2009 Nov 27 Capital Bites: Pizza Hut Topples Salad Towers
Pizza Hut is to remove all self-service salad carts from its 440 restaurants in China. Up to now, customers were permitted just one trip to the salad cart, but these restrictions have led to ingenious Scooby snack-style stacking of CCTV Tower proportions. The chain, the first to introduce pizza to China in 1990 and pizza delivery in 2001, claims that the move is part of a general menu expansion, but it's surely down to salad cart abuse.
Salad stacking has become somewhat of an art form, with ingenious engineers exchanging tips online, such as having a base of carrots for a stable foundation. I think the smart move for Pizza Hut would have been to reduce the size of the salad plate to roughly the diameter of tomato slice. Then only the most talented stackers could take any more than their fair share.
Over in Sanlitun, Purple Haze Bistro is upping sticks due to disputes with the neighbors at China View. The Thai restaurant you voted Beijing's best in our 2009 Restaurant Awards is making a surprise move to Dongsi Liutiao, a traditional hutong close to Dongdan subway station, also home to popular Xinjiang restaurant Crescent Moon.
Finally, Joy Luck, a buffet-style restaurant-cum-food court has opened on the 5th floor of 3.3. Mall in Sanlitun. All food is half price until 1st December, so if you're shopping in the area this weekend, pop-in for bargain sushi, pizza, grilled meat and dim sum.
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Note: The information contained below was accurate at the time that it was originally published.
"Capital Bites: Pizza Hut Topples Salad Towers" by Tom O'Malley
Pizza Hut is to remove all self-service salad carts from its 440 restaurants in China. Up to now, customers were permitted just one trip to the salad cart, but these restrictions have led to ingenious Scooby snack-style stacking of CCTV Tower proportions. The chain, the first to introduce pizza to China in 1990 and pizza delivery in 2001, claims that the move is part of a general menu expansion, but it's surely down to salad cart abuse.
Capital Bites: More Deli, Tiny Pizzas, and the Romance Continues
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Capital Bites: Gulou, Gang Gang and Drunken Popsicles
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Last weekend, Dongsi Liutiao rooftop cafe and bar The Fort opened and further south, the restaurant and cafe The Woods began service in Central Park.
New Openings: Let's Gets into Pasta, New NLGX Crêpanini Offers Take-out Option
Lots of changes mean lots of choices for Beijingers this spring and summer. Not satisfied with burgers and seafood, the Let's franchise will expand into noodles with Let's Pasta in July, opening in Sanlitun Village South. The new venue will use a choose-your-own-pasta concept, including not only Italian, but also Hong Kong and Japanese-style recipes.
siennapc
Re: Capital Bites: Pizza Hut Topples Salad Towers
omg so sad!!!!!! I LOVE the salad towers. When my parents were in China, I took them to Pizza Hut SPECIFICALLY to see the cultural phenomenon that is Pizza Hut salad bar architecture. Way to take all the fun out of your restaurant, Pizza Hut!
admin
Re: Capital Bites: Pizza Hut Topples Salad Towers
oh god
the only remaining reason I'd ever go to Pizza Hut -- and that would be to ogle the consumers who build such towers -- is now to be removed.
Also, it seems to me the genius of the el cheapo salad bar -- aka fooling consumers into coming in to pay inflated prices for mediocre fast food, but leave them thinking they got a great deal because they managed to hoarde a bunch of cucumber slices from the fetid salad bar -- is one of the key appeals of Pizza Hut for many.
what a strategic blunder
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JessicaY
Re: Capital Bites: Pizza Hut Topples Salad Towers
spettro9
Re: Capital Bites: Pizza Hut Topples Salad Towers
this is funny...
carrot sticks
and tomato slices.. haha
they should make Pizza Hut more like it is in US.
I might go then.
a litte.
"they say Imagination is more powerful than Knowledge..."
Ray Liotta
Nidaye
Re: Capital Bites: Pizza Hut Topples Salad Towers
Haha... like we couldn't see this coming.
Leave it up to the consumers to try to abuse the system. And also leave it up to the local-run business to cheap-out, rather than being smart and cashing in. Really, how much do cucumbers cost here?
If they were smart, they'd learn from the buffet restaurants and impose a penalty for not finishing the salad (based on weight of leftovers). I would love to see these guys get sick from eating their 3 jing horde of cucumber slices and salad dressing.