Shanghai Coffee Shops Reopen for Dine-in Service! Owner: "Customers Arrived Earlier Than We Did!"

Shanghai's Dining Scene Reawakens After a Three-Month Wait

After more than three months of waiting, Shanghai's restaurant scene finally has its vitality back. Starting June 29, dine-in service has been gradually reopening at restaurants in districts with no medium-risk areas and no community infections reported in the past week.

The Heartwarming Reconnections

(Ring ring ring)

"Hello, are you open for dine-in now?"

"Yes—you can come eat in the store starting the 29th!"

Once the announcement went out, phones in Shanghai's restaurants rang nonstop, every caller barely containing their excitement. One coffee shop owner shared:

"Every time I answered, I heard so many familiar voices. Each caller was an old friend, and every call carried words of encouragement and 'thank you for your hard work.' On the 29th I deliberately arrived an hour early to open—but an old friend was already waiting at the door. When she saw me, she gave me a big hug, hahaha."

- pt, Yearning for Life

She said: "I was afraid you'd be busy later, so I thought I'd come early to be your first customer and get a chance to chat. I've missed your coffee so much these months!" "Fortunately," the owner added, "there's a group of loving customers who give me reasons to keep going."

Surviving Against the Odds

"Being able to hold on until dine-in resumed is already a miracle."

Many coffee shops kept operating during the period, but without dine-in, customer traffic sat at just 1/4 of normal. One owner shared:

"The day before the lockdown was announced, I had just finished roasting a new batch of micro-lot beans, planning to offer them as limited products at a sharing price so everyone could experience their charm. Instead, I ended up drinking the whole batch myself..."

- Vinkin

"That same evening I'd just taken delivery of 50 bottles of milk and 2 boxes of fresh cakes. When I got back to the shop, the cakes had wilted in the refrigerator and the milk had passed its best-taste date. Add the rent and other costs during that stretch—even delivery couldn't cover expenses. Holding on until dine-in resumed is already a miracle, and I'm luckier than many."

The Challenges of Resuming Operations

"During the resumption period I lived the most exhausted life of my life, but I don't regret it."

"Businesses meeting sustainable supply conditions may apply for online delivery." The food-safety authorities' announcement set many owners thinking hard—because it meant staying in the store around the clock. Some had no other choice and compromised with reality. But turning a coffee shop into a 24-hour living space is easier said than done. One owner shared:

"Since we didn't know how many delivery orders would come, four of us were 'permanently stationed' in the shop. It's only about 20 square meters, but fortunately there's a bathroom, which solved basic hygiene. As for sleeping, we made do—women on chairs, men on the floor."

- Restless Ocean

"Because so few coffee shops had resumed, group-buying orders piled up. Busy all day with no real rest, we all looked wrecked (thankfully masks and face shields hid some of it). It was the most exhausted I've ever been, but I don't regret the decision. Now that dine-in is back, many customers who drank our coffee during that time came in on the very first day."

The Gradual Return to Normalcy

With time limited, this is only a brief glimpse of what owners went through. Even today, some Shanghai residents online mention that their favorite coffee shops still haven't reopened for dine-in...

Resuming dine-in isn't simple: it requires approval, processed in batches by establishment size. Large shopping malls and large restaurants applied and passed review first—which is how 800 Starbucks stores in Shanghai resumed dine-in on schedule on the 29th.

- Wei Er Xian Sen 0908

Most small and medium-sized restaurants applying individually face a waiting period, with timing decided only after the relevant departments review their applications. That's why many coffee shops still haven't opened for dine-in—including the much-anticipated Blue Bottle Yuyuan store, which also "had to wait in line." Only yesterday did it announce on Xiaohongshu that dine-in would resume from July 1 (today).

- Miss Zhang, Foodie Strolls

Looking Forward

Everyone has worked hard these past months! Though dine-in is back, try to stagger your outings and avoid crowded places where possible. Some restaurants and coffee shops will keep crowd-control measures in place; if unsure, call ahead before visiting. And businesses must keep up proper epidemic-prevention and disinfection!

The shadow of the pandemic lingers, but summer has returned. Summer always brings back everyone's vitality—and I believe the future will certainly be better!

"Keep going!"

Image source: Internet and various social media platforms

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FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

With cafés reopening, it's a fine moment to stock up on balanced, crowd-pleasing medium-roast beans. FrontStreet Coffee recommends:

FrontStreet Coffee Brazil Fazenda Rainha — for those who like neither sour nor bitter: a Yellow Bourbon from Brazil, the world's largest coffee producer, medium roasted to reveal cream, peanut, chocolate, toast, and sugarcane sweetness. Gentle and quietly sweet—excellent for pour-over, moka pot, or espresso.

FrontStreet Coffee 2013 Yunnan Sun-Dried Typica — a flagship of Chinese specialty coffee with the true character of Yunnan small-bean coffee. Medium roasting preserves its balanced, gentle disposition: nuts, brown sugar, black tea, and dried apricot. Works in pour-over, cold brew, or drip machines, at a very friendly price.

FrontStreet Coffee Jamaica Blue Mountain No.1 — grown from Typica at Jamaica's Blue Mountains, whose privileged terroir is essential to its famed balance. Medium roasted to fuse acidity, bitterness, sweetness, and body into one elegant whole: chocolate, roasted nuts, cream, and caramel from the very first sip—harmonious in a way few coffees can match.