Bhc chicken, South Korea's largest chicken franchise by sales, said Monday it has opened its first outlet in Canada as part of its goal of opening 300 outlets in North America within five years. The company's first store in Canada is located at The Well, a downtown shopping mall in Toronto, the company said in a statement. "The Toronto outlet will serve as a bridgehead (for the company) to expand into North American markets amid growing demand for Korean foods," the statement said. With the opening of the latest outlet, the chicken franchise operates 23 overseas stores -- two in Hong Kong, three in Singapore, eight in Thailand, six in Malaysia and three in the United States, it said. Bhc chicken plans to add two additional shops in both Thailand and the U.S. by the end of this year. Bhc Group operates a host of restaurant brands, including the fried chicken franchise bhc chicken, the Korean barbecue franchise Changgo 43 and Outback Steakhouse. Source: Yonhap News Agency