Aju Business Daily

SEOUL -- In an attempt to ride out a business slump, a major South Korean hotel franchise has unveiled an elegant full-course hotel meal kit for partyers who cannot regale friends or quests due to social distancing. Customers can pick up the meal through a drive-thru service.

Lotte Hotel introduced "Holiday Gala at Home," a six-course meal including a starter, soup, seafood, steak, dessert and snacks. The meal kit, also known as a ready-to-eat kit, includes instructions for heating and a plating guide to give tips on how to decorate a table. The meal kit is available at two of Lotte Hotel's flagship hotels in Seoul and the southern port city of Busan.

Through its drive-thru pick-up service, which was launched to vitalize its restaurant business struck hard by a COVID-19 pandemic, the hotel operator has sold fine dining menus such as steaks, seafood and foreign cuisines. "We decided to release a product targeting home-partyers after our non-face-to-face products such as lunchboxes and ready-to-eat meal sets received positive consumer feedback," Lotte Hotel said.

Meal kits have garnered popularity from people of all ages this year as many avoided crowded places to prevent infection. Ready-to-eat meal sets are available at convenient stores and online stores that provide quick delivery services.