China’s budget-friendly food chains sweep across Southeast Asia

BANGKOK/HANOI/SHANGHAI — Affordable Chinese food and beverage chains like Mixue and Haidilao are strengthening their positions in Southeast Asia, pulling in young consumers with low prices amid a growing sense of caution about the pressure they put on local industries.

For high school students in Vietnam, Mixue is a popular gathering spot after classes. “I come here all the time because it’s cheap,” said one female student at a location in Hanoi in late August.