appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

hooksArticlePageFloatingButtonConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Lam Ka-sing

American ice cream chain Dairy Queen will open four Hong Kong outlets in the fourth quarter of this year, as part of an ambitious expansion plan amid a wave of food and retail shop closures across the city.
Dairy Queen, an 85-year-old brand, said on Friday that it would launch its flagship store at One Causeway Bay shopping centre on Hong Kong Island in November, followed by three other outlets in Kowloon, the New Territories and the outlying islands before the end of the year.
“Following Causeway Bay, the Kwun Tong store in Kowloon is already under hoarding,” the company said. “A total of four stores are set to open this quarter, strategically covering Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, the New Territories and the outlying islands.”
The Kwun Tong store is located in The Angle shopping centre. The coming stores mark the brand’s return to Hong Kong after a short-lived opening in Causeway Bay in 1979.
The company said it had a fresh store concept tailored for Hong Kong, featuring five product lines, including milkshakes, parfaits and uniquely designed ice cream cakes.
It said the city’s products would include its signature soft-serve dessert, which it described as “thick enough to hold when the cup is turned upside down” and made with an exclusive full-fat dairy mix and an air overrun of about 40 per cent to maintain texture.
Edwin Lee Kan-hing, founder and chief executive of Bridgeway Prime Shop Fund Management, said Dairy Queen’s entry into the market comes after a sharp fall in retail rents and shop values, creating lower entry costs for foreign brands even as legacy merchants using older business models continue to shut down.
Traditional dim sum and Chinese restaurants have been closing across the city, with the Star Seafood Restaurant Group closing numerous branches in 2025 and this year, and the 35-year-old Metropol Restaurant in Admiralty shutting in September last year.
“Out with the old and in with the new,” Lee said, pointing out that commercial rents in core districts had dropped by 60 to 70 per cent from peak levels in 2013 and 2014.

With lower rents and strong tourist spending power, more foreign brands would enter Hong Kong, he said.
“It would not be surprising if two or three out of every 10 new outlets eventually close,” Lee said.
He also characterised Dairy Queen’s decision to open four branches across four different parts of the city as a marketing tactic intended to gain rapid visibility.
“The weather is getting hotter and hotter, so more people will eat ice cream, and tourists also like to eat ice cream,” Lee said. “They won’t wait for northbound consumption just to eat ice cream. A cup is only a few dozen dollars.”
Lee said foreign brands had been closely monitoring tourist arrival numbers, with the recent uptick encouraging them to expand their operations to Hong Kong.
The city welcomed 31.22 million visitors in the first seven months of 2026, an 11 per cent increase year on year.
The total value of Hong Kong’s retail sales rose for the 15th consecutive month in July, with the government reporting an uptick of 4.5 per cent from last year. Sales in the first seven months of the year grew by 8.9 per cent year on year.
Lee also noted that certain niche industries, such as traditional cafes, cigar stores and gold shops, were expanding alongside international brands to capitalise on cheaper leasing terms.


For China’s hi-tech IPOs, it’s Hong Kong vs the mainland – but how much does it matter?

Hong Kong secures expanded equal treatment and investment guarantees across Asean

Housing prices surge near new Huanggang Port as buyers eye ‘dual-city’ lifestyle

Hong Kong’s first 5-year plan to give firms more long-term certainty: Paul Chan

Hong Kong economy

Dairy Queen to make Hong Kong comeback with 4 stores. Is it scooping up cheap rents?

Dairy Queen is promising ice cream “thick enough to hold when the cup is turned upside down”. Photo: Handout

Metropol Restaurant in Admiralty is among a wave of closures in recent years. Photo: Karma Lo

A Dairy Queen store is set to open at The Angle in Kwun Tong. Photo: Edmond So

Rain, internet outages hit first day of Hong Kong’s robot convenience stores

Customers place orders on a screen in front of the robot, then pay by card, WeChat, Alipay or China UnionPay. Photo: Karma Lo

Patrons are also welcome to have a casual chat with the robots without making a purchase. Photo: Karma Lo

Hong Kong retail sales rise 4.5% in July, marking 15th straight month of growth

Private consumption expenditure rose by 2.8 per cent in real terms in the second quarter. Photo: Edmond So

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

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

Dim sum trolleys go silent as Hong Kong’s Metropol Restaurant closes after 35 years

The company will try to transfer the 100-odd employees to other restaurants it operates, according to restaurant manager Erica Chan. Photo: Karma Lo

Diners choose dim sum from a trolley during the final lunch service of the Metropol Restaurant at the United Centre in Admiralty on Saturday. Photo: Karma Lo

A boy has some fun with toy paper umbrellas at the lunch. The Metropol was one of the few dim sum restaurants in Hong Kong that still served diners from trolleys. Photo: Karma Lo

The restaurant set up a trolley for patrons to take selfies. Manager Erica Chan said most of the tables were fully booked on Saturday. Photo: Karma Lo

Diners enjoy the final lunch at the restaurant. One businessman said family members from the Philippines came to Hong Kong especially to eat at the Metropol on its final day. Photo: Karma Lo

News

Hong Kong

Hong Kong Economy

American ice cream chain says flagship store to open in Causeway Bay in November, followed by three other outlets across city


American ice cream chain says flagship store to open in Causeway Bay in November, followed by three other outlets across city.


Dairy Queen to make Hong Kong comeback with 4 stores. Is it scooping up cheap rents?

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}American ice cream chain says flagship store to open in Causeway Bay in November, followed by three other outlets across city

American ice cream chain says flagship store to open in Causeway Bay in November, followed by three other outlets across city