Up and coming Filipino fast food chain Jollibee has a cult following
But one of the fastest growing fast food chains in the United States is a company you may never have heard of.
A Jollibee location in Manila in 2000.
Photographer RA/HL/Reuters
Meet Jollibee, a global Filipino fast food company, otherwise known as “McDonald’s of the Philippines”.
Two pieces of bone-in fried chicken, one spicy and the other regular.
Brittany Chang / Insider
Source: CNBC
And if you’ve never seen the brand in your neighborhood, that might change in the next few years.
Happy spaghetti.
Brittany Chang / Insider
Jollibee Foods Corp – the parent company of Jollibee which also owns brands like Smashburger – recently reported 2021 earnings roughly on par with its 2019 pre-pandemic earnings.
The Benigno Aquino, the former president of the Philippines, at Jollibee in Singapore in 2014.
Edgar Su/Reuters
Source: Jollibee Ford Corporation
“Beyond 2022, our prospects for business growth are even more promising,” said Ernesto Tanmantiong, CEO of Jollibee Food Corp, in a press release, noting that he expects “very strong expansion” in North America, China, Southeast Asia and Europe. .
Chicken with bone and sauce.
Brittany Chang / Insider
The $5.5 billion fast food giant currently has 56 stores across the United States in cities including New York, Philadelphia, Los Angeles and Chicago….
The Jollibee in Manhattan.
Brittany Chang / Insider
Source: Jollibee, Yahoo finance
By 2027, Jollibee aims to open 500 stores in North America, starting with at least 20 new locations by the end of 2022, a spokesperson told Insider.
Happy spaghetti.
Brittany Chang / Insider
Announcement of new Jollibee openings has often foreshadowed massive local hype. In 2020, customers in Texas waited up to four hours just to grab a bite to eat at a new location, Sarah Blaskovich reported for the Dallas Morning News.
People queue at the first Jollibees to open in the UK in London in 2018.
Henry Nicholls/Reuters
Source: The Dallas Morning News
And it’s easy to see why fans would wait hours for Jollibee.
Jollibee Bone-In Fried Chicken.
Brittany Chang / Insider
The Filipino chain’s menu shares some similarities with Chick-fil-a and KFC: Jollibee specializes in fried chicken, whether it’s chicken sandwiches or fried chicken buckets.
The deluxe fried chicken sandwich.
Brittany Chang / Insider
It also offers the classic sides, such as gravy, mashed potatoes and fries.
A bucket of Jollibee Fried Chicken.
Brittany Chang / Insider
But unlike traditional American fast food, Jollibee also sells items like adobo rice, sweet spaghetti, and fiesta palabok (a noodle dish with garlic, pork, shrimp, and egg).
Happy spaghetti.
Brittany Chang / Insider
Source: Jollibee
I only got Jollibee once on a whim several years ago, and I can’t remember what I ordered from the drive-thru.
Jollibee bone-in fried chicken, regular and spicy.
Brittany Chang / Insider
So I decided to visit the location of the fast food chain in Manhattan to see what it was all about.
The Jollibee in Manhattan.
Brittany Chang / Insider
Jollibee currently operates a location in Manhattan within walking distance of tourist hotspots like Times Square.
Jollibee Bone-In Fried Chicken.
Brittany Chang / Insider
It also recently announced plans to open an outpost at Grand Central Terminal in 2023 as part of its massive North American expansion plan.
Jollibee bone-in fried chicken, regular and spicy.
Brittany Chang / Insider
Source: Eater
