https://www.scmp.com/rss/330364/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com There’s a long-running argument in the food world, splitting opinions and turning a small partisan valley into a wide canyon of a schism. The question: is a hot dog a sandwich? Everyone who’s downed a late-night post-boozing bratwurst or noshed on a frankfurter seems to have strong views on the matter. Even the Merriam-Webster Dictionary has come down with a verdict. Its vote is yes! “The definition of sandwich is ‘two or more slices of bread or a split roll having a filling in between’. Hence,... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3175802/anthony-bourdain-and-matt-damon-said-hot-dog-not-sandwich-lets?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3175802/anthony-bourdain-and-matt-damon-said-hot-dog-not-sandwich-lets?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 29 Apr 2022 10:45:14 +0000 Several mainland Chinese restaurant chains have filed for initial public offerings (IPOs) in Hong Kong, betting that diners will regain their appetite for eating out later this year once the current outbreak of Covid-19 blighting the country has subsided. Restaurant groups including Japanese cuisine specialist Kamii, hotpot chain Laowang and the China franchisee of US-based Domino’s Pizza have filed for listings in the past three months. It usually takes at least six months for applications to... https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3174322/dominos-pizzas-chinese-operator-hotpot-chain-laowang-among?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3174322/dominos-pizzas-chinese-operator-hotpot-chain-laowang-among?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 Apr 2022 16:30:18 +0000 The recent rationing of French fries by McDonald’s in Japan due to a disruption of potato imports is spurring competitors to seize a bigger share of the market, triggering what social media users have called “a potato war”. The operator of McDonald’s restaurants in Japan has said it will only offer smaller portions of its French fries for about a month from January 9 at all of its around 2,900 stores nationwide. It is the second time in two months that the company has restricted sales of the... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3164408/mcdonalds-potato-rationing-spurs-french-fries-war-japan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3164408/mcdonalds-potato-rationing-spurs-french-fries-war-japan?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 23 Jan 2022 03:19:41 +0000 Fast food giant McDonald’s has again halted sales of large and medium-sized portions of French fries in Japan, citing problems in its supply chain, although fans have been quick to share a workaround. The solution for anyone who cannot go without a fix of fries, they say, is simply to order more small portions, even if doing so costs a little more. On Friday, McDonald’s Holdings Japan announced it would stop selling large and medium portions of fries for around a month from Saturday. The company... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3162814/mcdonalds-bans-large-and-medium-fries-japan-supply-chain-issue?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3162814/mcdonalds-bans-large-and-medium-fries-japan-supply-chain-issue?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 11 Jan 2022 00:00:29 +0000 It’s no secret that South Korea loves its chicken: when fried and paired with beer it’s known as chimaek, which is hugely popular both at home and abroad, while roast chicken is thought to be the nation’s favourite festive takeaway dish – often outselling the runner-up, pizza, at Christmastime by about three to one. So when Korean food critic Hwang Kyo-ik took aim at the country’s chickens recently – saying in a series of Facebook posts that they were slaughtered too young, rendering their meat... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3161012/korean-fried-chicken-becomes-topic-debate-after-critic?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3161012/korean-fried-chicken-becomes-topic-debate-after-critic?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 26 Dec 2021 01:30:28 +0000 Finally, the Hong Kong government has rolled out its consumption voucher scheme. I had assumed the giveaway, announced in February, would have occurred much sooner, because wasn’t the whole point to boost the pandemic-hit economy? While we’re not completely out of the woods on Covid-19, it would appear the worst is over. There have been no local outbreaks for months, vaccinations are slowly increasing thanks to incentives that include lucky draws, and normal activities – such as dining out and... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3143760/why-mcdonalds-kfc-and-supermarkets-will-be-real-winners-hong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3143760/why-mcdonalds-kfc-and-supermarkets-will-be-real-winners-hong?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 Aug 2021 04:15:18 +0000 When it comes to splurging on the most expensive culinary extravagances known to mankind, one would naturally expect to get the rarest of ingredients, artfully plated in one of the world’s top restaurants. Few serious foodies would expect something like a humble hamburger or a modest milkshake to command gourmet price brackets. However, over the last few years, a handful of inventive chefs have upscaled and embellished some of the most common comfort foods, elevating them beyond the humdrum high... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/leisure/article/3142961/worlds-most-expensive-fast-food-us200-french-fries-new?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/leisure/article/3142961/worlds-most-expensive-fast-food-us200-french-fries-new?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 29 Jul 2021 04:06:39 +0000 When Five Guys opened an outlet in Shanghai in April, not only was its first in mainland China, it was also the first shop that the American burger chain, which has nearly 1,700 stores around the world, opened anywhere since the Covid-19 pandemic broke out more than a year ago. It seems that the pandemic has been a mixed blessing. Danny Lee, Five Guys’ regional managing director for Asia Pacific, says that while they have had to put in additional measures due to the coronavirus, landlords are a... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3138297/overseas-restaurant-chains-take-advantage-chinas-dining-boom?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3138297/overseas-restaurant-chains-take-advantage-chinas-dining-boom?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 23 Jun 2021 23:15:07 +0000 Tony Xu found life tough as a Chinese immigrant in the United States. His family had to rely on a federal assistance programme, they juggled multiple jobs to survive, and even considered visiting McDonalds a “luxury”. Now, as the co-founder and CEO of food delivery platform DoorDash, Xu’s net worth sits at over US$3 billion, according to Forbes – testament to the fact that hard work and persistence pays off. Before founding DoorDash in 2013, Xu washed dishes in a restaurant, earned money through... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/celebrity/article/3124524/meet-doordash-ceo-tony-xu-36-year-old-food-delivery-app?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/celebrity/article/3124524/meet-doordash-ceo-tony-xu-36-year-old-food-delivery-app?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 08 Mar 2021 06:25:59 +0000 During his time in office, US President Donald Trump drummed up news at such a volume that individual moments that would otherwise define any other presidency were lost in the avalanche.   One such moment was when the Clemson Tigers college football team, fresh off their national championship, was served fast food in the form of McDonald’s, Wendy’s and Burger King during their White House visit.  The photos went viral because it highlighted the government shutdown at the time, but it also seemed... https://www.scmp.com/food/move-aside-kfc-chinese-fried-food-fit-president/article/3111943?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/food/move-aside-kfc-chinese-fried-food-fit-president/article/3111943?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 30 Nov 2020 11:59:10 +0000 In spring 2012, as I hailed to Iowa for my undergraduate studies from my hometown, the eastern city of Hangzhou, a fellow Chinese student took me to an American-style Chinese restaurant called China Star.  I was first greeted by signage set in a quirky typeface used apparently by all Chinese restaurants in the United States, called chop suey.  Inside, pictures of dishes like General Tso’s Chicken and Orange Chicken Mongolian Beef looked profoundly unappealing. I ordered beef and broccoli because... https://www.scmp.com/food/how-i-learned-love-american-style-chinese-food-no-not-lucky-lees/article/3006181?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/food/how-i-learned-love-american-style-chinese-food-no-not-lucky-lees/article/3006181?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 15 Apr 2019 10:53:40 +0000 KFC knows how to jump on a bandwagon. In China, the American fast food chain has been serving up zongzi—a traditional, beloved Chinese rice dumpling. This time of year, during the Dragon Boat Festival, millions of these little rice parcels are sold across Asia. In a Shanghainese KFC outlet, we found their delightful meaty version, which looked surprisingly good. Read up: A guide to zongzi and all its Asian cousins The dumplings are filled with glutinous rice, with a core of salted egg yolk, and... https://www.scmp.com/food/kfcs-sold-out-rice-dumplings-taste-test/article/2151756?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/food/kfcs-sold-out-rice-dumplings-taste-test/article/2151756?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 21 Jun 2018 04:00:45 +0000