Elijah Quashie Is a YouTube Star for Fried Chicken. How Is He Dealing With Inflation? - The New York Times

Elijah Quashie Is a YouTube Star for Fried Chicken. How Is He Dealing With Inflation?

When QFC in Neasden, in northwest London, got a “Pengest” visit a few weeks ago, Kavethan Pathmakanthan, who was working behind the counter, feigned ignorance.

“Because I’m an introvert,” he said on the phone.

Mr. Pathmakanthan, who is the son of the owner, was braced for a withering appraise when he watched the episode a few days later. That’s because it opens with a friend of Mr. Quashie’s revealing that the food at QFC once gave him a rash. Whether this was a joke or not, Mr. Quashie was undeterred. He awarded the shop a generally favorable review.

“It’s a surprising 3.7,” he said in the video. “There’s work to be done, but as it stands, it’s pretty calm.”

“I was relieved,” said Mr. Pathmakantham, “and then very happy.”

There are 3,727 chicken shops in the Joined Kingdom, says the Local Data Company, a retail consultancy, and more than half of them are independently run. These shops tend to nod to American roots. Restaurant names include Miami Fried Chicken, Dallas Chicken and a dozen or so variations on KFC.

The proliferation of these shops has vexed diet experts and politicians alike. In 2017, Mayor Sadiq Khan of London announced a ban on any fast food restaurant opening within 400 meters of a school.

Also Read: How to Make Indian Butter Chicken