls' license plates, which are larger than those of other licensed street vendors.

Founded after the Second World War, ''dai pai dong'' are tucked next to buildings, on streets, and in alleys. For instance, ''the dai pai dong'' in the Central and Western District are regard as "terrace type" ''dai pai dong'' since most of the streets are sloped, meaning the stalls occupy different terraces. In the late 20th century, the Hong Kong government decided to restrict the operation and license of ''dai pai dong'' in order to remove them from public streets. Some were relocated into indoor cooked food markets built by the government. After the decline of ''dai pai dong'' from the 1970s, most of them no longer operate within the family but through sole proprietorship or partnership instead.

According to the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, only 17 ''dai pai dong'' remained in Hong Kong , down from the 25 in 2014. As a valuable touchstone of Hong Kong heritage and culture, the word ''dai pai dong'' was recognized by the Oxford English Dictionary in March 2016.

Characteristics

A ''dai pai dong'' is characterized by its green-painted steel kitchen, untidy atmosphere, the lack of air conditioning, as well as a variety of low priced great- wok hei dishes. Regarded by some as part of the collective memory of Hong Kong people, official ''dai pai dong'' are scarce, numbering only 28, situated in Central (10), Sham Shui Po (14), Wan Chai (1), Tai Hang (2), and Tai O (1) .

Although the term ''dai pai dong'' is often used generically to refer to any food stall operating on the roadside with foldable tables, chairs, and no air-conditioning (like those on Temple Street), legally speaking the term can only refer to the ones which have the "big licences".

History

Origin

In Hong Kong, unlicenced food stalls providing cheap everyday food such as congee, rice, and noodles appeared as early as the late 19th century. These stalls served the general public and could be found in Central, Wan Chai, and the peripheries of the Happy Valley Racecourse. Stalls also assembled by wharf piers to serve ferry passengers, forming the so-called ''Waisik Matau'' ().

After World War II came to an end in 1945, the British Hong Kong government issued ''ad hoc'' licenses to families of deceased and injured civil servants, allowing them to operate public food stalls to earn a living. This type of license was physically much larger than the ones normally issued, as a photograph of the licensee was required to appear on them. The license was therefore jocularly called ''"dai pai"'' () by locals, earning the stalls the name of ''"dai pai dong"'' ().

Decline

However, ''dai pai dong'' soon became the cause of traffic congestion and hygiene problems, and some licensees even began to let out their stalls on the black market. In response, the government stopped issuing new "big licences" in 1956, and also limited their transfer. The licences could no longer be inherited, and could only be passed onto spouses upon the licensee's death. If the licensee did not have a spouse, the licence would simply expire.

Since 1975, many ''dai pai dong'' have been moved into temporary markets, like the ones on Haiphong Road, or into cooked food centres, usually located in municipal services complexes managed by the Urban Council, for easier control. To improve worsening public hygiene, the government began to buy back "big licenses" from license-holders in 1983. Due to the old age of most licensees and the legal restrictions on transferring licenses, many stall owners were willing to return their licenses for compensation. Since then, the number of traditional ''dai pai dong'' has declined rapidly.

Today, most ''dai pai dong'' survive by operating in cooked food centers, while the more successful ones have reinvented themselves as air-conditioned restaurants (some of them keep their original stalls operating at the same time, like Lan Fong Yuen () in Gage Street, Central).

It was reported that revenues of ''dai pai dong'' increased considerably in 2003 when Hong Kong was plagued by SARS, as people regarded air-conditioned places as hotbeds of the virus and patronised open-air and sun-lit stalls instead.

Features

*Diners can tailor dishes on the menu to their liking, such as asking for a non-spicy variation.
*Sharing tables with strangers is customary when there is a shortage of seating.
*Some ''dai pai dong'' have problems with hygiene and upkeep, for example, rickety tables and stools, battered metal pots and bamboo chopsticks, and unappetizingly slick floors.
*As ''dai pai dong'' is set up by four canvas stands, all one-storey tall, into the road it is better to add a cover, prevent some stuff dropped while people eating.
*Many dishes are cooked in a wok over a large flame. Chefs cook quickly and utilise stir-frying techniques to mix flavours and ingredients speedily.
*Unlike ''cha chaan teng'', most ''dai pai dong'' do not provide set meals.
*"Cross-stall ordering" is possible: for instance, when one is sitting and eating in a stall selling noodles, he or she can order a cup of milk tea from another stall, which may be several stalls away.
*Stalls can roughly be divided into operating at daytime or nighttime. The nighttime ''dai pai dong'' usually serve seafood and other more costly dishes, with one dish usually costing . Meanwhile, the day-time ''dai pai dong'' usually serves cheaper food, including:
**congee and youtiao (known as ''yau cha kwai'' in Cantonese);
**Hong Kong–style milk tea, toasts, sandwiches, instant noodles with ham, egg, luncheon meat or sausage;
**rice or noodles with siu mei (, roasted meats);
**fried rice and ''dip tau fan'' (, rice plates);
** Chiuchow-style noodles.

Preservation

In May 2005, the existence of ''dai pai dong'' in Hong Kong caught considerable public attention, as Man Yuen Noodles, a ''dai pai dong'' selling noodles in Central, faced imminent closure due to the death of the licensee. The news came after the closure of a bakery notable for its egg tarts, also located in Central and forced to close because of the rise of rent.

Despite calls for its preservation by many locals, including some politicians, the stall was closed on 30 July 2005. The Hong Kong government was criticised for not trying its best to preserve ''dai pai dong'' as part of the Hong Kong culture. The news of the closure coincided with the government's proposal of the development of West Kowloon Cultural District. The bakery reopened in October 2005. The stall unexpectedly reopened at a nearby shop on 1 December 2005.民園麵家又迫遷？
''Apple Daily'', 10 October 2006.

See also

* Cantonese restaurant
* Cart noodle
* Hawkers in Hong Kong
* Pai dong

References

Further reading

*Cheng Po Hung (2003). ''Early Hong Kong Eateries''. Hong Kong: University Museum and Art Gallery, the University of Hong Kong.
*Ng Ka Wing Karen, Wong Lai Wah and Yiu Shuk Hing
''From the Streets to the Shopping Arcades – Dai Pai Dong Culture in Hong Kong''
paper issued by the Creative Learning and Hong Kong Culture and Society Project (CLHKCSP).

External links

大排檔活化工程, Rejuvenation of Cooked Food Stall
Website about Wong Tai Sin's cooked food stall(黃大仙冬菇亭).



28夕陽大牌檔 世紀街頭巷戰
''Apple Daily'', 6 September 2006.
A picture
of Man Yuen Noodles, ''Apple Daily'', 26 July 2005.

video and text.
Short documentary video
about the dai pai dong along the escalator in Central. Video was shot shortly before the destruction of the Dai Pai Dong in August 2010.

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