[BACKSTORY] Six Years in the Making, Jollibee Finally Lands in Downtown San Francisco

The Filipino fast-food giant’s newest American outpost serves up more than award-winning fried chicken. Its long road to opening has also become a powerful case for cutting bureaucratic red tape.

Jollibee’s arrival on San Francisco’s Market Street was supposed to be a restaurant opening. Instead, it became a six-year lesson in persistence, regulation and the high cost of bureaucratic delay.

After a six-year wait, Jollibee brings award-winning Chickenjoy and a fresh dose of Filipino joy to the heart of downtown San Francisco. [Illustrator: ASK]

The Filipino fast-food giant officially opened its downtown location at 934 Market Street on July 31, bringing its signature Chickenjoy, Chicken Sandwiches and Peach Mango Pie within steps of the Powell Street BART station.

The debut gives Jollibee a high-profile foothold in the heart of the city while adding fresh energy to San Francisco’s broader downtown recovery.

San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie is cutting through bureaucratic red tape with PermitSF, an initiative designed to speed up approvals and help businesses open their doors sooner. [Photo: SF.Gov]

For Mayor Daniel Lurie, the celebration offered both a welcome sign of business confidence and a reminder of why the city’s permitting system needed reform.

“It’s unacceptable that it took six years,” Lurie said during the opening festivities. “And it’s why from day one we’ve been trying to slash the red tape, cut the bureaucracy, get more permits online.”

A test case for reform

Lurie, who assumed office in January 2025, has made downtown revitalization and small-business reform central priorities of his administration. One of its key initiatives is PermitSF, an effort to modernize permitting and help businesses open more quickly.

Jollibee’s prolonged journey provided a compelling example of the problem.

A restaurant capable of creating jobs, attracting foot traffic and activating a prominent commercial address had to navigate years of delays before serving its first customer.

“I’m just thrilled that they are open. Six years, took too long,” Lurie said.

“That’s why we’ve been working so hard on PermitSF to speed up and help small businesses get up and running in places like the Mid-Market.”

He added a lighthearted but pointed observation. “If we hadn’t made some of these changes, we might’ve had to wait even longer for this fried chicken on Market Street.”

The opening also carries cultural significance for a city with deep ties to the Filipino-American community. Lurie praised Jollibee for its commitment to San Francisco, recognizing the company’s “persistence and investment” in the city.

“San Francisco’s Filipino community brings so much vibrancy and culture to our city, and we’re proud to welcome a beloved Filipino business to this iconic location,” he said.

Chickenjoy conquers America again

Jollibee enters downtown San Francisco with more than community goodwill behind it. In July 2026, USA TODAY crowned its Chickenjoy the best fast-food fried chicken in America for the third consecutive year, reinforcing the Filipino brand’s widening appeal among American consumers.

The restaurant is Jollibee’s 14th Bay Area location, extending a regional story that began when the company opened its first U.S. store in Daly City in 1998.

Jollibee’s Chickenjoy has ruled the roost once again, earning USA TODAY’s title of America’s best fast-food fried chicken for the third consecutive year. [Photo: Jollibee]

“The Bay Area has welcomed Jollibee with open arms ever since we debuted our very first U.S. location in Daly City nearly three decades ago,” said Beth Dela Cruz, president of Jollibee North America.

She described the downtown restaurant as a milestone in the company’s accelerating California expansion.

That growth is supported by strong store economics. Jollibee reports an average unit volume of $4.9 million in North America, approximately 2.5 times the level of many quick-service restaurant operators.

The company is also expanding through franchising, with commitments in Nevada, New York, Texas and Washington.

After six years of waiting, the doors on Market Street are finally open.

For Jollibee, the location is another step in its transformation from a beloved Filipino institution into a global restaurant contender. For San Francisco, it is proof that when City Hall clears the path, investment, culture and a bucket of award-winning Chickenjoy can bring more life back downtown.