An online craze for Zibo’s barbecue has brought a deluge of tourists to the previously unheralded city, but does it change locals’ lives for better or worse?
After waiting for an hour to eat at what is now probably China’s most coveted barbecue hot spot, Shi is disappointed. “This doesn’t taste that good to be honest, definitely not worth all the wait,” the 37-year-old accountant, who only gave his surname, says after a couple of bites, with a hint of disappointment in his voice.