On September 20–21, the 2026 Meituan In-Store Dining Industry Conference and the Black Pearl Restaurant Guide Shijian Pioneer Conference were held in Wenzhou — the first time this annual hallmark event of China's dining industry has come to the city. More than 800 delegates attended, including representatives of Black Pearl restaurants, premium dining merchants and nationally renowned restaurant groups. The theme, in two characters:本真(Ben Zhen) — true to the source.
At the venue, Wenzhou staged a Premium Food Ingredient Expo. Thirteen producers from all 12 of the city's counties, districts and county-level cities put the region's finest agricultural and fishery ingredients on display — yellow croaker, dendrobium officinale (Tiepishihu), duck tongue, Sanhuang chicken. A bed of crushed ice held golden organic croaker; Yongjia's paddy-field carp, Ouhai's dried soy sauce meat and Longwan's duck tongue lined the booths. The point: connect origins directly with the market, and open distribution channels for quality firms.
How do locals describe Wenzhou cuisine? Three people at the expo gave three answers.
Between heritage and innovation sits one thing: degree.
"We really hope more people will discover Wenzhou's food, because Wenzhou has so many delicious things to offer," said Chen Ling, head of Cheng Yucheng Catering Consulting and co-product development lead at Chao Waipo. He argues, “Innovation can be a kind of fusion that everyone can accept — and the key is the degree. Wenzhou's own spirit of daring to be first in the world can achieve even better fusion, especially with dishes."
One fish, into every household.
Sun Mingde, head of Jinfeng Marine Ranch (Zhejiang) Co., highlighted a single fish: "We hope this expo can bring our eco-friendly yellow croaker to households nationwide."
One duck tongue — and a supply chain that reaches the whole country.
Weng Guojian, channel sales manager at Chuxu Duck Tongue, talked about the road: "With SF Express and the express delivery industry, we can build a complete catering supply chain and reach the whole country." Wenzhou is home to many duck tongue firms, so he closed with a blessing in the local dialect — "eat duck tongue, make big money." In Wenzhou dialect, "duck tongue" sounds like "riches come."
The conference wired Wenzhou's ingredients, craft and logistics into the national restaurant procurement chain — and put local flavour on the table once more, as the city works toward becoming a UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy.