A great story published recently by the Guardian newspaper:
Saturday, 29 June 2013
KFC Croatia
Wracked by a brutal civil war less that 20 years ago, Croatia is slowly finding its feet. It's popularity amongst tourists grows year on year, yet one thing that hasn't developed at the speed the people would like is the number of KFC outlets in the country.
At the time of KFB's visit, this country of 4.2 million people all had to share just 1 KFC! To put this staggering fact into perspective, that's like us here in the UK having only 14 KFC's (thankfully we have closer to 800).
Things are however moving in the right direction with a further 2 branches having opened although still all in and around the capital, Zagreb.
The country itself is oddly shaped, with Zagreb in the north whilst some of the nations other largest cities Zadar, Split and Dubrovnik are all on the coast to the south. Some people would have to drive 375 miles to their closest branch, (and I moan about 10 miles).
The first branch, and one that KFB visited was in the Arena Centar, a few miles south of the city centre and less than one year old when we visited.
We opted for an Impressively named 'Grander' Burger that KFB have sampled in the past, and whilst it was good, it was clear that this was a country still learning how to produce the very best that the colonel has to offer (something which I'm always very happy to say, the UK has gone a long way towards achieving.)
The grander itself was a fillet, mayo, lettuce and toasted bun
Essentially this was a good effort and with the news that two further branches have opened in recent months, a sure sign of strides in the right direction!
http://www.croatiaweek.com/kfc-in-croatia-one-year-on/
And in case you were wondering, lack of KFC on a country can have serious effects on the population, in the town of Mostar in next door Bosnia, a country still not home to a single KFC, people were literally throwing themselves off bridges in depair!
At the time of KFB's visit, this country of 4.2 million people all had to share just 1 KFC! To put this staggering fact into perspective, that's like us here in the UK having only 14 KFC's (thankfully we have closer to 800).
Things are however moving in the right direction with a further 2 branches having opened although still all in and around the capital, Zagreb.
The country itself is oddly shaped, with Zagreb in the north whilst some of the nations other largest cities Zadar, Split and Dubrovnik are all on the coast to the south. Some people would have to drive 375 miles to their closest branch, (and I moan about 10 miles).
The first branch, and one that KFB visited was in the Arena Centar, a few miles south of the city centre and less than one year old when we visited.
The branch was obviously very recently built and so well appointed on a par with other western European outlets. Sadly as you may see from the picture it shared space in the food court with a McDonalds
We opted for an Impressively named 'Grander' Burger that KFB have sampled in the past, and whilst it was good, it was clear that this was a country still learning how to produce the very best that the colonel has to offer (something which I'm always very happy to say, the UK has gone a long way towards achieving.)
The grander itself was a fillet, mayo, lettuce and toasted bun
Essentially this was a good effort and with the news that two further branches have opened in recent months, a sure sign of strides in the right direction!
http://www.croatiaweek.com/kfc-in-croatia-one-year-on/
And in case you were wondering, lack of KFC on a country can have serious effects on the population, in the town of Mostar in next door Bosnia, a country still not home to a single KFC, people were literally throwing themselves off bridges in depair!
Tuesday, 2 April 2013
London's trendy chicken offerings vs. The Colonel: an epic battle
First burritos, then burgers, now...fried chicken. Yes folks, fried chicken is indeed the latest craze in trend-loving London town. Over the past 6 months we've watched with interest as a number of fowl establishments have popped up in various guises across our capital.
Here at KFB we felt it was important that we tried as many of these offerings as possible in order to answer for our readers the ultimate question: can anyone do fried chicken as well as the Colonel? Here's how we judged - each venue is scored against 2 simple criteria: taste and value. All orders were compared to the equivalent offering at KFC - chicken burgers vs. Fillet Tower burger, classic fried chicken vs. Original Recipe chicken pieces and so on. Here's how they stacked up.
Rita's, Dalston
While they serve a variety of different American style dishes we were only here for one thing: the much lauded fried chicken sandwich. Famous food critic Jay Rayner had this to say about it:
“Rita’s Bar and Dining in Dalston is a serious piece of work. This will probably be the best fried chicken you’ve ever had.”
Bold claims indeed, Mr Rayner and not entirely unfounded. The chicken was indeed very tasty and incredibly crunchy, even giving Extra Tasty Crispy treats from the Colonel a run for their money. Ultimately though at £6.50 a pop it just can't hope to stack up to it's larger, more cheese and hash brown laden brethren - the Fillet Tower.
Taste: 4/5
Value: 3/5
Does it beat the Colonel? No
Big thanks to WhatJoannaAte for the pic.
Spit & Roast, food stall
Taste: 3.5/5
Value: 2.5/5
Does it beat the Colonel? No
Roost, Soho pop up
Operating out of a Soho pub's kitchen for a couple of months, Roost offered a wide range of chicken-based dishes. Clearly though it was the fried chicken that we had to sample. We opted for an off-menu buttermilk fried chicken burger with chorizo and aioli. While delicious and the coating very crispy, the combination of the two accompanying strong flavours was perhaps a bit much. We would however like to see the Colonel experiment with chorizo as an alternative to the usual bacon.
Taste: 3.5/5
Value: 3/5
Does it beat the Colonel? No
Wishbone, Brixton
If you follow the UK fast food scene you'll have no doubt heard of MeatLiquor - the restaurant (and travelling van before it) that could well be credited with kick-starting London's renewed interest in pimped-up fast food. Imagine our excitement then when we heard that some of the people involved were opening a chicken only shop in South London's Brixton village market. Then imagine our disappointment when we arrived only to find extremely cramped 'tables' (shelves sticking out of the walls) and sub par fries that tasted as if they'd come straight out of a freezer via an ALDI. The chicken didn't fare much better - we sampled the Thai and Buffalo thigh nuggets, both of which came in very vinegary sauces that went soggy all too quickly. Colour us disappointed.
Taste: 2/5
Value: 3/5
Does it beat the Colonel? No
Mother Clucker Soho pop up
In similar vein to Roost, these chaps are currently appearing at a Soho pub (the Endurance on Berwick St). The menu is a fairly sparse affair - we opted for the combo that included a buttermilk biscuit, some 'Cluster Clucks' which were similar to popcorn chicken, a drumstick and some waffle fries. As intriguing as they sound, waffle fries essentially equate to crisps and weren't particularly interesting. Better was the chicken - the popcorn style bites were the real winners - tasty and crunchy in equal measure. At £7.50 it did offer good value - though with a box meal at the Colonel offering a similar quantity of food at £2 or so less, they were never going to win out on the money front. Oh and the biggest disappointment - the lack of gravy. As all chicken fans know, a tub of lubricant to help the fowl slide down is essential.
Taste: 3.5/5
Value: 3.5/5
Does it beat the Colonel? No
Lucky Fried Chicken, Kentish Town pop up
Pop up. Pub. You may have spotted a bit of a theme here. The chaps who have in this blogger's opinion crafted London's best burger (check out http://www.luckychipuk.com/) were doing a residency above a pub in North London that has now sadly come to an end. First to draw our attention was the familiar effigy and tagline in use. Sacrilegious on the one hand, inspired on the other - we'll let you decide.
Between 4 of us we opted for 2 Jumbo boxes and a couple of fries and coleslaws for good measure. As it turns out this was a bountiful bevy of food. And oh what food it was. First off we sampled the coating. Though not hugely crunchy it was bursting with flavour. We're not sure what herbs and spices they were using (and certainly not the same as in Original Recipe) but damn, that was some serious taste. Then onto the chicken itself - we can safely say we've never before sampled chicken as juicy as this. In fact, we'd struggle to think of any kind of meat we've ever sampled anywhere that was this juicy. Much like the Colonel, though the sides were tasty, the chicken was absolutely the star of the show. And between the four of us, the meal came in well under £10 each, not including beer.
Is it wrong to say that we've found chicken better than that at KFC? Quite possibly. Is it true? 3 of our team sampled the chicken and in our expert opinions, we'd have to say yes. Now remember that this was a tiny pop up above a pub, not a huge international chain. And that it did indeed cost more than the equivalent at KFC. But we've got to hand it to them, the folks at LFC certainly know what they're doing. Colonel - we hope you're watching.
Taste: 5/5
Value: 4.5/5
Does it beat the Colonel? Yes, yes it does.
Here at KFB we felt it was important that we tried as many of these offerings as possible in order to answer for our readers the ultimate question: can anyone do fried chicken as well as the Colonel? Here's how we judged - each venue is scored against 2 simple criteria: taste and value. All orders were compared to the equivalent offering at KFC - chicken burgers vs. Fillet Tower burger, classic fried chicken vs. Original Recipe chicken pieces and so on. Here's how they stacked up.
Rita's, Dalston
While they serve a variety of different American style dishes we were only here for one thing: the much lauded fried chicken sandwich. Famous food critic Jay Rayner had this to say about it:
“Rita’s Bar and Dining in Dalston is a serious piece of work. This will probably be the best fried chicken you’ve ever had.”
Bold claims indeed, Mr Rayner and not entirely unfounded. The chicken was indeed very tasty and incredibly crunchy, even giving Extra Tasty Crispy treats from the Colonel a run for their money. Ultimately though at £6.50 a pop it just can't hope to stack up to it's larger, more cheese and hash brown laden brethren - the Fillet Tower.
Taste: 4/5
Value: 3/5
Does it beat the Colonel? No
Big thanks to WhatJoannaAte for the pic.
Spit & Roast, food stall
We encountered these folks at a street food market in Dalston (we don't hang out there every day, honest). They were serving a buttermilk fried chicken burger with Korean sauce. Given that we had a slider, the closest comparison would be a Mini Fillet. And while the sauce was very interesting (and quite spicy), the mini burger cost about £3 (nearly triple the cost of the Mini FIllet). Still, a tastily different take on fried chicken.
Taste: 3.5/5
Value: 2.5/5
Does it beat the Colonel? No
Roost, Soho pop up
Taste: 3.5/5
Value: 3/5
Does it beat the Colonel? No
Wishbone, Brixton
If you follow the UK fast food scene you'll have no doubt heard of MeatLiquor - the restaurant (and travelling van before it) that could well be credited with kick-starting London's renewed interest in pimped-up fast food. Imagine our excitement then when we heard that some of the people involved were opening a chicken only shop in South London's Brixton village market. Then imagine our disappointment when we arrived only to find extremely cramped 'tables' (shelves sticking out of the walls) and sub par fries that tasted as if they'd come straight out of a freezer via an ALDI. The chicken didn't fare much better - we sampled the Thai and Buffalo thigh nuggets, both of which came in very vinegary sauces that went soggy all too quickly. Colour us disappointed.
Taste: 2/5
Value: 3/5
Does it beat the Colonel? No
Mother Clucker Soho pop up
In similar vein to Roost, these chaps are currently appearing at a Soho pub (the Endurance on Berwick St). The menu is a fairly sparse affair - we opted for the combo that included a buttermilk biscuit, some 'Cluster Clucks' which were similar to popcorn chicken, a drumstick and some waffle fries. As intriguing as they sound, waffle fries essentially equate to crisps and weren't particularly interesting. Better was the chicken - the popcorn style bites were the real winners - tasty and crunchy in equal measure. At £7.50 it did offer good value - though with a box meal at the Colonel offering a similar quantity of food at £2 or so less, they were never going to win out on the money front. Oh and the biggest disappointment - the lack of gravy. As all chicken fans know, a tub of lubricant to help the fowl slide down is essential.
Taste: 3.5/5
Value: 3.5/5
Does it beat the Colonel? No
Lucky Fried Chicken, Kentish Town pop up
Pop up. Pub. You may have spotted a bit of a theme here. The chaps who have in this blogger's opinion crafted London's best burger (check out http://www.luckychipuk.com/) were doing a residency above a pub in North London that has now sadly come to an end. First to draw our attention was the familiar effigy and tagline in use. Sacrilegious on the one hand, inspired on the other - we'll let you decide.
Between 4 of us we opted for 2 Jumbo boxes and a couple of fries and coleslaws for good measure. As it turns out this was a bountiful bevy of food. And oh what food it was. First off we sampled the coating. Though not hugely crunchy it was bursting with flavour. We're not sure what herbs and spices they were using (and certainly not the same as in Original Recipe) but damn, that was some serious taste. Then onto the chicken itself - we can safely say we've never before sampled chicken as juicy as this. In fact, we'd struggle to think of any kind of meat we've ever sampled anywhere that was this juicy. Much like the Colonel, though the sides were tasty, the chicken was absolutely the star of the show. And between the four of us, the meal came in well under £10 each, not including beer.
Is it wrong to say that we've found chicken better than that at KFC? Quite possibly. Is it true? 3 of our team sampled the chicken and in our expert opinions, we'd have to say yes. Now remember that this was a tiny pop up above a pub, not a huge international chain. And that it did indeed cost more than the equivalent at KFC. But we've got to hand it to them, the folks at LFC certainly know what they're doing. Colonel - we hope you're watching.
Taste: 5/5
Value: 4.5/5
Does it beat the Colonel? Yes, yes it does.
Sunday, 24 March 2013
Hot Shots Box Meal, new fries and Kream Balls
It's been slow on the news front recently, but like London buses, you wait ages for one and then 3 come at once. All of a sudden we've been inundated with a bevy of new menu additions and updates, so of course it was time to dispatch a trusty KFB reporter and get a full run-down on the changes.
The first news item concerns the release (or re-release) of the Hot Shots Box Meal, which we can only assume is the most recent TLO. The deal includes a Zinger burger, usual combo of fries, drink and side, plus 3 boneless "Hot Shots", which are essentially giant popcorn chicken with a "fiery marinade" and ETC (extra tasty crispy) coating.
The second story is a real milestone - new fries! KFC UK have apparently been hard at work testing and surveying the British public in an effort to improve on their current offering, the result: "you asked so we changed them". The new fries are described as being crispier and an improvement, but we'll be the judge of that. Finally, the third story, is more of a discovery than an announcement. A KFB researcher recently spotted the existence of a new dessert product - the KFC Kream Ball. Either we missed the press release for this one or it was released under the radar to gauge opinion - either way, it's available now at certain branches, so it's about time we gave it the once over.
First up, Hot Shots. Fans of the old Crispy Strips (RIP), Zinger burger and Hot Rods will love these little nuggets thanks to the light but spicy coating, which gives a fairly distinctive flavour compared to the traditional Original Recipe coating. I wouldn't describe them as particularly spicy (as the Hot Shots ad would have you believe) but they do have a very subtle kick. Overall, I'd say the Hot Shots box meal is worth a go, especially for boneless fans who want a bit of zing.
Next up, new fries. On first inspection, they certainly do look crispier and also have a thinner cut. They look a lot more like McDonald's or Burger King fries now, though nowhere near as crispy as BK and not quite as thin as McD's. Unfortunately, I can't say they are an improvement. It might just be that the particular batch of fries I was given had been sat around for a while (they were a little cold) but they were certainly no crispier than the old fries...nor did they taste any different. In fact I could tell no discerning difference between the new and old fries, expect that they are now smaller. We'll be investigating this further by testing a fresher batch soon.
Finally, the KFC Kream Ball. Ordering made me feel a little ridiculous (not sure if the marketing team were having an off day why they named this) and even caused a little giggle from my server. I opted for the chocolate version which consists of Mr. Whippy style ice cream, topped with an indulgent chocolate sauce and small chunks of chocolate, served in a transparent plastic ball with a nifty little KFC branded spoon. The ice cream was very good and chocolate sauce generously applied throughout, even at the bottom, which was a nice touch and made the last few mouthfuls a treat rather than a disappointing finish. The Kream Ball isn't anything particularly special but it's a good competitor to the McFlurry - I'd like to see more options for toppings in the future, potentially with chocolate bar brands like the ones found in Krushems.
The Hot Shots Box Meal and Kream Ball are decent enough (though not particularly exciting), but the jury is still out on wether the new fries are really an improvement. It is, however, encouraging to see KFC responding to customer feedback, something that we'd like to see more of in the future.
Sunday, 13 January 2013
Cajun Boxmaster Review
After a few lackluster Time Limited Offers, (TLO) let's hope that KFC have started 2013 as they mean to go on, for no sooner had the new year started, KFC had brought back a KFB TLO favourite with a twist.......Introducing the Cajun Boxmaster:
At £3.79 for a burger alone or £4.79 for a meal this represents good value for money which I was first able to sample on Saturday 12th of January at the Congleton branch.
For hardened fans of the letter F there may be some disappointment as this product is prepared with a Griddled and not fried chicken breast, and my server told me he was unable to prepare it with a Zinger fillet.
My meal arrived neatly packaged, but straight away the packaging itself is very minimalistic and plain, not really giving any added visual stimulation to the food that awaits, although this is in line with an ecologically sound packaging initiative, perhaps some added colour would help?
The wrap that is used to enclose the contents of the burger is the same size used for the standard line of twisters and is well proportioned to contain two end to end mini fillets that compile the Twister. However when trying to contain a single chicken breast as in this case either a lot of superfluous wrap ends up at the bottom of the product sullying you last few bites, of the top of the product contains a couple of inches of limp wrap concealing the contents until you've taken your first few bites.
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Once in though, this was a good product, apart from the aforementioned wrap issue this was well constructed with the right amount of each constituent part, fresh lettuce and diced tomato wreathed the chicken which was plump and juicy with no hint of dryness, the char grilled taste was really evident as part of the overall symphony of flavours and complimented perfectly the fruity and lightly spiced Cajun sauce, whilst the hash brown just gave some extra substance.
For me personally it was hard to get past the lack of coating on the chicken and so i felt it was lacking that certain indescribable satisfaction. However it must be said that from an unbiased perspective this is tasty product and shows KFC is really innovating again.
If only a range of box masters were on the menu full time!
VALUE 7/10
TASTE 7.5/10
INNOVATION 6.5/10
At £3.79 for a burger alone or £4.79 for a meal this represents good value for money which I was first able to sample on Saturday 12th of January at the Congleton branch.
For hardened fans of the letter F there may be some disappointment as this product is prepared with a Griddled and not fried chicken breast, and my server told me he was unable to prepare it with a Zinger fillet.
My meal arrived neatly packaged, but straight away the packaging itself is very minimalistic and plain, not really giving any added visual stimulation to the food that awaits, although this is in line with an ecologically sound packaging initiative, perhaps some added colour would help?
The wrap that is used to enclose the contents of the burger is the same size used for the standard line of twisters and is well proportioned to contain two end to end mini fillets that compile the Twister. However when trying to contain a single chicken breast as in this case either a lot of superfluous wrap ends up at the bottom of the product sullying you last few bites, of the top of the product contains a couple of inches of limp wrap concealing the contents until you've taken your first few bites.
.jpg)
Once in though, this was a good product, apart from the aforementioned wrap issue this was well constructed with the right amount of each constituent part, fresh lettuce and diced tomato wreathed the chicken which was plump and juicy with no hint of dryness, the char grilled taste was really evident as part of the overall symphony of flavours and complimented perfectly the fruity and lightly spiced Cajun sauce, whilst the hash brown just gave some extra substance.
For me personally it was hard to get past the lack of coating on the chicken and so i felt it was lacking that certain indescribable satisfaction. However it must be said that from an unbiased perspective this is tasty product and shows KFC is really innovating again.
If only a range of box masters were on the menu full time!
VALUE 7/10
TASTE 7.5/10
INNOVATION 6.5/10
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