US restaurant chain turning the tables with new Shanghai location

P.F. Chang's is an American restaurant that is now serving Chinese cuisine in China.

"It is a little ironic that we're selling Chinese food to the Chinese," CEO Michael Osanloo told CNBC.

The company's trademarked "Farm to Wok" method, however, didn't impress the Chinese.

He said that when the company explained it, the response was: "Of course. How else would you cook food?" he told CNBC's "Power Lunch" on May 1.

"You know what worked, though?" he said. "When we told them we're an American bistro. They love the concept."

Coincidentally, P.F. Chang's used to call its American locations "China bistros".

The company chose Shanghai, China's largest city, for its first outlet, which is 5,000 square feet with more than 230 seats. It opened on April 28 at the No1 Mall on Nanjing Road and is quite opulent.

"It's elegant it's where hip, cool people want to go," Osanloo said.

"We have been very successful in 23 other countries and are confident our unique Asian-inspired offerings will resonate with the sophisticated Chinese consumer," Osanloo said in an April 30 release. "Our food is made fresh, from scratch every day in every P.F. Chang's restaurant around the world. We're honored to offer this unique experience to Shanghainese consumers and travelers to this amazing city."

He said the Shanghai location has seen tremendous traffic. The top three menu items are three of the four most popular in the US, including chicken, lettuce wraps and shrimp.

"It just goes to show that the palate is not that different internationally," Osanloo said.

The Shanghai location also has some signature items, such as "fantastic" duck spring rolls, which have been a "home run", he said, and tea cakes.

"You go to the fanciest Chinese restaurants - it's closer to our food," Osanloo said. "So, I think our food in China is where Chinese cuisine is going."

P.F. Chang's started at an Arizona mall in 1993. Today, the Scottsdale, Arizona-based chain has more than 300 restaurants with more than $1.1 billion in sales. Once a public company, P.F. Chang's went private in 2012.

While many malls have struggled to survive in recent years, Osanloo said P.F. Chang's continues to work with high-end malls, of which the No1 in Shanghai is one.

"There are great malls, and then there are malls that are struggling. We work with some fantastic REITs (real estate investment trusts) who have re-merchandised the entire mall," he said.

"We work with Simon Property, who's taken entire malls and put in ice skating rinks and water parks for kids, and town centers, which really is giving people a reason to go back to a mall."

Osanloo said P.F. Chang's itself is draw at the malls.

"The reason people go to malls is for entertainment and restaurants," he said. "We're on trend."

"I sincerely think we can be bigger in China than we are in the US," Osanloo told Business Insider.

Contact the writer at williamhennelly@chinadailyusa.com