FlyerTalk Forums - View Single Post - TA dwngrds its NUTS; CE srvce levels at all time low;lots of sch chgs = MORE MILE 4U
Old Dec 1, 2005, 4:29 pm
  #8  
Pudding Guy
 
Join Date: Dec 1999
Location: Davis, California
Posts: 253
Originally Posted by stephlac
OK, I have to ask....at least half the people getting on the plane in SAL had boxes of chicken. The scent on the plane was unmistakable. What's the deal with this chicken?
That's what I wanted to know the first time I took the SAL-SFO flight. I happened to be extremely hungry and noticed that about 10% of the people were carrying on chicken. I subsequently asked one the passengers and he told me about Pollo Campero. In short, it's a central american fried chicken chain, not generally available in the US, so it's a popular gift to give friends and relatives a taste of home.

Their site:
http://www.campero.com/index_flash.php

There are lots of funny stories about this on internet, including one that references TACA: From http://infoguat.guatemala.org/GNU%20...1-2003.htm#H1:

"Pollo Campero, a leader among Latin-food sellers in the U.S., is a Guatemala City seller of spicy fried chicken that developed its product back in the 1970's. Years ago, passengers flying back to the U.S. from Guatemala and El Salvador were boarding Grupo TACA planes, a Central American airline consortium, with freshly-cooked chicken Campero packages bought at stands in the airport and the spicy aroma lingered in the cabin causing complaints from fellow passengers that were not familiar with the smell. TACA asked Campero to consider using sealed, odorless packaging on its products because of the enduring smell that remained in their planes. Today, a large percentage of the $4 million in chicken sold annually by Campero at its Guatemala City and San Salvador airport outlets makes its way to the U.S. on TACA flights in the hands of nostalgic Central Americans taking Campero products to relatives and friends back in the U.S."

Last year I was determined to get some of this chicken on my return from Belize. This turned into a Seinfeld episode of sorts. When I tried to find the place in the airport, I found that it was outside of security. However some very helpful security guards/police took action for me. They used a cell phone to call the store, and had someone run the chicken through the airport for me. This was a little embarrasing, but I was committed at that point. They had me wait near the x-ray machine. I started to sweat a little, as the chicken took a while to appear, past my scheduled boarding time, in fact. It did arrive, though, and the guy put the box on the conveyor through security. I handed him the cash (plus a tip, obviously), and enjoyed my first taste of that tender, crispy chicken. It really is good. Fried chicken, but I prefer it to all the US brands.

My family and I subsequently enjoyed it several times while vacationing in Costa Rica. They're all hooked, too.

There are now restaurants in LA and Washington DC. As a result, I was able to blow some El Salvadorans' minds on a recent trip down to San Salvador. I had picked up a 21-piecer the previous day in Washington DC. I brought the large box to the airport (SFO), along with last few remaining pieces, and carried it prominently on the flight. I'm thinking this might be one of the few times the chicken ever flew south?
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