Ma Yanli, who runs a beef hotpot chain based in the city of Jiaozuo, called the workers out of a meeting and took them to a BMW dealership to collect cars she paid for in full, Henan TV reported in late September.

One recipient, Li Jie, said Ma told her on the way to the showroom that she was getting "a big toy," according to the South China Morning Post, which said a white BMW was registered in Li's name that day and that Ma did not ask her to sign any agreement in return.

Another employee, Liu Yingying, received a gray BMW and said Ma told her she had earned it through hard work and excellent performance.

Ma, who has worked in the restaurant business for two decades, said the idea came to her on a very cold, windy day when she noticed that the face of one employee, whom she called Xiao Liu, had turned bright red.

"On such a cold day, I can enjoy comfort, so why can't she?" Ma said, in remarks carried by Hangzhou-based newspaper City Express.

"If I can do well, it is not really because I am doing a good job. It is really because they are all doing a good job," she said, adding that the business was built by the whole team and that employees should share in what it earns.

A BMW Vision Neue Klasse is displayed during an event a day ahead of the official opening of the 2023 Munich Auto Show IAA Mobility, in Munich, Germany, Sept. 4, 2023. Photo by Reuters

Most of the restaurant's staff ride electric bikes to and from work, a tough commute in heavy rain, cold snaps and strong winds.

The cars made Ma a trending topic on Chinese social media, where commenters joked about whether the restaurant was hiring.