Over 80% of restaurants offer spicy dishes in China: report

More than 80 percent of Chinese restaurants are offering spicy dishes to tap into the demand of 500 million spicy food lovers, according to a latest report launched by online takeaway platform Meituan and herbal tea brand Wang Laoji.

More than 48 percent of consumers on Meituan's online takeaway platform have ordered spicy food. Among the total offline and online dish orders, over 51 percent of dishes originated from provinces like Sichuan province and Hunan province.

In terms of age group, young people have become the main driver of spicy consumption across the country. People aged 18 to 30 years old like spicy food the most, reaching 64.37 percent, the report said.

The report was released as Wang Laoji joined hands with Meituan to launch a plan to drive consumption demand in 28 cities, as China is on track toward economic and consumption recovery.

Zhao Min, executive deputy general manager of Wang Laoji, said that the company will cooperate with merchants like renowned hotpot brand Haidilao to launch customized drinks, to drive business growth and brand value.