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Sign up with Google Sign up with FacebookQ: KFC vs Cepe - American food chains taking over?
Hi again!
Its great to have found a expat site such as this one! Definitely will be posting all my questions/ordeals in here!
So get this ... Friday we finished work and decided to invite our new partners out to dinner.
Not being entirely familiar with China culinary culture, I decided to go on the safe side.
I decided to take them to Cepe a well reviewed restaurant back in New York in Beijing financial district.
5 stars in the Ritz Carlton, best hand made pasta's and selection of wine. "yay for company cc's! :D"
Everyone agreed and off we went. We came across a KFC.
They some how all get excited, started talking about the food chain...etc
and to my great demise, they decided to go in.
I was shocked... How can a KFC take precedence over a top notch Italian meal!!??
In NYC you would get fired on the spot for taking partners or customers out to a fast food!!
PLUS we had to wait 1h30 to get served!!!! Insane!
So ladies and gentlemen, China is renowned world wide for it refined culinary culture but is just me or the American food chains are taking over China?
This story moved me to tears.
I have absolutely no idea why they worship KFC here, so this 'answer' is ultimately deemed obsolete, but as a passing observation, it's weird to see that there are so many more KFCs than let's say McDonalds or other junk food chains, and hardly ANY Burger Kings.
I guess Chinese just love their chickins!
"Chikkedy China, the Chinese chickin... you have a drumstick and your brain stops tickin"
AHAHAHA! thanks Ludovico, love the response!
I wonder what they pass for chicken though?
I wouldn't dare and give an answer to your question, although I can corroborate that Chinese people completely love KFC. Sometime i even wonder how far they'd go for a drumstick.
But I do not think it's only the American food chains that are taking over, but a whole culture being imported. I remember somehere on answers.echinacities.com a post where no Chinese could tell what were the national emblems of their countary. They didn't even care. So it may be easier to try and adopt a culture based on tolerance and acceptance. So it's not just about the Colonel secret spices, but also their obession with learning english, and getting close to the 'mericans, thus why they hire 'merican teachers as much as they produce those KFC drumsticks.
When I look at the Chinese family that opened a restaurant in my hometown of Montana, 'Merica, I would believe it... They just love their stars'n stripe hats! Once, they even played the National Anthem in the restaurant during dinner time, but it was super akward because everybody stood up and put their hands on their heart, including the owner's daughter in the kitchen. My general Tao was burnt, but since they're so nice, they didn't charge me for it!
This is kind of a late answer, but the reason you see more KFCs than McDonalds is that KFC did a little wheelin' and dealin' with the Commies in many cities when they first came over, to the effect that McDonald's wouldn't be allowed in for 5 years. To give KFC the edge, let them teach the locals to love their stuff. I've been in three different cities in different years when their first McDonalds opened. For years afterward the McDonalds would be packed out the door and down the street, and the KFC nearly empty. (And some of the people in there were actually eating McDonalds food they'd brought across the street because there were no seats at the McDonalds.) But they still haven't totally overcome the KFC 5 year head start. There's definitely more KFCs around.
If anybody gets excited to go to KFC you definitely have to wonder why...I go there for lunch sometimes because it's cheap. I recently stopped and switched over to Mcdonalds. During lunchtime Mcdonalds will be crowded and packed with customers. Some of them can't find a seat becase of the seating capacity is limited to about 100 people or so that's top and bottom floors.
If anything they should bring over Hardee's or Carl's Jr as it's called on the west coast and also Wendy's! Now we're talking!!