][1]There are a few places that you would never suspect of opening a themed restaurant abroad.
The Isle of Man springs to mind on account of sheer blandness while, at the other end of the scale, Serbia’s attempt to rebrand its culinary reputation on the back of a testicle-eating competition seems equally doomed to failure.
However, my vote for Least Likely Restaurant Chain goes to the Okryugwan restaurant chain which originated in North Korea and is now said to have branches in Nepal, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and Dubai where this report comes from.
The restaurants are said to be North Korea’s way of trying to get its hands on hard currency; something it is finding increasingly difficult to do on account of being generally bonkers.
I would hate to just repeat imperialist, running dog propaganda but I’m pretty sure that North Korea is more famous for famine than the quality of its restaurants.
Is it just me or does the Okryugwan concept seem rather tasteless?
Not that those of us living in the UK should get too complacent. There are not many British-themed restaurants scattered across the globe.
In fact, according to this survey, British food is still seen by many as the worst in the world and America is not far behind.
Seems a little unfair in light of the advances made in the UK’s kitchens over the last couple of decades. Time to send out a Delia taskforce and show ’em what we’re capable of?