Restaurants in Chinese capital have sold most of their seats for feasts on the Chinese Lunar New Year Eve falling on Feb. 9, local media reported Tuesday.

It is hard for Beijingers to book a table for festival feast in hot restaurants some 20 days before the Spring Festival comes on Feb. 9, said the Beijing News Tuesday.

The Quanjude Restaurant, well known for its Beijing roasted ducks, have all tables booked and so are other classic Chinese restaurants.

A feast that costs 1,000 to 2,000 yuan (US$120.92 to 214.83) is the most popular among residents, the newspaper said.

Even McDonald's has launched a new hamburger for the Spring Festival and decorated its stores with China Red.

Chinese families have the tradition to reunite and dine together on the Spring Festival Eve and many stay up the whole night to see off the old year and welcome new year.

Years before most families hold the dinner at home and housewives would be busy shopping and preparing for the biggest feast of the whole year days before and now they turn to restaurants to save troubles.

According to China's Ministry of Commerce, China's catering business is expected to record 748 billion yuan (approximately US$90.12 billion) of revenue in 2004, a rise of more than 20 percent over 2003, and make up 14 percent of total retail sales.

Compared with booming business of Chinese restaurants, big hotels also known for good foods seem a bit absentminded. Many of them have just worked out the Lunar New Year Eve promotions and only a few released the prices.

Targeted foreigners these hotels showed more enthusiasm on Valentine's Day that follows the Spring Festival.

The Grand Hyatt Beijing have promoted delicate Japanese and Italian menu for lovers on Valentine's Day though it has not decided what to provide on Lunar New Year Eve. 

(Xinhua News Agency January 18, 2005)