The first Western fast food restaurants to open in Kathmandu have turned out to be KFC and Pizza Hut. We'll visit Pizza Hut at a later date. Located on Darbar Marg, Kathmandu's Rodeo Drive, KFCs a popular addition to the landscape. It's right across the street from the new, upscale Sherpa Mall, with its brand name shops familiar to Westerners. Well-dressed folks from the nearby banks, travel agencies, and antique shops have made the restaurant a lunchtime hit. Here, lunchtime is sometime between 1 and 3, and the diners treat themselves to the same food and packaged specials, like a 2-piece chicken with fries and a Pepsi, that they're apt to find in Austin, Texas. At under 300 Nepal rupees, that comes to around $4.00 American. Plus, you get super-fast service and dine in exactly the same modern kitsch sorroundings that are available in most KFC's in the U.S.
While I'm not a KFC fan in the U.S., I thought the food wasn't bad. The smallish drumstick and breast, both breaded, spicy, and crunchy, were fine. The fast food fries were done right, and the corn on the cob was excellent. The cole slaw was watery. Since the multi-national Asian company that owns the two restaurants also runs a Pepsi factory in India, other than Pepsi, the only carbonated drink on the menu was a "Virgin Mojito," but they were out of that alternative during our visit. As in the U.S., everything came wrapped in paper and cardboard, making it all look much bigger than it was. The young servers and cashiers we interacted with were attractive, friendly, amused, and spoke English well.
To Christine, Dorji, and I, the most interesting thing about this Nepal KFC was its attention to religious rules in this primarily Hindu country. The paper place mats focused on this. One cooking and serving crew handles the meat, another handles the vegatarian offerings. Another cultural point can be found if you'll click on the picture to get a larger version: the Indian/Nepali custom of a uniformed male opening the door for you in upscale restaurants is honored at this Kathmandu KFC, something I've never experienced back in Austin, Texas! --Jerry in Nepal
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