Jollibee Philippines

I honestly wonder what goes through the heads of fast-food chain management and founders when deciding what their mascot should be. It must have been an interesting time when the creators of McDonalds came up with the idea of a friendly clown dressed in red, yellow and white. I guess things were a bit simpler for Dave Thomas when he named the franchise after his daughter Wendy, though I would hesitate to call her a mascot. We all know how bad (or maybe good?) things can get when a fast food chain brainstorms the brilliant idea of a talking chihuahua that speaks in Spanish about how much he wants (or loves?) Taco Bell. Interestingly enough, not all successful chains need a mascot (or maybe they weren’t memorable) in the case of chains like Arby’s, but many do, like Jack of Jack in the Box and The King of Buger King - all normal people with ridiculous masks or, um, heads.

Now what does this have to do with Jollibee in the Philippines? Well, many would attribute Jollibee’s success in the Philippines to its mascot, sharing the same name as the franchise: the Jollibee. Is it a coincidence that Jollibee chose its mascot to be bright yellow and red as well? Perhaps not - as gaudy as those colors may seem, they are more than vibrant enough to catch the eye’s attention. These colors exposed to children who grow up on Jollibee begin a lifelong association of bright yellow and red with delicious, affordable and fast food. Reminiscent of the memorable flavors of popular condiments for hamburgers (or Yumburgers) and hot dogs, the yellow and red bee named Jollibee is dressed in a chef’s hat along with a shirt and blazer.

Jollibee’s smiling face is friendly enough to be a favorite among kids, and his face is prevalent in many locations that include playrooms for children. Clearly, this cartoon figure is aimed at the younger generation, but it does not alienate the older generation, especially these days, when many of us have grown up eating Jollibee. It’s easy to say that this figure has been pivotal in the branding and marketing efforts that have led to such success in the Philippines.

Read more about the History of Jollibee in the Phillippines.

There’s even more to learn at Jollibee Philippines.

As mentioned in our article History of Jollibee in the Philippines, we know that Jollibee originated in the Philippines, specifically in Cubao, Quezon City. Though it was such a modest beginning, and remember that the original shops used to only serve ice cream (pretty hard to imagine, isn’t it? I know I think of so much more than ice cream when I think of Jollibee), these two locations in Quezon City with the humble precursors to arguably the most successful fast food franchise in the history of the entire Philippines. Today, Jollibee has over 600 locations in the Philippines, and over 30 locations in other countries around the world. Where exactly are all these locations? Well, we can’t answer that question for every single on of the locations, but this article will explore some of the Jollibee locations both in the Philippines and around the world.

Where is Cubao, Quezon City? Well to answer this question, let’s look at the Philippines as a whole. The Philippines is located in the Pacific Ocean, southeast of mainland China and northeast of Indonesia. Taiwan is north of the Philippines and Vietnam is west of the Philippines. Now, zooming in on the Philippines itself, it is a country of over 5,000 islands, the largest of which is Luzon. Within Luzon, the most metropolitan area is known as Metro Manila. Metro Manila is made up of several cities, the largest of which is known as Quezon City, making up almost a quarter of the land area of Metro Manila. Cubao is a significant neighborhood within Quezon City, mostly for commerical reasons. Because of its many shops, it has been compared by some to the Madison Square Area in New York City. Still with me? Well, hopefully now you know a little more about where all the greatness that is Jollibee started, and now we look at where else it’s expanded to.

To begin, lets look at where Jollibee locations are inside of the Philippines. The major areas where Jollibee exists are:

• North Luzon

• South Luzon

• Metro Manila

• Mindanao

• Visayan Islands

Some notable cities include: Makati, Malabon, Antipolo, Bacoor, Davao, Iligan, Bacolod, Cebu City and Baguio.

  Now, let’s explore where Jollibee is outside of the Philippines. There are locations in the following places:

• United States

• Brunei

• Guam

• Saipan

• Hong Kong

• Vietnam

Some notable stores from these areas include stores in San Jose, California and also a new Jollibee in Las Vegas, Nevada! Within Vietnam in Ho Chi Minh City, Jollibee boasts locations in areas such as  Saigon Superbowl and Thuan Kieu Plaza.

Now that you know about the locations, learn more about Food at Jollibee in the Philippines.

Find out even more about Jollibee Philippines.

Starting Where We Left Off

To begin our series, we started with Food at Jollibee in the Philippines - Part 1: Traditional American Food , including burgers, chicken and more. Then, we moved on to Food at Jollibee in the Philippines - Part 2: Traditional Filipino Food, including an assortment of noodles and the staple rice dishes. Now in Part 3, we get to the really good stuff: Breakfast and Desserts.

Breakfast: The Most Important Meal of the Day

Now there’s nothing better than eggs and rice combined with some type of Filipino-style breakfast meat. And that’s exactly what Jollibee has to offer. On one hand we have the special sweet sausage known as Longganisa served with a fried egg and side of fried rice. On the other hand we have my personal favorite breakfast: Corned Beef with a fried egg and fried rice. These two are easily my favorites, but let’s not forget the beef side of things. Jolibee also offers the beef tapa with side of rice as well as the burger steak, but dressed up in breakfast form. If you prefer a hot dog for breakfast instead, you also have that choice. Now to go back to the American side of the kitchen, Jollibee serves Breakfast Joys pancakes. Not quite the International House of Pancakes, but if you want a sweet morning sensation, you’ve found a winner!

Desserts: The Final Say

Keeping in their tradition of creative branding of their food, Jollibee has deemed desserts “Jolly Zerts.” Now this section makes me recall my childhood memories of stopping at DQ for blizzards and sundaes. For those of you unfamiliar with DQ, I’m talking about the great American chain known as Dairy Queen. To start with the basics, Jollibee offers simple soft serve ice cream with a variety of toppings: chocolate syrup, brownie chunks and caramel bars. Now to get a bit more Filipino, they also offer “Ice Craze” which is basically rebranded “Halo-Halo” (no not the video game), but the traditional Filipino shaved ice dessert. You can get the Ice Craze with corn and cornflakes or with the beautifully purple ube and cheese. Personally, I don’t eat things purple, but I know that ube is hugely popular in the Philippines.

Wrap-Up

Well, that pretty much does it for our 3 part series. I don’t know about you, but writing all this made me pretty hungry. Hopefully if you’re reading this, you’re close enough to your local Jollibee to satisfy that hybrid American-Filipino appetite of yours!

Ever wonder about the Success Story of Jollibee in the Philippines?

Read more about Jollibee Philippines.