Quick Update

I was looking at some older posts, and in the Cinnabon post, I mentioned the possibility of Hardee's opening here in Almaty. I'm very glad to announce that Hardee's opened on Thursday, and I went there for lunch with the folks from the Commerce office.

So good. I actually thought that my trips to Bangkok may not have to be organized around visits to Burger King.

A representative from Hardee's was there at the opening, and I took the chance to talk to him about branding. Several years ago, Hardee's was purchased by Carl's Jr., which I was familiar with from living in California. The Hardee's here in Almaty is called Hardee's but features burgers with names from Carl's Jr -- the Famous Star and the Super Star. (If I'm wrong about this, and Hardee's does offer burgers with these names, I'd be curious to know.) However, they had curly fries but not the fried zucchini that I love from Carl's Jr.

The Hardee's guy told me that fried zucchini is actually an unprofitable product for the chain, but they continue to offer it in the US because so many people know that Carl's Jr. has it. I was sad to learn that Hardee's does not offer fried zucchini at all internationally. I told him that I'd stock up when I visit the US.