Popular TV show starts craze at Shanghai food street

The sudden popularity of a South Korean TV series on the mainland has been good news for many restaurant owners in Shanghai.(File Photo)

The sudden popularity of a South Korean TV series on the mainland has been good news for many restaurant owners in Shanghai. One street known for its Korean eateries has grown so crowded that people have to line up for more than an hour to get a table.

The main characters in the series "You Who Came from the Stars", enjoy eating South Korean fried chicken and washing it down with beer. And the show's popularity has made fried chicken a symbol of romance for many young couples, and created new interest in other South Korean foods such as spicy rice cakes and soybean soup.

Xu Biyun went to Hongquan Road in Minhang District to try some of the food on Saturday. But she had to spend hours in line to get three tickets to order potato strings, spicy rice cakes and octopus balls.

"It's tiring to line up. I waited one hour to get a ticket for the spicy rice cakes. And I waited another one hour for the rice cakes to be ready. I rarely come here. But I heard about this street after "You Who Came from the Stars" became popular. And I decided I wanted to try when I saw so many people lining up," Xu Biyun said.

Xu says she likes the South Korean food.

"There is a lot of pickle flavor in it. I saw them put many different sauces inside through the window," Xu said.

The owner of the snack stands was too busy to talk to ICS. But some regular Chinese customers were surprised to see the crowd.

"There were few people here two or three months ago. How could it be so crowded today? I think maybe it's because some social networks introduce the street after the South Korean TV show became popular," said Luo Lulu.

More than 100 South Korean restaurants and snack stands have opened along this street since 2007.

At two in the afternoon, Anthony Kim was still busy in his restaurant. His place is well-known in the neighborhood for its traditional South Korean barbecue. He says the street's new popularity is a happy problem.

A restaurant owner Anthony Kim said, "The number of Chinese customers has doubled from two months ago. Customers need to wait for seats during lunch time. And during busy nights, customers need to wait for as long as an hour to get a seat if they don't make a reservation."

Kim now closes the restaurant from two and five in the afternoon to prepare for the dinner rush. But he needs more people to keep up with the crowds.

"It's difficult to recruit employees. Now we need ten employees around tables and ten cooks. But we only have six on both sides," Anthony said.

Kim is already working on a recruitment plan, and says some of his friends in South Korea are talking about setting up their own restaurants in Shanghai. Nearly 200 South Korean companies set up in Shanghai last year, and 70 percent of them are restaurants. But business conditions here are tough.

Ahn Tae-ho, chair of S Korean Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, said, "I hope the rent could be reduced. Our shop owners pay between 8 and 15 yuan per square meter per month. Back in Seoul, the best shop in rich Gangnam-gu costs two third of the rent here."

There are now more than 20,000 South Korean living in Shanghai, the third largest expat community in town.