Lay’s Potato Restaurant in Shanghai | Here, the potato takes centre stage
PepsiCo opened a Lay's potato-themed restaurant in China, bringing a new brand experience to Shanghai
PepsiCo opened a Lay's potato-themed restaurant in China, bringing a new brand experience to Shanghai
PepsiCo opened a Lay's potato-themed restaurant in China, bringing a new brand experience to Shanghai
Back in April 2026, PepsiCo’s potato chip brand Lay’s officially opened China’s first Lay’s Potato Restaurant in Shanghai’s Xintiandi district. This immersive, limited-time brand experience reimagines the potato and the Lay’s chip through menu innovation, design, and collaborations. The restaurant is the latest example of how PepsiCo is working to grow in the away-from-home channel and create new meal occasions associated with its brands.
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Lay’s Potato Restaurant | Tapping into a growing consumer trend
Located in one of China’s most trend-forward lifestyle hubs, the restaurant blends food, fashion, and art to invite consumers into Lay’s brand world, creating moments designed to be experienced, shared, and remembered. In recent years, consumer priorities in China have shifted from ownership to experience, with younger consumers increasingly seeking moments that are tangible, shareable, and emotionally meaningful.
Nina Mu, Chief Marketing Officer, Greater China Foods at PepsiCo, explained that the brand is connecting to the food experiences consumers increasingly seek, creating new ways to enjoy Lay’s beyond traditional snacking. She added that Shanghai serves as an exciting test-and-learn market, bringing together culinary creativity, culture and partnerships.
Potato-inspired dishes and drinks that bring Lay’s flavour to the table
With a distinctive façade and interactive interiors, guests can explore potato-inspired dishes and drinks that bring Lay’s flavor cues to the table. The Lay’s Potato Restaurant goes beyond celebrating the ingredient itself, redefining the entire experience around a “farm-to-table” concept. The menu, inspired by premium potatoes and classic Lay’s chips, reinvents familiar dishes through a fusion of Eastern and Western culinary techniques, spanning appetizers, mains, light bites, desserts, and signature beverages. The restaurant also debuted four Shanghai-exclusive mashed potato creations, pairing a creamy base with ingredients such as strawberry, mango, shrimp, and octopus.
Collab with Michelin-starred chef Francesco Bonvini and chef Tian Shuai
For the opening, Lay’s collaborated with Michelin-starred chef Francesco Bonvini and chef Tian Shuai on a limited-time menu tracing the potato’s journey from planting and harvest to the finished chips. Beyond the menu, the restaurant uses spatial storytelling and interactive design to create a multi-sensory experience, strengthening Lay’s connection with culture-driven consumers. Lay’s also partnered with fashion brand 8ON8 on art installations, including façade characters depicting the transformation from potato to chip.
Inside, the first floor features potato-and-chip-inspired textures, while the second floor continues the “farm-to-table” story with tabletop displays tracing the path from farm to factory to chip, alongside a terrace and private dining rooms. A dedicated retail zone offers limited-edition Lay’s merchandise, extending the experience beyond the restaurant itself.
A new benchmark for brand experience innovation
The Lay’s Potato Restaurant marks a new milestone in experiential marketing, bringing Lay’s brand promise to life through food innovation, co-creation, and immersive design, offering learnings that can inspire brand experiences across markets.
As a flagship brand within PepsiCo’s convenient foods portfolio, Lay’s continues to explore new ways to engage consumers through culture, culinary creativity, and partnerships, expanding what a snack brand experience can be.
Check out the experience in the video below:
We’ve written about PepsiCo’s initiatives before, including the opening of Kola House in New York in 2016!
Website: PepsiCo
