Restaurants Eggslut, The Ark to shut Hong Kong outlets amid retail upheaval

Name: Hongkongers hunt for roast chicken, soap and more bargains at US warehouse store in mainland China
Uploaded: 2025-02-05T07:01:04.000Z
Duration: 4 min 36 s
Description: Hongkongers hunt for roast chicken, soap and more bargains at US warehouse store in mainland China

Burger joint The Ark is closing its Russell Street outlet later this week and plans to relocate to Shenzhen to follow the shift in spending patterns

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The Eggslut outlet at Fashion Walk in Causeway Bay, pictured on June 28, 2023, shortly after it opened. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Cheryl Arcibal

Published: 3:01pm, 5 Feb 2025Updated: 6:23pm, 5 Feb 2025

More restaurant operators in Hong Kong are shutting down or taking their business elsewhere amid an increasingly challenging retail environment as local residents spend their money outside the city and mainland Chinese tourists scrimp on their shopping and dining.

Eggslut would pull out this month, less than two years after opening in Fashion Walk in Causeway Bay, the Los Angeles-based sandwich chain said on Tuesday. Transformers: The Ark Restaurant would shut its hamburger and pizza outlet in Soundwill Plaza on Russell Street on February 8 and relocate to Shenzhen, it said on Wednesday.

Their exits from one of Hong Kong’s core shopping districts added to a growing list of casualties as retailers struggle to overcome challenges from a shift in spending patterns. Hong Kong residents are spending more in mainland China or overseas to stretch their budgets, while mainland Chinese tourists, the lifeblood of the city’s retail industry, shell out less on their visits.

“We are deeply grateful to Hong Kong and to all Hongkongers for your support,” Eggslut said in a post on Instagram, adding that it would “regroup and return” at the right moment. “The long queues, the joy on our customers’ faces and every like and share online – these moments will forever be in our hearts.”

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Hongkongers hunt for roast chicken, soap and more bargains at US warehouse store in mainland China

Eggslut’s sole Hong Kong outlet, which opened in June 2023 to long queues of people attracted by its trendy fare, would close on February 23, it said.