KFC became the first big Western fast food chain to open a branch in southwest China's Tibet on Tuesday.

The restaurant is located in the Shenli Shidai shopping center in Tibetan capital Lhasa.

Locals formed long queues in the restaurant on its first day. Kids posed for photo in front of the store.

"KFC finally came!" said one diner.

"Other fast food brands operating in Tibet over the past few years have showed people here have a big appetite for fried chicken and hamburgers," said Chen Biao, a manager of the Shenli Shidai shopping center.

KFC will also be popular with foreign tourists, said Chen.

With infrastructure improving in Tibet, more domestic and overseas brands are hoping to do business in the region.

KFC, which entered China in 1987, now has more than 5,000 outlets in over 1,100 cities and towns in the Chinese mainland.