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You still can't get a hamburger in Pyongyang, but the suspiciously similar "minced beef and bread" is for sale in the capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's (DPRK) first fast-food restaurant, a news report said on Saturday.

The Samtaesong restaurant opened in the country last month in cooperation with a Singaporean company, according to the Tokyo-based Choson Sinbo. The Singaporean company, which the newspaper did not name, provided training to restaurant staff and supplied equipment.

The restaurant's interior appears to be styled after fast-food joints the world over, but the menu is careful not to call its signature fare a hamburger.

This is not the government's first foray into foreign food. In March, the Choson Sinbo reported that leader Kim Jong-Il - a noted gourmand - had ordered the opening of the country's first Italian restaurant. The chefs there were trained in Italy and food made with imported ingredients was served.

The restaurants are unlikely to be frequented by ordinary people in the DPRK.

The minced beef and bread at the new fast-food restaurant costs $1.70, the newspaper said, but that would eat up more than half of the average citizen's daily income. The Republic of Korea's (ROK) central bank put last year's average per capita income at $1,065.

The restaurant also serves kimchi - Korean pickled cabbage - as well as waffles and draft beer. It plans to add croissants and hot dogs to its menu in the coming months but with Korean names. It will open another branch in the capital soon, according to the newspaper.

Questions:

1. What country cooperated with the DPRK to open the fast-food restaurant?

2. When did the DPRK open its first Italian food restaurant?

3. What else will the new fast-food restaurant be serving on its menu?

Answers:

1. Singapore.

2. March.

3. Kimchi, waffles and draft beer.

（英語點津 Helen 編輯）

About the broadcaster:

Nancy Matos is a foreign expert at China Daily Website. Born and raised in Vancouver, Canada, Nancy is a graduate of the Broadcast Journalism and Media program at the British Columbia Institute of Technology. Her journalism career in broadcast and print has taken her around the world from New York to Portugal and now Beijing. Nancy is happy to make the move to China and join the China Daily team.