Kentucky Fried China

After having visited the only KFC in the whole of Mongolia, it was time therefore to revisit arguably KFC's biggest and most important market........China. We hopped on a train and 33 hours later, we were there - Beijing, where we were soon to encounter the most radical menu item ever!

Emerging from Beijing central railway station KFC appeared to be in rude health. From my standpoint outside the main entrance I could see no less than three separate branches!

What better way to celebrate our arrival in the world's fastest emerging superpower than a visit to a multinational chain owned by its economic rival?... we went in to be confronted by a fairly conventional restaurant, layout wise, but a fairly unconventional menu. Chicken featured, of course, but so did many other weird and wonderful creations.

On this occasion we went for a 'Dragon Twister' - KFC's take on the famous Peking Duck: a wrap including fried chicken, cucumbers, spring onions, and duck sauce. The second choice was a 'Shrimp Burger' - consisting of four King Prawns set into some kind of potato patty; it was pretty good although looked fairly bland.

I should have clocked that a Shrimp Burger meant there were non-chicken menu items available, but what I found in the next branch we visited truly astounded me...... A KFC Beef Burger:

Although this isn't going to win any beauty contests, the six ultra thin beef patties fused together to form one burger provided a surprisingly juicy offering with some mushrooms on top giving a nice extra bit of sophisticated flavour you'd not find in the West.

KFC China confounded my expectations and turned all received wisdom on its head. In my two branch visits I didn't even order a chicken product (though I did try my PA's). Whilst I enjoyed trying and reporting on the strange menu items, to state the obvious... it just ain't chicken. That said, if the stats below are anything to go by they're doing something right. 




KFC CHINA OVERVIEW

To understand the staggering magnitude of this operation, take a look at the below from YUM Brands, the KFC Parent company:

KFC was the first quick-service restaurant chain to enter China in 1987. Today, KFC is the number one quick-service restaurant brand in China with more than 4,400 restaurants in more than 850 cities. In fact, we open more than one new KFC every day in China. In addition to Original Recipe chicken, KFC has an extensive menu featuring beef, seafood, rice dishes, fresh vegetables, soups, breakfast, desserts, and other products that appeal to Chinese consumers’ tastes.

KFB last visited China in March 2011, and looking at the figures above you'll see they've added over 700 new restaurants since then.... a phenomenal rate of growth.

And the list of superlatives continues:

Clifford Coonan of The Irish Times describes KFC as "by far the most pervasive symbol of Western culture in China". This is evidenced by the below picture of a KFC I visited at Badaling, where you can just see China's famous Great Wall in the background:

Ninety percent of Chinese sites are company owned, in contrast to just 11 percent internationally.

In 2008, Novak (Yum Chief Executive) said that he envisioned eventually operating more than 20,000 restaurants in China.

McDonalds, the arch rival boasted only 1705 restaurants in China in 2012 so KFC has clearly stolen the march on its old foe.

KFC World Tour, Part 4: China

Yes, my good friends, China. The far east, the orient. A land of tradition, culture and over 4000 years of known history. One of the world's oldest civilisations...and to the typical western man (e.g. myself), a strange, alien place.

Arriving in Beijing, I found myself overwhelmed by very different cultural and lifestyle conventions. People everywhere, huge roads, bicycles, street sellers, flashing signs and strange sights and smells. However, one very important interest that Eastern and Western cultures share is in the fast food market. That's right, KFC is the most popular fast food chain in China. As this report goes on to explain:

In China, KFC has achieved such dominance over McDonald’s and local rivals that Colonel Harland Sanders’s image is a far more common sight in many Chinese cities than that of Mao.

As I found out for myself, this is indeed the case, and it was easy to spot the sheer number of KFC outlets by just wandering around the city. It was time to see what all the fuss was about.

For the real experience, I decided to head inland to the heart of China. The Western style shopping malls of Beijing were not a true test of Chinese KFC and so it was decided that an overnight train to Xi'an would be necessary. Arriving in Xi'an I quickly found the most popular branch near the long distance bus depot - a huge building, open 24/7 and seemingly always packed with locals tucking into delicious chicken.



Inside, I struggled to find a seat and had to share with some locals. The most popular meal of choice seemed to be the Colonel's staple fare, buckets of chicken wings, drumsticks and thighs - meat on the bone was clearly the local preference here. Overcoming the language barrier with some difficulty, I eventually managed to order a set meal, opting for what appeared to be a Zinger Meal with hot wings, coleslaw, and strange pie thing and a fruit juice drink. Strangely, none of the standard meals came with chips and it was only after some time studying the Chinese menu that they were spotted in the extras section.



The Zinger style burger and hot wings were exactly what I have come to expect, spicy and crispy with a secret recipe coating. The chicken, as I fully expected, was not up to the same juicy, plump standards of the UK, but it was good enough and provided ample sustenance. The strangest parts of the meal were the drink and small tartlet. Rather than the standard Pepsi we have come to expect, the drink was an almost tropical flavoured cordial style drink, quite refreshing and I'm sure much healthier than a carbonated alternative. The small tartlet looked to be savory on first inspection but actually turned out to be a sweet egg custard tart, a pastry commonly found in asian countries and in portuguese cuisine. Although the taste of the egg tart wasn't to my liking, it made me wonder why this kind of complete meal isn't offered in Western KFCs. I think a box meal that included some kind of small dessert or sweet pastry as a post-chicken treat could be a great idea.

It was now clear to me that the Colonel's secret recipe tastes the same anywhere in the world, even in exotic and strange locations, and the Colonel's staple fried chicken is loved the world over. The time had come to visit the opposite side of the globe, as far from the UK as I have ever been. Back into Westernised culture, but to see what innovations are being made almost 12000 Km from home. Next stop, New Zealand!