Eastbay1K

Wow, just wow!

Unbelievable that this culinary magnificence will bring yet another reason to visit Porteņolandia!

ULDB65

Woo hoo.

I would rather see a decent pizza chain, maybe a nice Chicago-style place...

HIDDY

Great stuff.....more junk food options. ^

SoFlyOn

Your wish has been (haha) granted!:
http://investba.com/tag/kfc-in-argentina/

Eastbay1K

"El Temor De Comer"

WillTravel4Food

You have all got to be kidding me! Asking for a Wendy's in BsAs is like asking for a Taco Bell in Mexico City or an Au Bon Pain in Paris. Totally illogical! The local options are far better! Can somebody explain the int'l fascination with American-style fast food? If there were a comparable food purity law to the German Beer Purity law (I can't remember the official name), this stuff would be labelled toxic waste.

One example of what American fast food companies are passing of as human consumables? Taco Bell taco meat was found to contain only 36% beef.

BsAs has its own pizza culture/style, enjoy that instead. If you want Chicago-style pizza, I suggest going to Chicago (I won't suggest any because that's a separate thread). Pizzeria Uno is not a substitute.

I LOVE BsAs and would never think of visiting an American import thinking I was getting a better meal than what is available from a local option.

jcf27

It's for the typical gringos to feel more at home.... After all there is a McD and and BK right across from the Obelisco. Why not add a Wendy's too?

Cheers....

--J

ULDB65

The plane trip makes it an expensive meal, don't you think?
Local pizza, pasta and milanesa is fine, and I do occasionally enjoy that culture/style. But there are 4 million places serving the same thing here, and sometimes I want a little variety. So having one or two Chicago pizza places serving a metro area of some 20 million people doesn't seem out of line, or likely to destroy local culture.

There are already plenty of McD here, and they are incredibly popular and successful, no matter how much I personally dislike them. But that's O.K., because nobody is forcing me to go there. Same would be true of a Chicago pizza place. They would only succeed if enough folks like the food.

ULDB65

It's not for the gringos. McD's are full of locals, who love the place.

WillTravel4Food

Well, you have a point that makes sense pretty much everywhere except on FT. I don't think I would have eve made such a statement before finding FT!

So I'd rather go to BsAs to get a real Argentine steak dinner. But I do enjoy the occassional visit to an Argentine style restaurant in the US. But they are not reflective of the real thing. The Portenos want a taste of US dining and they're tricked into believing McD's is the place. They be best served sticking with the local options.

jcf27

I know that ! And unfortunately some of my friends' children have been brainwashed into it. American chains proliferated all over the world to increase market share from the locals.

Yet, I know of many pitiful gringo families that have to take their children to a McD when traveling overseas or they would starve (not a bad idea after all to combat some obesity). In brief, it works both ways.

Most gringos love to 'feel' at home when traveling overseas. That is why they choose familiar names. They bring them comfort.... Very few are daring and adventurous for the new and unknown.

--J

jcf27

It's bad enough the intake of fat and sodium from eating steaks. Now you want to introduce never ending melted cheese from a Chicago deep dish pizza? Most of my friends children are become fat thanks to the imported US food chains. Do you work for some cholesterol lowering or heart medicine drug manufacturer?

cheers....

--J
PS: I grew up there eating sensible portions of steak just about every day.... Pasta, fish and pizza on weekends.

Gaucho100K

This is a second, and very strong wave of comebacks and new launches for fast food chains in Argentina. According to what Ive been reading, its not only the first time coming of chains like Wendy's but also the return for a second (or third) try for names like KFC and Pizza Hut.

In my view, the chances of these names making it quite good, given that they are entering the market by the hand of an investment firm that is a seasoned fast food operator, and the same investor group has interest in various brands... this creates important economies of scale.

As for the age old discussion of Taco Bells in Mexico or a Croissant place in France..... folks, globalization, mass market media & advertising works. The new generations are easy "victims" for these mass market companies.... if Starbucks can work in Vienna and Paris, why should a couple of junk food chains not make it in Buenos Aires.

Like it or not... these companies are going to continue to penetrate new markets all over the world and they will more often succeed rather than fail.

Eastbay1K

If you lived there, or spent much time there, and eating steak every day or finding that french fries were your staple daily vegetable, you would likely want other options. I think that porteņos know that McDs isn't "US Dining" trickery, but believe it or not, if you want to have a quick lunch or bite to eat at other hours of the day, and not make it a drawn out or social experience, then gringo-style fast food may be your best option. These places are also generally well air-conditioned. I spend (in the aggregate) a few weeks a year in BsAs and although I've never eaten gringo-branded fast food there, the "local fare" gets boring after a few days, and sometimes even for a "quick sandwich" at some little mom/pop place, it takes awhile, and in the summer, the temperature may be hotter inside than outside.

WillTravel4Food

I had a friend who was living in Belgrano on a 1 year stint for his wife's work. His kids missed US food and ended up going to McD's on a regular basis. They would ask for extra ketchup packets to take home. This was their only source of American-style ketchup. So when I went down for a visit, number one on the list of things to bring was a large supply of ketchup. I bet TSA took a second look at my checked bags when the x-ray saw 1/2 gallon of ketchup and a quart of pure maple syrup. From what I understand, the family visits to McD's ended with the arrival of my care package.