Fastfood heavyweight McDonald's has inaugurated its first Vietnam restaurant in Ho Chi Minh City with the concept of good food fast 24 hours a day, everyday.

According to the Vietnam Investment Review (VIR), long lines of customers of every age group gathered at the restaurant at the intersection of Dien Bien Phu and Nguyen Binh Khiem streets before the opening time on February 8, although the 3,000-sq.m property offers car and motorbike drive-thru with a three-minute-per-customer service plan.

Many of the early comers were eager to take a look inside the 350-seat restaurant, designed as a dining destination with different services and offerings including a café and children’s playground.

A majority of the ingredients used by McDonald's food in Vietnam are imports, including Australian beef and US pork and French fries, said local chairman Henry Nguyen.

He added that the restaurant chain was committed to working with Vietnamese and global partners to develop local suppliers who can serve McDonald's restaurants in Vietnam and throughout the world.

“The opening of our first restaurant in Vietnam is just the beginning of the journey we are taking with our customers. We’ll work hard to continually stay relevant to our customers’ needs and exceed their expectations,” he announced.

The menu offers the McPork line of burgers, created to cater to Vietnamese tastes, as well as iconic choices such as the Big Mac and French fries, Nguyen added.

To further promote the brand, McDonald's Vietnam will partner with the Vietnam University Games to promote active lifestyles through sports among students and youth nationwide.

McDonald's is now building its second Vietnam restaurant near Ben Thanh Market, at the heart of Ho Chi Minh City, for a near future opening. The company did not disclose the exact date.

In terms of a timeline for Hanoi, Nguyen told VIR that it was still early to say and that it would come in the next three to four years.

“We feel very bullish about Vietnam,” Bob Larson, McDonald's Corp senior vice president and international relationship partner, was quoted by the VIR as saying.

McDonald’s serves nearly 68 million people in about 120 countries daily. While the fastfood giant has an immense presence in greater Asia, McDonald’s is late to the market in Vietnam, where a bevy of fastfood operations are already based.

Trailblazer KFC, another US fast food brand, has also rapidly expanded in Vietnam. The first KFC restaurant was established in Ho Chi Minh City in 1997 and in June 2011 the franchise marked its 100th restaurant in Vietnam. Meanwhile, Burger King has 29 restaurants in the country.

Source: VNA