Canadian fast-food chain ‘better than KFC’ set to launch in UK ‘very soon’
A CANADIAN fast-food chain fans say is “better than KFC” is set to open its first restaurants in the UK.
Mary Brown’s (MB) Chicken, which has more than 300 stores across Canada, is looking to open its first branch in the UK within days.
The brand is known for items like the Big Mary chicken sandwich and tater poutine – a dish of French fries and cheese, topped with gravy.
Fast food fans in Lisburn, Northern Ireland, will be able to try these dishes at the MB’s from Wednesday, February 21.
The store will create 25 new jobs and there are plans to quickly open locations in Belfast, Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK “very soon”.
The Sun has asked MB Chicken for a list of locations where it is planning to open stores, as well as menu items and prices.
In the meantime, these are some of the menu items available to Mary Brown’s customers in Canada to give you an idea of what UK customers might expect:
- Southwest grilled chicken sandwich combo (grilled chicken sandwich with choice of side and a can of pop) $13.99/£11.11
- Big Mary combo (whole chicken breast in sesame seed bun plus small taters and a can of pop) $12.99/£10.31
- Poutine and Pop (Tasty taters topped with cheese curds or shredded cheese smothered in MB gravy and a can of pop) $5.99/£4.76
- Two piece chicken meal (freshly breaded chicken with small taters, salad, and a can of pop) $13.79/£10.95
- Buffalo chicken tenders (white meat tenders breaded in Signature recipe tossed in buffalo sauce and deep fried) $9.29/£7.28
The above items and prices are just a guide taken from the Mary Brown Canadian website.
We will update information on what is going to be available at UK and Ireland locations as soon as we have it.
Hadi Chahin, chief executive of MB, said: “We are excited to introduce our legendary fried chicken to the wonderful people of Lisburn.
“What makes MB Chicken special is our delicious, handcrafted menu and genuine hospitality; we have been a beloved tradition in Canada for generations.
“We can’t wait to share our passion for delicious, made-from-scratch quality food with our new friends in the UK.”
The branch will be open from 11am to 11pm, seven days a week.
Fans will also be able to order meals for delivery via the MB Chicken app, as well as from Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats.
Fans are already delighted that the brand is set to land on UK soil.
Writing on X, formerley known as Twitter, one said: “If you’ve tasted Mary Brown’s, you wouldn’t eat KFC.
“People would wait up to 30 minutes for Chicken to be ready.”
Another wrote: “I always enjoyed Mary Brown’s Chicken way more than KFC!”
The chain was founded in 1969 and was established by Mary Brown’s husband who was inspired by his wife – Mary Brown’s – fried chicken recipe.
Its first branch opened in St John’s Newfoundland before expanding across Canda.
MB isn’t the only fast food chain looking to expand in the UK.
Chicken chain Popeyes has revealed rapid expansion plans to almost double in size this year, in a move which will create around 2,000 jobs.
Wendy’s, the third largest burger chain in the world after McDonald’s and Burger King, returned to the UK in 2021.
Fried chicken chain Chick-fil-A has also confirmed its plans to open new branches nationwide.
The retailer will open its first store in early 2025 and up to five in the following two years.
Elsewhere, The Sun revealed that pizza chain Papa Johns could close up to 100 branches across the UK.
KFC is also revealed it was shutting one of its branches in Glasgow.
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