China restaurant offering tea and lion cub hugs criticised by animal groups

16/7/2025 17:41

A restaurant in the northern Chinese province of Shanxi offering hugs with lion cubs while diners have a four-course tea has been criticised by animal welfare groups and drawn condemnation online, however the restaurant says the cubs are well cared for.



Some customers of Wanhui restaurant in Taiyuan city have posted pictures and video clips of themselves cradling lion cubs on China's WeChat and Weibo platforms.



Wanhui, which opened in June, sells about 20 tickets a day to customers looking to snuggle with the animals as part of a set menu costing 1,078 yuan ($150).

The restaurant told Reuters that it did have lion cubs at the restaurant and that they were taken care of very well, with specialised carers to tend to them.



While some zoos around the world, such as in Singapore or Australia, offer dining experiences near animal enclosures or views of the wildlife, it is rare for a restaurant to have direct physical interaction with wild animals.



Besides the cubs, the restaurant also features llamas, turtles and deer on its page on Douyin, China's counterpart to social media app TikTok.