Yum's experiment in China: 'East Dawning'

With its Chinese lettering and unremarkable name, the fast-food outlet in a Shanghai shopping mall looks like many others selling local fare. East Dawning is crowded with customers on this winter evening, and they're sampling a menu that includes pork fried rice, marinated egg and plum juice.

With eight storefronts around Shanghai, the test market for this new concept, East Dawning could soon give China's biggest fast feeder, KFC, a run for its money. Good thing for them they're playing on the same team.

The formula developed by Yum's other banners overseas--cheap food delivered in cheerful surroundings--has provided a welcome mat for the company. Diner Frank Li, a project engineer on a trip from Suzhou, says the East Dawning's link to KFC and Pizza Hut is a draw, not a drawback. "Those places are good quality,"he says. "You know what you're going to get. They are a very professional company that must know what it's doing, and I think the quality here shows that."