Expanding Korea's Reach
E-Land is to globalize traditional Korean dishes after completing a model of Korean food buffet restaurants in the nation.
The group announced on Sept. 7 that it would open two "Nature Kitchen" Korean buffet restaurants in Shanghai in Oct. and Nov. this year, targeting the Chinese food service market in earnest.
An official from E-Land said, “The company will debut the Korean traditional dish buffets in the Chinese dining market, which is the largest in the world worth 500 trillion won [US$415.18 billion], globalizing traditional Korean food. We have become certain of success after the restaurant received good reviews from Chinese visitors and distribution groups to ones in Korea for the past 18 months.”
Launched in April last year, Nature Kitchen features authentic dishes that were served in the royal Korean court. Familiarity with Korean traditional dishes through TV dramas also helped more Chinese tourists visit the Nature Kitchen restaurants. In particular, the restaurants have been favorably reviewed by visitors, since they offer various Korean dishes at reasonable prices.
Until now, it has been difficult for Chinese tourists to try numerous Korean dishes in a short time. However, they can now have nearly 70 authentic dishes of Korean cuisine in one spot through the Korean food buffets. Notably, E-Land Group plans to source fermented sauces, pickled seafood, and other seasonings directly from Korea, excluding fresh cut products, so that the restaurants in China can retain the genuine Korean food tastes.
With the tests participated in by Chinese tourists and firms for the past year and a half, the group has decided to open the first chain restaurants in the Bund, the best tourist attraction in Shanghai.
The first Nature Kitchen restaurant in China will be located in Zhengda Plaza in the Bund, which has dozens of historical buildings, at a 660 square meter site in Oct. It will be shortly followed by the second location in Changning District in the city's westside in Nov.
An E-Land official said, "Once we launch the two Shanghai locations successfully, we will open additional restaurants in department stores and shopping malls run by local retailers as well as by us, expanding across the nation. It is our goal to open up to 200 locations by 2020."
In addition, the group will also expand to other Chinese and Asian locations, including Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Malaysia.