You don't often see long queues in Beijing these days, but recently in the capital, at Dawanglu subway station, Dongsi, and many other places, long queues are being seen in front of inconspicuous cake shops called "tu diao zha ()," a Chinese style pizza , originating from the Tujia minority.

Many people are surprised by the sudden appearance of this fast food, priced at around 2.5 yuan (US$0.31) a piece. Even more people are surprised by its popularity.

The tu diao zha cake, meaning "Tujia-style fallen crumbs," is a thin cake covered with marinated pork grains. Some say there are 12, or in another version, 20 different ingredients in the seasoning of the pork and the cake. But the most obvious ingredient are the little pieces of red chilli, and zi ran (), a spice most commonly used in western regions such as Xinjiang and Shaanxi.

The franchise first appeared in Wuhan, followed by Shanghai and Hangzhou. Customers are mostly young people who want to get a quick bite before, or whilst at work.

With the meteoric rise of the cake's popularity, similar stores, with slightly varied names, such as "xiang zha zha () (fragrant crumbs)," "xiang diao zha () (fragrant, fallen crumbs)," have also appeared on the scene.

Reports say that business in Shanghai is slackening off and many stores are closing. It is believed that the franchising costs 3,000 yuan (US$370), are not enough to obtain quality equipment and staff, leading to poor quality produce, which in turn damages the brand's name.

In Wuhan and Shanghai, where it has been in business for around five months, it is said that the long queues are getting shorter. What will happen to Beijing's tu diao zha cake? You'll just have to wait and see. But meanwhile, get a bite.

(China Daily 03/17/2006 page8)