Fast Food International: Tim Hortons
What kind of doughnut shop runs out of doughnuts? My favorite (ok, only) Canadian doughnut chain has been mangled by NYC. It’s for the best that we don’t get a St-Hubert. We’d just sully the brand.
Posts from the ‘International Intrigue’ Category
Jul 13
Follow
For Whom the Bell Tolls
Sunday, a Taco Bell opened in Seoul, and lines were down the block. I had no idea Koreans were so fond of Ameri-Mex fast food. The core menu doesn’t appear to deviate from ours, meaning no Kogi-esque kalbi tacos or kimchi quesadillas. At least they didn’t have to provide a food glossary like in India.
Photo from Chris in South Korea.
Chain Links: Mai Tai Masala
I’ve never understood the appeal of cold cereal, but The Cereal Bowl, has made a business out of selling sweet crunchy things in milk to Americans. Now, they’re expanding to Puerto Rico. A location in Qatar opened earlier this year. [QSR]
Trader Vic’s has always been odd in modern times. They don’t have many US restaurants any more (I finally tried the Chicago branch this New Year’s Eve) but thrive in hotels in Asian capitals—Bangkok, Taipei, Tokyo—where you wouldn’t think they’d have much of a taste for American mid-century Polynesia kitsch. There are a whopping nine Trader Vic’s in the Middle East, and now India and Sri Lanka will be getting mai tais and crab rangoon, too. Wow, they're going nuts with expansion, and in some of the most random locales. [Food Business Review]
Photo from Cookbook Village.
What Do You Call a Quarter Pounder with Cheese in Finland?
Ah, it seems that Finland is Nordic, not part of Scandinavia (Denmark, Norway, Sweden). That must explain it. I base all my decisions on random internet comments, and I like this one: "by genetic finnish people are closer to eastern world, as we are relative to estonian people. we do have same strenght and melancholic mind."
Strong and sad, a cursed combo.
By the way, in Finland a Quarter Pounder with Cheese is called a Quarter Pounder with Cheese.
Fast Food International: Go Go Curry
It’s not Thai, it’s not Indian…it’s Japanese curry, my latest post for Serious Eats.
Using Your Noodle
It's hard to imagine a time, oh say, six years ago, when bread baskets were shunned and New Yorkers were eating scrambled egg whites on scooped bagels (oh right, they're still doing that).
Three is a trend, and it looks like carbs are coming back in a big way. (I’m much preferring the proliferation of country western bars: Branded Saloon, Viva El Toro and Lady Jay’s.) By the end of July, Manhattan will be home to three pasta bar chains: homegrown Hello Pasta, German Vapiano and French Nooi. It's a Small World of noodles. Is there really such a pent up demand for pasta lunches?
Then again, why not pasta? Salad bars are ancient history. I was alive enough in the '80s to have witnessed the mania first hand. And when my middle school got a baked potato bar? I knew I'd arrived when all the sour cream, grated cheese and imitation bacon bits you could cram onto one spud was deemed a healthy lunch.
Made in China
Meanwhile, in China they’re adding donkey hide glue to almonds on purpose.
Summer in Berlin
American ethnic food in Berlin. Everyone is linking to it. Me too. Campbell’s soup, maple syrup, Betty Crocker cake mixes…it’s all so right on. They should’ve had Smucker’s Magic Shell instead of Hershey’s Shell, though.
Chain Links: Cajun Grilled Onions
No secret to me, chain restaurants have been loving Manhattan lately. I can’t say I’m too excited by self-service yogurt (Menchie’s) or more burgers (Elevation Burger and Counter) but I am looking forward to Peruvian chef, Gastón Acurio’s La Mar Cebichería even if it’s going to be a flashy behemoth. [WSJ]
Localizing a menu doesn’t always have to involve border crossing. Smashburger’s first Louisiana location will attempt to cater to regional tastes. What exactly makes a burger Cajun? “American cheese, applewood smoked bacon, Cajun grilled onions, remoulade sauce, lettuce and tomato on an egg bun,” it would seem. [Fast Casual]
One hundred UK KFC’s went halal last year, and not everyone has been happy. Bacon-lovers went as far as creating a Facebook page, “No Halal at Colne KFC.” Five locations have gone back to serving pork and killing chickens like they used to. [Daily Mail]
Fast Food International: Lizarran
My latest installment of Serious Eats' Fast Food International: Lizarran, the tapas franchise from Spain. Not exactly fast, but it's definitely food.
