https://arab.news/jym6p
- Why everyone鈥檚 queuing outside Afghanistan鈥檚 closed pavilion ... they鈥檙e there for the Saudi chicken
DUBAI: Crowds thronged outside Afghanistan鈥檚 pavilion at Expo 2020 in Dubai on Saturday 鈥� which was a mystery, because the pavilion remained shuttered despite the opening of the world fair to visitors the previous day.
The mystery was solved by the presence of a sign with a distinctive white and yellow logo pointing visitors in the direction of Albaik, the Saudi fried chicken chain that has an outlet in the same building.
鈥淎fghanistan? They have a pavilion? No, we鈥檙e here for Albaik,鈥� visitor Michael Higgins, an Irish expatriate, told Arab News. 鈥淭heir spicy chicken is the best in the city.鈥�
While Albaik is a household name in 抖阴短视频, with more than 120 branches, it is a relative novelty in the UAE, where the first outlet opened in Dubai Mall only in June.
Afghanistan is one of nearly 200 nations participating in the six-month Expo, but the country鈥檚 pavilion was planned by the government that was driven from power by the Taliban last month, and remains incomplete and closed to visitors. A security guard at the building said they had not seen any one work there in weeks.