Pandemonium at Jollibee's first day in Dubai Mall

Photo by Karen Ibardaloza Reazon Llaneta on Facebook

It's not a new iPhone launch, or new Jordan shoes. Nope, not One Direction too. There's a new attraction in Dubai and it's raking fans and curious expats by storm.

Jollibee opens it's first store in the UAE at the Dubai Mall. As expected, die-hard fans trooped and had a camping in the queue for hours... Seriously. People power in the mall!

"Pag may tyaga, may chickenjoy."

Other nationalities might be wondering what's up with that bee in the corner. It occupied the spaces for KFC and other fastfood within the area.






Jollibee is the undisputed king of fast food in the Philippines. It's an icon. It popularly topples McDonalds back home which is very rare among other countries.

More than the "langhap sarap" (deliciously enticing) food, it's the culture of Jollibee that these Filipino expats are queueing for. The fast food is also close to the hearts of many. It's where we had our first dining out experience, first fried chicken, first date, proposals, victory parties, birthday parties, and blowout parties when we receive honors in school.

Photo by Dennis Borja Mallari on Facebook

Many Filipinos in Dubai grew up with Jollibee affixed to their gastronomic culture. And that's the very reason why they defy the leg pain and cramps of queueing.

It's just Monday.  Weekend would be chaos.

Photo by The Filipino Times on Facebook

So, got patience? Head down to Dubai Mall foodcourt and order your favorite chickenjoy, or burger steak or jolly hotdog. Please bring also determination and extreme physical composure to stand for 2 to 6 hours. You might want to have a bite of KFC or McDonalds so you won't get hungry on the queue... :P

Taste? I still have to try it myself, but based on people's posts, it's as good as the one we love.

I hope the service crews didn't forget to breath. Man, define non-stop.