Sarah Anne Hughes

OFC‘Obama Fried Chicken’ restaurant spotted in Beijing; KFC considering legal action

A sign in front of the eatery displays a picture of President Obama wearing a Colonel Sanders-style bowtie and suspenders and a tag­line that reads, “We so cool, aren’t we?”


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  1. shinichi Post author

    ‘Obama Fried Chicken’ restaurant spotted in Beijing; KFC considering legal action

    by Sarah Anne Hughes

    http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/blogpost/post/obama-fried-chicken-restaurant-spotted-in-beijing/2011/10/03/gIQAUwIEIL_blog.html

    A sign in front of the eatery displays a picture of President Obama wearing a Colonel Sanders-style bowtie and suspenders and a tag­line that reads, “We so cool, aren’t we?,” according to the Shanghaiist.

    A KFC China spokesperson told BlogPost via email that the restaurant is not affiliated with the chain.

    We’re considering legal action as it is a knock-off and has nothing to do with us and it infringes on our brand trademark,” the statement said. “We find it distasteful.”

    “It’s insulting, offensive and plays to racial stereotypes,” the Rev. Al Sharpton said of the shop to the New York Post. “What makes it even worse is that when we deal with this global competition between the U.S. and China, for them to be mocking the leader of the free world, I find it even more appalling.”

    The Daily Mail hypothesized that the sign may be a reaction to the U.S filing a complaint with the World Trade Organization against China for placing tariffs on imported American chickens.

    KFC was criticized for a 2011 TV ad that showed an Obama look alike promoting fish fillet sandwiches. Yum! Brands pulled the spot, which only aired in Hong Kong, saying in a statement, “It was meant to be a spoof and no disrespect was intended.”

    If OFC turns out to be an imitation of KFC, it wouldn’t be the first time that popular American brands have been copied in China. Fake Apple and Ikea stores have popped up in several cities, while police in Shanghai recently arrested five people for making hundreds of fake iPhones for sale.

    Beijing’s OFC should not be confused with “Obama’s Fried Chicken” in Brooklyn and Manhattan, two unrelated chicken joints that raised eyebrows when they opened.

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  2. shinichi Post author

    Obama Fried Chicken Restaurant In China Sparks Controversy

    Huffington Post Food

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/03/obama-fried-chicken-china_n_992765.html

    A caricature of President Obama is the face behind a Beijing chicken restaurant, Shanghaiist points out.

    The New York Post reports that the slogan on the sign featuring Obama’s head on Colonel Sanders’ body can be translated as, “We’re so cool, aren’t we?”

    Rev. Al Sharpton told The Post that the sign is “insulting, offensive and plays to racial stereotypes.”

    The Washington Post’s BlogPost contacted a KFC China spokesperson, who said the company is not pleased with the Obama Fried Chicken logo.

    “We’re considering legal action as it is a knock-off and has nothing to do with us and it infringes on our brand trademark,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “We find it distasteful.”

    But the Atlanta Journal Constitution points out that a KFC China ad also used an Obama lookalike in a television commercial that ran in Hong Kong.

    Obama Fried Chicken is not the first poultry restaurant to use Obama’s name, either. The New York Post notes that there’s an Obama’s Fried Chicken in Harlem.

    Using Obama’s name or image to push chicken isn’t a guaranteed money-maker. CNN notes that when a German frozen food company tried selling Obama chicken fingers, public outcry caused the company to halt test marketing.

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