A Serious Thread About Food In Argentina

[glasgowjohn]

Saladix / arcor are finally trying to do something about the dismal snacks in the country.

All we need now is some competition and for another company to make pickled onion rings and different flavoured hula hoops!

They're all pretty bland, i'd hate to see their attempt at salt and vinegar crisps!

edit: in before "last thing argentina needs is manufactured crap" snobbery

edit2: they should just make these here!

\\\

The Real McCoy - thats a must for Tierra del Fuego.!

 

[DontMindMe]

I agree about the zen qualities of repetitively cutting vegetables (but I admit I enjoy most the italian Renaissance Naturalistic joy of appreciating their shapes, structure, and hue for inspiration)

DontMindMe, is it really that inexpensive to get that much cooked meat from more than one animal, fruit juice, and some sort of vegetables in Colombia?

For lunch specials Mon-Fri, which are what I described, yes. You forgot about the soup. That's the price in dollars right now because the Colombian peso just fell quite a lot against the dollar. Google "Colombian peso U.S. dollar" and a little chart pops up. But it's not meat from more than one animal, it's meat from one animal and you choose from several meat options. It's not a generous amount of meat. If you order the albóndigas (meatballs), you'll get two kinda big ones with sauce. Most of the plate is filled with cheap sides made of pure starch, unless it's your lucky day and they put both salad and beans (or lentils) on the plate. We go out to eat for lunch every day because it is more affordable than cooking at home. I've seen lunch specials for as little as COP $4000, but I would not eat at those places.

You know what, now that I know how to upload photos, I'll take a couple at lunch tomorrow and upload them for you. It'll give me something to do. We move in a week and every day that passes leading up to it feels soooo loooooong...

 

[ghost]

You got me thinking Camberiu, so I decided to pop next door to the Verdu and do a little comparison shopping (OK to be honest, I needed to buy some veg too).

The chart below shows the difference between my local greengrocer and Stop and Shop Astoria Heights.


Item
Stop & Shop, Astoria (in USD)
Verdulería Beto (in ARS)
Pears (8 qty)
7.12
20
Oranges (4 lbs)
4.99
28
Grapefruit (8 qty)
10.00
35
Celery (1 bunch)
1.99
12
Carrots (2 lb)
2.29
18
Onions (3 lb)
1.99
15
Broccoli (4 stalks)
1.99
18
Sales Tax (5%?)
1.52
n/a
Total
USD 31.89
ARS 146

The results are not as drastic as I had painted it, as the Argentine side came out over my AR$100 estimate and the US side came out well under USD$40. But still...

If we were to use the blue rate, it would be $454.33 vs. $146.00. Like Camberiu says, a total rip off. But even at the official rate the produce in Queens would cost ARS $271.46: still over twice as expensive as what I would have paid in Argentina.

Obviously, I don't know how Stop & Shop compares to other stores in Queens, but frankly Beto's next door is not the cheapest place in town either.

In sum, regardless of whether you're buying at the blue rate or the official rate, produce in the US is at least twice as expensive.

Edit: sorry couldn't get the table to look pretty, but you get the point.

Yes Ed. Next year your Argentine list will be 99 pesos and the US list will still be $31. And salaries are 10X. You are a numbers guy I'm sure this is on your scope.

 

[EdRooney]

Mebee.

If the two economies stay on course (with US real wages going down and Argentine inflation going up) the values will inevitably cross at some point. Whether it takes place next year or further in the future is for folks with crystal balls beyond my budget.

 

[Matt84]

You know what, now that I know how to upload photos, I'll take a couple at lunch tomorrow and upload them for you. It'll give me something to do. We move in a week and every day that passes leading up to it feels soooo loooooong...

Thanks! I got the warning about the starch. Please do upload some pics! I'm very curious about (current) life in Colombia, in Cartagena specifically. Last time I've been to Colombia was the 90s.

 

[DontMindMe]

Well things have certainly changed since the 90s! Lunch was great today, just COP $16,000 (less than seven bucks) for two. Here's the soup (chicken today, sorry it's sideways):

And here's the main plate. My salad was pretty big today! I got fried filete al ajillo and my husband got carne bistec (beef in a tomato and onion sauce). They always serve fish with yucca because if you get a bone stuck in your throat, you swallow a bite of yucca and it gets pushed down. It really works. Note the ají picante and today's mango juice.

 

[Dublin2BuenosAires]

Well things have certainly changed since the 90s! Lunch was great today, just COP $16,000 (less than seven bucks) for two. Here's the soup (chicken today, sorry it's sideways):

And here's the main plate. My salad was pretty big today! I got fried filete al ajillo and my husband got carne bistec (beef in a tomato and onion sauce). They always serve fish with yucca because if you get a bone stuck in your throat, you swallow a bite of yucca and it gets pushed down. It really works. Note the ají picante and today's mango juice.

The only remotely interesting thing is the mango juice and the spicy stuff. After that, it looks typically colombian, i.e. boring.

 

[Matt84]

It might not be the most exciting food in the world, but where outside Asia can you get a complete meal for two for less than 7 bucks?
I know it's perfectly possible, but how would a couple eat out in Argentina for 91 pesos?

 

[EdRooney]

Salta: corner of Ibazeta and Caseros, Napolitana for 2: ARS $59. Includes soup, wine pinguïno and dessert.

 

[Matiasba]

Salta: corner of Ibazeta and Caseros, Napolitana for 2: ARS $59. Includes soup, wine pinguïno and dessert.

remember I told you how cheap interior was compared to BsAs?