Қытай-Филиппин тағамдарының жедел тамақ желісі Човкинг

Filipino fast food restaurant chain that specialized in the Chinese cuisine

Chowking is a Filipino fast food restaurant chain that sells Filipino Chinese cuisine. Founded in 1985, Chowking was acquired by Jollibee Foods Corporation in 2000. It is widely considered the country's most popular Chinese restaurant and was once the second largest Filipino fast food chain. There are over 600 locations worldwide.

Hailing from a Chinese Filipino family, Robert Kuan graduated with an MBA degree in 1975. He became the CEO of Ling Nam, a Chinese restaurant in Binondo, Manila, partially owned by his family, and successfully expanded it into a small restaurant chain. Ling Nam, however, was plagued by family conflict. Kuan learned that the shareholders were planning to remove him from his position. Taking the advice of his friend Henry Sy,

Chowking Food Corporation was incorporated on February 19, 1985. The principal investors were Kuan, Jollibee founder Tony Tan Caktiong and Wilson Chu. After two years, Kuan and Caktiong bought Chu's shares, so they both owned 50% of the company. on the ground floor of Rotary Arcade, Makati Commercial Center (now SM Makati). In 1989, Chowking started a franchise system which enabled them to enter new markets with limited resources. Its first franchise opened in the provincial city of Meycauayan, Bulacan. A U. S. government report believed that Chowking was likely to succeed because Filipinos enjoyed Chinese cuisine and had a "newly found concern for the clean, well lit and quick service they provide." At the end of 1992, there were 21 Chowking locations. When Chowking expanded to San Fernando, Pampanga, in 1997, many restaurants had to adjust their menus; for example, they now add sugar to their siopao to resemble Chowking's. In late 1999, Kuan agreed to sell his 50% controlling share of Chowking Food Corporation to Caktiong, chairman of Jollibee Foods Corporation, for ₱600,000. In November, Chowking had 162 branches, including four in the United States and three in Dubai. Efn|Contemporary news reports note that Chowking had 162 branches, including four in the U. S. and three in Dubai. Later sources claim that Chowking had 155, with three in the U. S. and three in the Middle East. In the 1990s, Chowking held the naming rights to Chowking Fastfood Kings, a Philippine Basketball League (PBL) team. The team gave Leo Austria his big break as a coach in 1998, and included notable players such as Roger Yap and Chris Calaguio. After Jollibee acquired Chowking, the team was sold to Shark Energy Drink ahead of the 2000–01 PBL season.

Jollibee's acquisition of Chowking Food Corporation from its holding company, Antares Holdings, Inc., was completed in March 2000. Rufino L. dela Rosa, Jollibee's vice president, stated that the merger would cut down Chowking's supply, marketing and administrative expenses and maximize storage space, especially if new Chowking branches were built beside Jollibee's. From 2006 to 2008, Chowking invested ₱270 million in a modernization program which redeveloped their Noodle Building and increased the automation for the food production lines of their two commissaries. Located in Muntinlupa, the commissaries also act as warehouses and distribution centers. In 2010, Chowking was rebranded with a new logo and slogan: "Tikman ang Tagumpay"
In December 2023, the Department of Labor and Employment in Davao City were prompted to inspect a local Chowking after one of their employees posted a viral TikTok. In it, she said that she had go door to door looking for customers to meet her daily quota. She also had to pay her own transportation fares. Social media users criticized Chowking, with some claiming that this was not an isolated case.

In 1996, Chowking opened its first overseas location in San Diego, California. Three years later, it entered the Indonesian market, opening two stores in the capital city of Jakarta. In 2004, Chowking opened its first two stores in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. By 2008, Chowking had over 400 stores within the Philippines, Indonesia, United States and the Middle East. In Dubai, Chowking's commissary supplied ten stores. In 2011, Jollibee acquired control over the franchised operations of Chowking USA, later on giving the full ownership to JFC. They also gave 25% ownership to JFC Ayco Inc. Tradeline LLC's Ahmed Lafir opened the UAE's first Chowking in April 2003. The country's locations are far more spacious. Since they cater mostly to expatriate Filipinos, Chowking UAE soon added more "Filipino home style dishes" such as bulalo and kare kare to its menu.

Chowking sell Filipino inspired Chinese cuisine, a departure from typical fast food fare. Matejowsky notes that Chowking sells dishes which consumers cannot purchase at larger chains such as McDonald's or Jollibee. Its diverse menu includes chicken and beef dishes served with rice; Filipino dishes such as mami and "sweet tasting" siopao; and desserts such as the Filipino halo halo, which Matejowsky described as "one of Chowking's most popular offerings".