Food
This Restaurant Chain Wants to Bring Chinese Hotpot to the World
- HaiDiLao may open 80 restaurants this year; 10 outside China
- Yihai unit profit may jump 20-30% on demand for soup flavoring
Sichuan HaiDiLao Catering Co., the Chinese spicy soup chain that offers free massages and manicures to awaiting customers, may open 80 outlets this year as it expands abroad.
As many as 10 of the new restaurants will be outside China, Chairman Zhang Yong said. The Beijing-based company, which entered Los Angeles in 2013, is testing the appeal of its signature hotpots -- steaming broths that diners flavor with meat, vegetables and noodles -- in the U.S. and U.K.