Chicken Cutlet Brother, one of China’s latest internet celebrities, has opened a new food studio following his skyrocketing fame.
The food studio business will focus on catering management and increasing food sales.
On October 8th, the chicken cutlet vendor Li Junyong, extended his thanks and an apology to his customers via a video released on Douyin. The apology was due to consumers’ long waits in the hot weather.
Exemplifying the kindness and customer service that saw him shoot to fame, his stall is also now been equipped with a dedicated air conditioner, as seen in videos posted by netizens.
After a period of intense work, Li said he will close for a day on October 9th to rest and then resume with better service. He also reminded people who traveled a long way to buy his chicken steak to stay safe.
Recently, the 48-year-old street vendor, has shot to fame and become a signature attraction in Jingdezhen – a city more commonly renowned for its ceramic and porcelain products. He has been operating a street food stall near a junior high school for years, selling fried chicken cutlets.
“You can refuse me, but not my chicken steak.” “You deserve everything beautiful in the world, including my chicken steak.”… Li’s humorous interactions with tourists turned the city into a trending destination over the past holiday in China.
Figures from Douyin showed that bookings related to Jingdezhen had surged nearly 70 percent on the platform in the first three days of the eight-day holiday — from Oct 1 to 8. Sales of group purchases of glass-blowing experience and pottery-making tours in the city registered year-on-year growth of 74 percent and 71 percent, respectively.
David Reid, an Australian artist, said in a recent video after visiting Li’s chicken steak stand: “This is 5 stars. … It’s that thing of going when you love something, you want to make it the very best you ever do, and as artists we do that all the time.”
Following on from his fame, he has opened a food studio. Details are sparse, but it is intended to help teach others how to do catering management and increase food sales.
Written by Sha Liu, additional reporting by China Daily and Ecns.cn.
If you liked this article, why not read: ‘Chicken Cutlet Curator’ Becomes Local Star in Jingdezhen
