Tan Xiaomi

IT'S a fast food chain restaurant without French fries or popcorn chicken.

Actually, all food served in restaurants of the J-Kungfu chain are steamed with fresh ingredients and simple seasoning. The restaurant chain believes that a Cantonese-style steamed meal is a healthier alternative for customers.

A set meal with a steamed main dish, soup and vegetables is priced at between 22 and 29 yuan (US$2.9 to US$3.8). Choices include Pork ribs with soybean sauce, mushroom with chicken, beef with pickled vegetable, Taiwan-style minced pork and eel.

You can't find spicy dishes here, as Cantonese believe that light seasoning is meant to bring out the natural taste of the ingredients, and is good for health.

Chinese herbal soup is popular at J-Kungfu. Available choices include American ginseng with chicken soup (13 yuan), dried pakchoi steamed with pig bones soup (11 yuan), and mushroom steamed with duck soup (12 yuan). J-Kungfu currently also provides ice-cold sweet soup with either green bean (6.5 yuan) or sugarcane and Chinese water chestnuts with carrots (11 yuan).

Cai Dabiao, the president of the restaurant chain, said he expects J-Kungfu to have 500 outlets in 2008, and become the top Chinese fast food brand in the country within five years. J-Kungfu now operates 200 restaurants in the mainland.

In 1994, the then 22-year-old Cai opened his first restaurant with partner Pan Yuhai in Dongguan. The first outlet located next to the No. 107 national highway soon became popular among truck drivers traveling between Hong Kong and Dongguan for its Cantonese-style steamed dishes. Cai soon opened two more restaurants in 1995, but found it difficult to maintaine the same taste of all dishes at different outlets.

"To resolve the issue, we bought automatic steaming machines invented by the South China University of Technology. All dishes then could be prepared and vacuum-packed at its factories, and reheated at individual branches," said Cai.

"From then on, we don't need chefs at individual branches. Simply reheat the steamed bowls in the machine, staff can serve customers with standardized meals," he added.

In 1999, the chain opened restaurants in Shenzhen and Guangzhou. It opened the 50th outlet in 2003, and 100th outlet in 2005, and doubled to 200 ones last year. Now, the chain has restaurants across Guangdong, as well as in cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou and Ningbo.

J-Kungfu

真功夫

Add: B/F, Jusco, Cocopark, No.3 Fuhua Road, Futian District (福田区福华三路 Cocopark 负一楼 Jusco 内)

Tel: 8290-3055

Hours: 10 a.m. -11 p.m.

Metro: Gou Wu Gong Yuan Station (Coco Park Station 购物公园站), Exit A

Parking: 5 yuan per hour