Along with the rapid closure of Beijing's favorite markets, the city has lost another of its longtime institutions: the last Golden Jaguar buffet, at Cuiwei Lu, closed on July 1. Famed for the abundant variety of food at its buffets, Golden Jaguar was unable to hang on following the shutting of its other branches across town, including at The Place, Wangfujing, Zhongguancun, and Yayuncun, according to Beijing News.

“Over a dozen suppliers went to the [Golden Jaguar] Cuiwei location to ask for a payment of debt, which reached an outrageous RMB 20 million. Only one of the 29 Golden Jaguar outlets around China remained as of June 28,“ Beijing News reports. “This wasn’t a one-off; over 10 suppliers also gathered outside the Yayuncun outlet to demand payment in May 2016, at which point the company's debt stood at over RMB 16 million. Golden Jaguar claimed that they were undergoing internal auditing, and were unable to pay suppliers due to a temporary freeze of their finances.”

It wasn't just the suppliers who were demanding their money back. Angry customers who had placed credit on the restaurant's membership card were also attempting to retrieve their cash. The company has said that people who registered with the restaurant will now be able to recoup that cash at the Cuiwei location, and it will take no longer than 45 working days for the money to return to their accounts.

Golden Jaguar, which opened its first branch in Taiwan in 1991 before coming to Shanghai in 2003 and up north shortly after, gained notoriety for its massive buffet-style feasts and self-defined “international cuisine collection.” The all-you-can-eat melding of Western and Chinese cuisines (think steak, sushi, oysters, abalone, and even crocodile) for around RMB 200 gave the restaurant a luxurious edge without breaking the bank.

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By the end of 2014, there were 29 locations across 19 cities in China. However, between 2010 and 2014 the company was only achieving a turnover of HKD 957 million (approximately RMB 833 million), at a HKD 230 million loss after tax (approximately RMB 200 million). Coupled with rising costs, the chain was unable to bring in enough funds to stay afloat. Now only one branch remains in all of China, in Shanghai.

The restaurant was also affected by healthy diet trends. Recognizing the downside of gluttony, much of the public no longer wanted to eagerly stuff their faces with as much food as humanly possible anymore.

The final nail in the coffin was the increasing number of bad reviews circulating across Chinese review sites. Many reviewers complained about the “decreasing quality of food” and “lack of service” as well as the fact that Golden Jaguar “no longer provides Haagen Dazs.” To deal with decreasing appetites and to battle food wastage, some of the buffets across Beijing also began to ask for an extra RMB 100 as a deposit, a cheap move and unnecessary restriction in the eyes of many a seasoned all-you-can-eater.

With tastes edifying and becoming more refined, diners nowadays prefer restaurants that offer special dishes at good value, instead of the large and have-it-all restaurants with lesser quality food. All of these factors mean that there's much less room in China's lavish dining market for the free-for-all food frenzies of the past.

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Photos: Beijing News, xltklj