Yes, an enduring practical joke at that. Some of the more popular food here in HK and across the border in mainland China are recent 'creations' marketed as 'status-symbol delicacies. For instance, shark's fin soup was (apparently) unheard of until the 1970's when it suddenly became an essential wedding banquet dish, with the implication that you had to have it, or you were still of peasant stock. That's one of the sad realities of sudden wealth in this part of the world, with the natural world suffering as a result. Think shark's fin, rhino horn, tiger dick, bear bile etc..