A sleepy industrial park in the inner west of Sydney is a world away from remote Birdsville, Queensland and the 100 or so locals who call it home. About 2-3 day’s drive with the sun in your eyes. But this is where the voyage begins, as finishing touches are made to KFC’s full-blown original recipe big rig. Dubbed “The Colonel”, it’s ridiculous and over the top. There’s a slide on the side. A festival within a festival headed to the Big Red Bash — the world’s most remote music festival that sees Birdsville’s population grow to over 7000. All in the shadow of a giant red sand dune on the edge of the Simpson desert.
While KFC fans in the city watch for home delivery trials in July, the nearest KFC is otherwise over 1000 kilometres away from Birdsville. So KFC’s transforming pop-up restaurant semi-trailer will offer up some free chicken and entertainment to festival attendees that may not have tried KFC for years — and those who haven’t experienced it before.
“We hear all the time about people in outback Australia going to huge lengths to get their hands on our chicken. So this is about paying that forward,” Annabel Fribence, marketing director, individual meals, KFC explained to Lifehacker.
“The truck will be returning to Sydney post Birdsville, and stay tuned to see where we pop up next. Nothing confirmed, but we’re looking to take the chicken to upcoming events.” Our guess: NRL and Big Bash Twenty20 cricket pop-ups could be possible once the weather warms up, given KFC’s sponsorship in those codes.
As for home delivery, Fribence says KFC has “big dreams and aspirations [for the Foodora-delivery partnership], but wants to make sure it’s done right. Beyond deliveries from Manly [in Sydney], we do have further restaurants planned, but no dates are set in stone.”
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