In China, chain restaurants -- especially the big multinational ones -- are cool. Going to Starbucks, for example, is a status symbol. It not only says, "I'm rich enough to buy this overpriced coffee," but also, "I'm cosmopolitan   enough to be part of globalization." Where I come from in the UK, however, chains are neither fashionable nor gourmet . Chains are where you go on New Year's Day when nowhere else is open, or when you are 5 years old and your parents can't stand hearing, "I'm huuuuuungry!" any longer. In my own case (with regards to McDonald's), a chain is where you are taken on your first "date". Even at the age of 13, I knew to give the guy the "let's just be friends" phone call the next day. In the UK, independent cafes and restaurants are making a comeback on the fashion scene. Nowadays, a Londoner who says "let's meet for a coffee at Monmouth" (an independent cafe) is much cooler than one who says "let's go to Starbucks". Even if Monmouth's coffee is a little more expensive, there's a satisfaction in knowing your pounds aren't going straight to the big corporations. Of course, there are chain stores all over the UK; you can't go five minutes without spotting a Costa Coffee. But numbers do not add up to good taste. I do, however, have a confession  . After moving to China I had moments when all the rice and Kung Pao Chicken became too much. I, too, have _ to McDonald's. We can infer from the article that   _  .
many Britons don't like big corporations the author doesn't like food from Pizza Hut the author doesn't like to follow fashion trends many Britons think that numbers mean poor quality