More than 30 restaurants have withdrawn from Hong Kong’s newly launched dog-friendly dining scheme, with authorities issuing 70 warnings during inspections since its rollout, according to the city’s environment chief.
Secretary for Environment and Ecology Tse Chin-wan stated on Saturday that 31 establishments had exited the program within two weeks of its introduction, though he emphasized that overall compliance remained “acceptable” and expressed confidence that early challenges would be resolved over time.
“The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department has deployed a team of 90 inspectors and carried out 14,000 checks since the scheme began, issuing 70 verbal warnings and receiving 65 complaints,” he said during a radio interview.
“It appears that some 31 restaurants have opted out, possibly due to issues related to their target market or operational positioning.”
Initially, 940 restaurants and eateries were approved to welcome diners accompanied by dogs after securing permits under the initiative, marking the end of a three-decade prohibition originally implemented to curb the spread of rabies.
The department received over 2,100 applications for the scheme—more than double the initial cap of 1,000 spots. In the end, 940 venues were granted permits, eliminating the need for some operators to depend on ambiguous practices such as designating outdoor-only seating areas.
The program has been positively received by pet owners, many of whom described it as “a step in the right direction for Hong Kong,” noting that similar policies are already common in mainland China, France, and the United Kingdom. Several respondents also mentioned they had long awaited such a change.
