I grew up in Kansas, in a small city in the very middle of the USA, which was filled to the brim with fast food chain restaurants. Drive down the main streets of my hometown and see familiar friends like McDonalds, Subway, Pizza Hut, Starbucks, you name it! My Californian husband always teases me that I’m from the chain-restaurant capital of the world! Though I will always prefer trying new restaurants and enjoying a unique dining experience, sometimes as an expat it’s nice to see a familiar name from home. You can imagine my excitement when I heard we were getting a KFC in Uganda!
Founded in 1930 in Corbin, Kentucky, Harland Sanders started selling fried chicken in a small, roadside shop. Today, the company who claims their chicken is “finger lickin’ good” is the second largest chain restaurant after McDonalds and his smiling face is the logo on over 18,000 stores worldwide. As of December 2012, KFC had locations in 120 different countries and, as of last month, Uganda is one of them! Apparently, this is just the first of several KFC stores slated to hit Uganda in 2014 with other locations in the works for Kampala as well as one in Entebbe.
As we all know, chicken and chips is a common meal in East Africa and now KFC has stepped in to add a classy twist on the greasy favorite. Believe me, from my experience growing up, “classy” is about the last word I would associate with the Kentucky Fried Chicken chain. But, it’s different here. Let me explain.
First of all, the staff does a great job of keeping the restaurant immaculately clean. As soon as the last fried crumb is off your plate, a staff member comes to retrieve it and wipe down any mess so you can enjoy your conversation or order a sweet treat. I thought it was unique that you can either have full table service or order directly at the cash register. All of the staff members were helpful, friendly, and appeared to be excited and energized by their job. I found that very refreshing!
The atmosphere is very different from its local competitors such as Mr. Tasty and I Feel Like Chicken Tonight. The décor feels very urban European and the easy listening music and fresh air provide a pleasant ambiance. There’s both indoor and outdoor seating with a lovely balcony patio with several tables with umbrellas to shade you from the hot sun. Glass doors occupy an entire wall of the space so, when you’re sitting indoors, there’s always a nice, fresh breeze rather than the constant smell of grease.
People hear me on this. KFC was the fastest meal I’ve ever been served in Kampala! My husband and I couldn’t believe it. We chose to walk in and order at the register and by the time the friendly attendant handed me my change, our order was hot and ready for a finger lickin’ good lunch!
The menu is quite simple and straightforward: fried chicken, fried chicken burgers, and fried chicken buckets! They offer two different recipes for the chicken, the original recipe with 11 secret spices or Zinger, which is a slightly spicy version. I ordered a meal called the “Streetwise 2” which included 2 pieces of zinger chicken and a side of chips. I enjoyed the chicken, which was perfectly spiced and had a lot of thick, fried breading yet didn’t seem too greasy. I peeled off some of the fried portion and enjoyed the moist, tasty chicken hiding inside. There was a little too much breading anyway, plus then my waistline wouldn’t feel too guilty! My husband got a meal with the original recipe chicken and we both liked that flavor as well.
The prices were slightly higher than I had anticipated and are definitely more than your neighborhood chicken and chips place. The taste and the experience are far better at KFC so, for me, it justifies the higher cost. Prices range from 6,500 UGX for a single piece of chicken up to 75,000 UGX for a 15 piece Jumbo bucket. Most of the meal deals cost in the range of 16,500 – 21,000 UGX and, for the super hungry, they offer a Fully Loaded Box Meal for 27,000 UGX that includes one piece of chicken, a Colonel Burger, chips, mashed potatoes and spicy gravy, and a 350ml drink. Smaller portions for kid’s meals are available for 12,000 UGX. We tried the Creamy Oreo Krusher for dessert and weren’t big fans of the flavor or the ice cream they used. That was really the only disappointing part of our meal.
Overall, our verdict was that lunch at KFC was a quick, enjoyable experience. If you’re in the neighborhood or need to grab a quick lunch, it’s a great option. In fact, I’d even say it’s finger lickin’ good!
Address: Village Mall in Bugolobi
Website: http://www.kfc.com
Facepage: http://www.facebook.com/KFC.Uganda
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