Café de Coral
Encyclopedia
Café de Coral is a fast food restaurant group which owns and operates fast food chains and restaurants including Café de Coral, The Spaghetti House, Manchu Wok
Manchu Wok
Manchu Wok is a Chinese fast food trainer in the United States and Canada, similar in concept to Panda Express. Despite the name, the menu does not feature any dishes from traditional Manchurian Cuisine and instead is mostly made up of American Chinese cuisine and Canadian Chinese cuisine...

, Oliver's Super Sandwiches, Ah Yee Leng Tong and others. Founded in 1968, the Café de Coral group opened its first Café de Coral restaurant in the Causeway Bay
Causeway Bay
Causeway Bay is a heavily built-up area of Hong Kong, People's Republic of China, located on the Hong Kong Island, and covering parts of Wan Chai and Eastern districts. The Chinese name is also romanized as Tung Lo Wan as in Tung Lo Wan Road...

 district of Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...

 in 1969. Since then, the group has grown to operate over 540 separate outlets across its brands all over the world. Café de Coral group is the largest Chinese Fast Food restaurant group in Hong Kong and in the world. In Hong Kong alone, the Café de Coral chain caters to over 300,000 people on an average day.

Founding

The Cafe de Coral Group was incorporated in 1968, but it would not be until September 1969 when it opened its first Café de Coral restaurant in Causeway Bay
Causeway Bay
Causeway Bay is a heavily built-up area of Hong Kong, People's Republic of China, located on the Hong Kong Island, and covering parts of Wan Chai and Eastern districts. The Chinese name is also romanized as Tung Lo Wan as in Tung Lo Wan Road...

. The chain gradually expanded over the next decade and went on air in 1977 when it promoted its restaurants through TV commercials. In 1979, Café de Coral established its first food processing plant, a move commonly taken to lower costs and ensure consistency. In 1986, the Café de Coral Group finally went public, and in 1988, it hit a major milestone by opening up its 50th Café de Coral restaurant. The years after this would be marked by diversification when it went on a buying spree.

Acquisitions and expansion

In May 1990, Café de Coral made its first acquisition by buying out the Ah Yee Leng Tong chain for $14 million HKD. A year later in 1991, it acquired The Spaghetti House, a popular chain that served HK-style Italian food. The same year, it opened up its second food processing plant. 1992 was another milestone year for Café de Coral when it opened both its 100th restaurant as well as its first restaurant outside Hong Kong in the nearby city of Shenzhen
Shenzhen
Shenzhen is a major city in the south of Southern China's Guangdong Province, situated immediately north of Hong Kong. The area became China's first—and one of the most successful—Special Economic Zones...

.

In 1996, Café de Coral opened up its first Bravo le Café restaurant and that same year, it acquired Scanfoods, a ham processing and food distribution business. In 1998, it started yet another restaurant chain called Super Super Congee & Noodle, serving exactly what the name states.

Café de Coral was not finished with its trend of acquisitions, and in 2000, it acquired Denny's Bakery, a bakery manufacturing and distribution business in Hong Kong. That same year, it acquired Manchu Wok
Manchu Wok
Manchu Wok is a Chinese fast food trainer in the United States and Canada, similar in concept to Panda Express. Despite the name, the menu does not feature any dishes from traditional Manchurian Cuisine and instead is mostly made up of American Chinese cuisine and Canadian Chinese cuisine...

, a North American Chinese fast food chain that had a strong presence in Canada and the United States. In the years following, Café de Coral also acquired China Inn (2002), New Asia Dabao (2003), and Oliver's Super Sandwiches (2003).

Present day

In 2006, Café de Coral began rolling out its "fourth generation concept" across all of its locations, effectively renovating many restaurants to bring them up to modern standards. This year, Café de Coral made an investment in the Tao Heung Group, a smaller restaurant group that operates 11 brands all over China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

 and Hong Kong.

Café de Coral


Café de Coral is a fast food restaurant chain that serves both Chinese and Western food at a budget price. Established in 1968 in Causeway Bay
Causeway Bay
Causeway Bay is a heavily built-up area of Hong Kong, People's Republic of China, located on the Hong Kong Island, and covering parts of Wan Chai and Eastern districts. The Chinese name is also romanized as Tung Lo Wan as in Tung Lo Wan Road...

, Café de Coral operates over 100 locations in the Hong Kong region and 24 locations in Mainland China
Mainland China
Mainland China, the Chinese mainland or simply the mainland, is a geopolitical term that refers to the area under the jurisdiction of the People's Republic of China . According to the Taipei-based Mainland Affairs Council, the term excludes the PRC Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and...

.

The Spaghetti House

The Spaghetti House is a specialty restaurant chain that serves Hong Kong-style Italian cuisine and is positioned as a mid-market chain that is family and tourist friendly. Established in 1979, The Spaghetti House operates 25 locations in Hong Kong and 3 locations in Southern China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

.

Ah Yee Leng Tong

Ah Yee Leng Tong is a specialty restaurant chain that serves homestyle Chinese soup as well as a variety of regional Chinese dishes. It is also known for its XO sauce
XO sauce
XO sauce is a spicy seafood sauce used in Chinese cuisines especially in southern China such as Guangdong province and Hong Kong.-History:Developed in the 1980s in Hong Kong for Cantonese cuisine, it is made of roughly chopped dried seafoods including scallops, dried fish and shrimp and cooked with...

. Its restaurants, which average 250 square meters, fuse both traditional and modern furnishings and appeal to both locals and tourists. As of 2007, there is only one location at the Hong Kong International Airport
Hong Kong International Airport
Hong Kong International Airport is the main airport in Hong Kong. It is colloquially known as Chek Lap Kok Airport , being built on the island of Chek Lap Kok by land reclamation, and also to distinguish it from its predecessor, the closed Kai Tak Airport.The airport opened for commercial...

.

Bravo le Café

Bravo le Café is a quick service restaurant chain that serves a mix of Western, Chinese, and Japanese food in a bistro setting designed to appeal to "young and upwardly mobile executives." There are currently three locations of Bravo le Café, one in the International Finance Centre
International Finance Centre
The International Finance Centre is an integrated commercial development on the waterfront of Hong Kong's Central District....

, one in Central, Hong Kong
Central, Hong Kong
Central is the central business district of Hong Kong. It is located in Central and Western District, on the north shore of Hong Kong Island, across Victoria Harbour from Tsim Sha Tsui, the southernmost point of Kowloon Peninsula...

, and one at the Hong Kong International Airport
Hong Kong International Airport
Hong Kong International Airport is the main airport in Hong Kong. It is colloquially known as Chek Lap Kok Airport , being built on the island of Chek Lap Kok by land reclamation, and also to distinguish it from its predecessor, the closed Kai Tak Airport.The airport opened for commercial...

.

Super Super Congee & Noodles

Super Super Congee & Noodles is a fast food chain serving congee
Congee
Congee is a type of rice porridge popular in many Asian countries. It can be eaten alone or served with a side dish. Names for congee are as varied as the style of its preparation...

 and various noodle dishes as its name suggests. As of March 2006, there were 5 location across Hong Kong including two in Tsing Yi
Tsing Yi
Tsing Yi , or Tsing Yi Island is an island in the urban area of Hong Kong, to the northwest of Hong Kong Island and south of Tsuen Wan. With an area of 10.69 km², the island has extended drastically by reclamation along almost all its natural shore and the annexation of Nga Ying Chau and Chau...

 and one in Wong Tai Sin
Wong Tai Sin, Hong Kong
Wong Tai Sin is an area in Wong Tai Sin District, New Kowloon, Hong Kong. The area was named after the Wong Tai Sin Temple.Wong Tai Sin is surrounded by northeast Tsz Wan Shan, east Diamond Hill, south San Po Kong, south west Tung Tau and west Wang Tai Hom...

.

Wage Controversy

When Hong Kong's minimum wage
Minimum wage
A minimum wage is the lowest hourly, daily or monthly remuneration that employers may legally pay to workers. Equivalently, it is the lowest wage at which workers may sell their labour. Although minimum wage laws are in effect in a great many jurisdictions, there are differences of opinion about...

 law was passed in July 2010, Café de Coral raised its average salary from HKD $22.4 to $33 in order to satisfy the law requirement. However, during the process, it stopped paying its employees for lunch breaks. Their decision led to public backlash and Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions
Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions
The Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions is a pro-democracy labour and political group in the Hong Kong. It was established in 1990...

 threatened to start a public boycott. Three days before the boycott began, Café de Coral reversed its decision and resumed paying its employee for lunch breaks while giving them a payrise.

See also

  • Cuisine of Hong Kong
    Cuisine of Hong Kong
    Hong Kong cuisine is influenced by Cantonese cuisine and parts of non-Cantonese-speaking China , Western world, Japan, and Southeast Asia, due to Hong Kong's past as a British colony and long history of being an international city of commerce...

  • Fairwood
    Fairwood (restaurant)
    Fairwood is a fast food chain offering Chinese and Western food at affordable prices. Founded in December 1972 in the Tsuen Wan district of Hong Kong, its current headquarters are located in North Point...

  • Maxim's MX
    Maxim's Catering
    Maxim's is Hong Kong's largest food & beverage corporation and restaurant chain. Founded in 1956 by Dr James Tak Wu and his brother S.T...


External links

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