BEIJING, Jan. 20 ，2009 -- More people than last year will celebrate the Chinese New Year by dining out on Saturday, the day before Chinese New Year's Eve, according to hotels and restaurants in Shanghai.

    Restaurants are expected to be about 20 to 30 percent cheaper on Saturday than on Sunday.

    New Year's Eve dinner usually costs from 1,000 yuan (146 U.S. dollars) to 2,000 yuan a table for about 10 people, restaurants in Shanghai said.

    "Bookings for Saturday show a rise of about 14 percent over last year," said Zheng Mengwu of the Shanghai Harvest Festival Group.

    Customers said another reason for choosing the day before New Year's Eve was that restaurants may be less crowded. After eating out on Saturday, they will cook at home on Sunday.

    "We'll have enough time to cook a table of dishes and enjoy them to our heart's content, rather than have a rushed dinner in a restaurant," said Zhang Qian, a saleswoman.

    Zhang said they used to go out for a New Year's Eve dinner when it was a working day, but now it is the first day of the Spring Festival holiday, so they cook at home.

    "We'll dine out with my and my husband's parents on Saturday," said Zhang. "We think we'll enjoy better dishes and better service at a lower cost that night."

    (Source: Shanghai Daily)