The 161-year-old brand is going all out.
The wallpaper will replicate a 12th-century Chinese handscroll painting.
The private dining room will be decorated with traditional fans and chopsticks.
“Chinese cuisine is exquisite and profound.
“We want to revamp their cognition.”
Quanjude is one of at least 10 majorChinese foodand beverage brands planning to hit US shores this year.
And dozens more are planning to study the landscape to possibly jump in themselves.
Is America really ready for what some local Chinese restaurant insiders are calling a Chinese food “tsunami”?
“Nothing is authentic other than the beef noodle,” he said.
A foodie himself, Zhang vowed to make a difference.
In 2017, he reached out to Quanjude, proposing to bring the iconic restaurant to North America.
“Chinese immigrants are better educated and wealthier now.
We crave for a better presentation of our own culture,” said Zhang.
“It is the best time for food brands in China to expand overseas.”
The timing is made more urgent by China’s recent economic troubles.
Close to 3 million restaurants and cafes in China shut down for good last year.
The US market certainly looks appealing.
Thefood service industryreached over $1 trillion in sales last year, with $1.5 trillion projected in 2025.
For as much of a setback as it was, the pandemic also offered a rare opportunity.
He’s helping restaurants from Hunan province, where he’s from, to open in the US.
“To have a store in Manhattan is like erecting a flag on the moon.
It’s worth it even if you don’t make money.”
Still, the cuisine push from China may seem counterintuitive.
Butgeopolitical risksare not top of mind for most eateries.
“The US is still a pro-business country.
And the company is already looking for more locations.
“I am speechless,” said Wang.
“We open a new store on average in 20 days in China.”
Wang was also confused by a recent street encounter.
“I don’t understand why he thought I stole his job,” said Wang.
“We are here to create jobs.”
This kind of hostility isn’t exactly rare.
“Trump likes to stir racial antagonism,” Chao Wang of Hunan Slurp said.
“If I were white, I don’t think he’d have asked.”
In a crowded back office at Quanjude’s Manhattan site, Zhang has a more urgent challenge.
The visa applications for the five chefs he plans to bring in from China are still pending.
“We won’t allow the quality of the food to suffer under untrained hands,” he said.
If nothing else works out, he plans to bring Quanjude chefs from Canada.
Zhang thinks his ducks could serve an important mission.
After a pause, he continued.
