It might not have been the most exciting competition to watch of the ones that were part of the tournament, but it was definitely amongst the most anticipated by the spectators. Not only was it one of the very few times that they got to help determine the winner of the competition, they would be able to get a good meal for a rather low price.
Add in the extraordinarily rare opportunity to taste something that was personally prepared by the emperor himself, and it was easy to see why the crowd was so worked up. The guards could tell that they were going to have a difficult time keeping peace during the meal service competition, and an even harder time making use of the two meal coins that they had been provided.