Jollibee is one of the most popular fast food chains in its home country, the Philippines, but the food chain has also expanded to other countries; it now has over 1,080 branches across the world, with over 30 of these located in the United States.
Last Friday, July 29, 2016, Jollibee opened its 34th branch in the US, its first in the Midwest, and first in Chicago at Skokie in the Chicago metropolitan area. The store’s next US location will be in Manhattan!
A lot of Filipinos in the Midwest area have been looking forward to the iconic fast food chain’s opening – and they were in for a treat, for the store created a giant bucket of its well-loved signature fried chicken, Chicken Joy, for its first diners to enjoy!
In something that could be a first in the country, executives of the fast food chain took pieces from the giant Chicken Joy bucket to celebrate the first ceremonial toast using the fried chicken cuts to formally open the branch in Skokie.
Diners were, then, able to enjoy their own buckets of Chicken Joy – although these were now placed inside the regular-sized buckets offered by the fast food chain.
As expected, the store’s mascot, Jollibee, also graced the occasion and danced to the tune of the fast food joint’s iconic theme song.
Overall, it was surely an exciting affair to many Filipinos in the area who surely must have missed the favorite fast food chain’s fried chicken and other delicious offers.
Aside from the Jollibee restaurant which is owned by parent company JFC, the company will also open a branch of its bakery chain, Red Ribbon, in the Chicago area later this year; with the location already announced to be at Seafood City.
What are bucket meals?
Instead of the usual preset meals in fast food chains like Jollibee, these restaurants sometimes offer bucket meals which often consist of their main food item (mostly chicken or meat cuts) that may be offered in combination with rice, drinks, and some desserts or side dishes.