How Hong Kong’s Café de Coral Put the Taste Buds First

In the vibrant culinary landscape of Hong Kong, Café de Coral's ‘A Taste of Togetherness’ campaign still stands out.

Blending humour, catchy phrases, and delectable curry dishes, the campaign redefines the concept of togetherness through sheer fun and laughter. Speaking to LBB’s Tom Loudon, Dentsu Creative Hong Kong’s chief creative officer Jeffry Gamble breaks down the campaign’s inspiration, challenges, and the strategic decisions which shaped it.

LBB> The ‘A Taste of Togetherness’ campaign takes a playful and humorous spin in the latest Curry Campaign. How did the idea to reimagine togetherness with sheer fun and laughter come about?

Jeffry> A lot of things connect us. Obviously, the food does, and that is why we wanted to focus the campaign on the taste, and we are connected by the language, particularly the slang unique to Hong Kong. We still wanted to connect with people on an emotional level; we just changed the emotion. 

LBB> The videos in the campaign feature catchy phrases like ‘makes me fly’, ‘is so bomb’, and ‘makes me tremble’, each accompanied by dramatic scenarios. How did you decide on these specific Hong Kong slangs and scenarios to highlight the Curry dishes?

Jeffry> Cantonese is such a rich language, and there are a lot of different ways to say this. We came up with a whole bunch of these phrases and then created scripts around them, then we just chose the ones that got the most laughs.

LBB> The addition of comedic illustrations and social stunts, such as the cinema seats vibrating during the ‘It makes me tremble’ segment, adds an interactive element to the campaign. What inspired these creative touches to engage the audience even further?

Jeffry> We want them to experience it in every way possible, apart from just seeing it. We want them to relate to their real lives; what’s more, we want those experiences to be surprising and out of the box.

We really work in an integrated way here at Dentsu; we don’t bring in the media team at the end after we have sold the idea; we are working together right from the beginning to find new and interesting ways to bring an idea to life.

LBB> The campaign introduces new exotic Curry flavours alongside the signature Hong Kong Curry series. How did you approach showcasing these flavours in a way that resonates with the audience’s taste preferences?

Jeffry> We often enjoy eating curry because of its spikes of taste stimulation: quick, temporary, and distinct aftertaste. Borrowing this experience, we similarly approached our videos – they are all the bite-sized mix of fun scenes. They are super funky and surprising to watch, leaving you with a bizarre feeling at the end. 

LBB> The campaign incorporates both online and offline elements, from digital banners to cinema ads with vibrating seats. How did you ensure seamless integration between these various platforms to deliver a consistent and impactful message?

Jeffry> We didn’t simply want to do matching luggage; we looked to use the platforms to engage with the audience in the most interesting way we could. Throughout the process, we kept asking ourselves whether this stayed true to the idea. If it does, it is in; if not, we throw it and keep working. With this first wave of work, it was about bringing to life the concept of ‘so tasty it will make you tremble,’ what does a shaky photo look like? And we just carried on from there. 

LBB> Café de Coral is known for its ‘A Taste of Togetherness’ platform. How does this campaign align with the brand’s core values while presenting a fresh and unexpected approach?

Jeffry> Café de Coral has been rooted in Hong Kong for 55 years, a household canteen for Hong Kong people. The literal translation of its Chinese name is ‘Happy Together,’ leading to the creation of our creative platform, ‘A Taste of Togetherness.’

The creative platform helped amplify the notion of togetherness and expand possible interpretations of what being together means across times and spaces. We played around with the possibilities and constantly helped to reinterpret the platform to provide new stories and ideas for Hong Kong people as we evolved. 

LBB> The campaign not only captures attention through humour but also aims to highlight the tastiness of the dishes. How do you strike a balance between entertainment and showcasing the product itself?

Jeffry> Did we forget about taste? Not at all. In fact, the whole campaign is about how great the taste of our curries is. We told the taste story in a way that Hong Kong people will understand. We did discuss if we needed great food shots, but we felt that curry was a flavour that people were already familiar with, so we only needed to highlight some of the great things that go into our curries.

LBB> Social media engagement appears to be a significant part of the campaign’s success. Could you share some insights into the audience’s response to the comical illustrations and social stunts?

Jeffry> We are all pretty comfortable treating social media like a news portal to browse and repost content and fun memes, and eventually engage in hot discussions.

Seeking viral attention for one of the most familiar household brands takes work. Therefore, we really need to go far and beyond. We first changed the usual logo profile picture to a prank one, drawing so much attention that some even thought the account was hacked. Right after, we rode on the discussion to launch other social posts, drawing 1400% more engagements.

LBB> The campaign’s tagline, ‘Every bite (好食到)’, plays a central role in each episode. How did you ensure this tagline effectively connects the different scenarios and slang to the brand message?

Jeffry> It might be easier to understand when we literally translate the Cantonese phrase, – ‘It is so tasty that…’ followed by the verb. We then can plug in different imaginative, crazy scenarios to support the absolute good taste.

LBB> As the campaign aims to bond with younger generations, what are your future plans to continue engaging and connecting with this audience while maintaining the element of fun and surprise?

Jeffry> Our standard campaign practice is that no matter what kind of audiences we target, we try to understand their pain points and provide solutions to address their needs, sometimes before they know they actually want or need them. For example, we campaigned to support public examination candidates by offering exam students-only priority seats during the exam period and knowing there are minimal spaces in town for them to study.

Therefore, apart from continuing releasing the Curry series, we will reinvent ourselves and understand what our young crowd needs at different times in advance and vibe along.