Chapter 374 KFC Opening
Gao Xiulan has been setting up a stall in Qianmen recently and often passes by there. There are always a few containers piled up at the door while the store is under renovation.
"The place is easy to spot, right next to the Lao She Teahouse."
Xie Yi thought for a moment and said, "Then this location is pretty good."
Anyway, the area in front of the gate has a good flow of people and is considered a busy area.
Lin Xiaotong was a little greedy. She didn't expect that KFC had opened a store in mainland China so early.
I have to try it.
"I guess there will be a lot of people opening tomorrow."
Gao Xiulan grabbed Daju, who was about to stick to the coal stove, and spanked him hard on the butt a few times.
This cat just won't listen. It won't behave itself until its whiskers are burned off.
The front store of KFC is a three-story building, which is very impressive.
Orange was very excited. He stood up and ran two laps, with joy in every strand of his hair.
"I want to eat too."
Xie Yi kindly reminded: "My daughter, tomorrow is Thursday."
That is to say, except for Gao Xiulan, everyone else is on a working day.
Orange's ponytail drooped down instantly: "Okay."
Lin Xiaotong thought about tomorrow's class schedule. She happened to have classes in the afternoon.
"It's okay, I can line up in the morning, and then I'll pick you up at noon when you get out of school.
Or I can pack it up and bring it back for you."
This should be KFC's first store in mainland China, so it might be nice to go and join in the fun.
What would KFC look like in the 1980s?
It would be a pity not to go and see it.
Orange hugged her neck and put his face close to hers: "Mom is the best."
Gao Xiulan glared at Haodaer unhappily, but she also felt a little sorry for him as he hadn't had a good rest for several days.
"I'm free. I'll go line up after breakfast tomorrow and I'll definitely get a seat."
When Guan Lamei was talking in the morning, Zhang Dazui stood by and wanted to join in the fun.
KFC’s promotional gimmick is that you can experience the Western lifestyle at your doorstep for a little money.
The evening paper said that you can have an American fried chicken meal for 5 dollars.
I have to say that this promotional point is still able to appeal to the curiosity of Chinese people.
A meal costs at most a dozen yuan, and a few yuan is enough if you eat less.
This amount of money is much cheaper than flying abroad.
When it comes to keeping up with the latest trends, no one wants to fall behind.
Otherwise, when everyone is chatting, others will be talking all the time while you know nothing, which is so embarrassing.
Xie Yi was used to being scolded. It didn't hurt at all and he didn't feel anything at all.
He touched his nose, bared his big teeth, and came over: "Mom, then I want to eat it tomorrow too."
Gao Xiulan finally made the decision: "Okay, Xiaotong and I will go to queue up tomorrow.
Xie Yi, please pick up the oranges when you get off work at noon. Old Xie, you can just come directly.
It just so happens that we don’t have to cook at home for lunch tomorrow.”
"Okay."
…
"Hiss~ It's actually snowing today! Xie Yi, you should wear more clothes in the morning."
The temperature was low in mid-November, and Lin Xiaotong still felt a little cold when she crawled out of the warm bed.
I simply got dressed in bed, put on thick socks, got out of bed and went to the window.
Xie Yi poked his head out from under the quilt, with messy hair on his head.
There are some red marks under the collarbone, and they still itch a little when I scratch them.
His wife really loves him, she is so rude.
But he likes it!
"I see. The ground might be a little wet. Wear your little leather boots so you won't be cold."
She was wearing a down jacket, but it was a short one.
After walking a few steps in the room, I felt my legs were still a little cold, so I took out a long pair of clothes from the closet and put them on.
"You're right."
Keeping warm in winter is the most important thing, she doesn't want to suffer from cold legs in the future.
Sometimes she really admires Er Nengzi. He dares to wear ripped jeans even in winter. What a tough guy!
Xie Yi smiled proudly, he was still very smart.
He never mentioned the embarrassing incident when he was a kid, when he refused to wear thermal underwear in order to look good, caught a cold, and was eventually taken home by Xie Da Jiao, had his pants stripped off, and was severely beaten.
My butt still hurts when I think about it now.
Xie Da Jiao knocked lightly on the door a few times: "Are you up? Come out for breakfast."
"Here I come."
She responded quickly and tied her hair up so that it would be more convenient to wash later.
Breakfast in winter is relatively simple. This morning I also added fried dough sticks, soy milk and soy juice that I bought in the alley.
The taste of soy milk is very overbearing. Lin Xiaotong drank her own soy milk, but she could still smell the taste from Xie Yi's bowl next to her.
Sometimes it's not good to have a very sensitive nose.
Zhima and Daju were probably genuine Beijing cats, they were not afraid at all, and they were pulling at Xie Dajiao's trouser legs hard, looking like they also wanted to have a sip.
After breakfast, everyone went about their business.
Lin Xiaotong pushed her bicycle out, ready to take Gao Xiulan to see the opening of KFC.
"Xiu Lan, wait for me, I want to go too."
Zhang Dazui took a day off today, so he hurried out as well. Guan Lamei was waiting for him in the front yard.
"Hey, where are you guys going?"
Diao Yulian rushed out of the door and looked at them in confusion.
Ever since Wu Jiabao went to Guangzhou to attend university, the Wu family has been quiet for a while.
Recently, there was another uproar because of Wu Shengli's secret hiding of his own money.
Guan Lamei took over the conversation and adjusted her hat.
"Let's go to Qianmen. Isn't there a Western restaurant opening there?"
"Western fast food? I don't like it. You guys go ahead and I won't get involved."
Diao Yulian looked indifferent on the surface, but she actually wanted to go a little.
But that’s not possible. After Jiabao graduates from university, he will have to find a partner and get married.
It will be a large sum of money by then, so you’d better spend it frugally.
"Then let's go."
Several people pushed the car outside the courtyard gate and headed towards the front door.
The exact location is No. 1 Zhengyang Market, Qianmen West Street. When we arrived at the place, there were already quite a few people gathered at the door to watch the performance.
After storing their bicycles, several people squeezed in quickly.
The grand opening of the first KFC in mainland China in 1987
The first thing you see is a bright red sign with eye-catching words written on it: "KFC Hometown Chicken" and "American Fast Food".
There was already a performance team dancing the yangge enthusiastically in the open space in front.
The onlookers on the side were enjoying the show very much, shouting "good" from time to time, creating a very lively atmosphere.
Although snowflakes were still falling outside, people kept coming over.
After the ribbon-cutting ceremony, people began to line up and squeeze in.
Lin Xiaotong looked back at the long line behind her, and the tail of the line kept extending backwards.
He sighed out loud: "There are so many people."
Gao Xiulan agreed: "We all want to see what KFC is like."
There was a person in the middle of the team holding a basin in his hand, and he was arguing with the person in front.
"Sister, why do you bring a basin and chopsticks?"
"I came here to buy KFC to take back for my eldest grandson. If the chicken is too big, I'll be worried if I don't bring a basin with me."
"You're right."
"What about your chopsticks?"
"Don't we always use chopsticks when eating chicken at home? Why not just grab it with our hands?"
“That’s right too.”
The line was very long at this time, and Lin Xiaotong also noticed that the police officers nearby had come over to help maintain order.
KFC's business is really booming.
A few people came early and spent more than an hour queuing. When they looked at the time, it was already past ten o'clock.
There is a sculpture of an old man with a white beard at the door. One aunt was curious and reached out to touch the man's face.
"It's finally our turn." Gao Xiulan touched her stomach and felt really hungry.
As soon as Guan Lamei pushed the door open, her eyes could hardly move.
"Oh my god, everyone here is so beautiful!"
The waiters inside are all tall and handsome. The men are over 175cm tall, and the women are at least 165cm tall.
This job sounds no less prestigious than the "Eight Major Staffs". After all, it is also a job in a foreign-funded enterprise, which sounds respectable.
The salary is high, estimated to be 260 yuan a month excluding bonuses, which is several times the salary of a worker.
It is said that when the first batch of employees were selected, more than 2,000 people applied and after multiple rounds of screening only 79 people were successfully hired.
He is truly one in a hundred.
Apart from anything else, this person is very pleasing to the eye.
Guan Lamei felt that this trip was not in vain.
At least she felt good about spending the money eating here.
The store has three floors in total. The first and second floors include the ordering area and dining area, with a total of 505 seats.
The third floor is used as an office.
KFC signed the contract in April 1987, started renovations in May, and opened in November after working overtime.
The progress is also astonishingly fast.
Once you enter, you have to queue up to order. The most intuitive feeling is that the lights are very bright and the waiters have very bright smiles.
The display cabinets, refrigerator, fryer, and even the decorative paintings on the wall are all imported.
Ordering Area
Lin Xiaotong looked up at the set meal offered today for 7.3 yuan per portion, which included 2 pieces of original chicken, 1 serving of mashed potatoes with chicken gravy, 1 serving of shredded vegetable salad and 1 small dinner roll.
In addition to these four items, there are four other drinks left on the menu: Coke, 7-Up, Mirinda and beer.
It turns out that the newly opened KFC only sold 8 kinds of food, so there weren't many choices.
A serving of original chicken costs 2.5 yuan, which is not cheap.
After much calculation, most people still think that ordering a set meal is the most cost-effective. They take out a big unity banknote from their pocket with a painful heart, pay the money and receive a small receipt with a number written on it.
The children's eyes sparkled and they sniffed hard at the smell of fried chicken in the air.
Really looking forward to it.
When you pick up your meal, the waiter will hand you a red tray with folded paper towels thoughtfully placed inside.
Gao Xiulan stretched her neck and looked at the plate that the person in front of her had taken away.
I was a little surprised: "Is this all there is in a set meal? Can it fill you up?"
Guan Lamei muttered, "I definitely won't be able to do it anyway. This stuff isn't even enough to fill my teeth!"
Lin Xiaotong ordered two set meals first, and the money was taken from Xie Yi's pocket last night.
"Just treat it as a rarity." Zhang Dazui was a little curious about the taste of fried chicken.
It's impossible to fry chicken at home because it uses too much oil. Anyway, no one in their compound has ever made this dish.
Even a spendthrift cannot be this bad.
Lin Xiaotong felt that if she asked Aunt Wei, the most stingy woman in the alley, to come over, she would probably faint from anger before even eating.
After a busy morning, they were finally able to eat.
Gao Xiulan didn't start eating yet, but looked at the people next to her eating.
"I'm really not used to not having chopsticks."
There are no disposable gloves now, so people basically eat with their hands. Those who are a little more particular will wrap it in a tissue and savor it slowly.
Lin Xiaotong drank the free drink given at the opening ceremony and tasted the fried chicken.
As soon as you put it in your mouth, you will find that the fried chicken is tender and tasty, with plenty of juice and the spices have been marinated into it.
Guan Lamei finished a piece of fried chicken in just a few bites and gave her comments.
“It’s quite delicious.”
It was only slightly inferior to her beloved big pork elbow.
I asked for another one before I finished eating.
Gao Xiulan finished her meat and started eating grass. She looked out the door and asked, "Why haven't Old Xie and the others come yet?"
There was indeed a commotion at the door.
"My dear daughter, you have been away for so many years and never came back to see me!
A dog doesn't mind a poor family. Lanlan, you can't look down on your mother just because you're rich now!"
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