Grocery Stores in the USA

[SaraSara]

Argentines have a very difficult time "thinking outside the box." What I find most uncomfortable about life in Argentina is just how fearful Argentines are. Afraid of the unknown, afraid of strangers, afraid of the opinions of their peers, etc. Most Argentines desperately cling to, and vehemently defend, their comfort zone. It's all they've got.

You seem to view this through foreigners' eyes. From what I see around me, Argentines are on the whole satisfied with their lives, and blissfully happy with their food choices. Those who emigrate can't wait to return, and do it as soon as they possible can.

Why does it bother you that someone else is happy in a place where you feel "most uncomfortable"?

 

[davonz]

Going back a few decades in NZ and AU we had pretty bland food tastes.. meat, potatoes and a couple of veg was the usual nightly feast, with fish and chips and a bottle of fanta for the sunday evening meal at the beach.

Now, thanks to immigrants and alot of young people doing the OE, even my parents small town of 5000 inhabitants has a better variety than a 10 block radius of where i live in palermo. The 2 small supermarkets (would be considered large here) in town have a way better selection than anywhere i have seen here. And the fresh fruit and veg is of better quality (most people in NZ still have a vege garden so expect reasonable quality) than here.
With the exception of the summer when you find plums, peaches, grapes etc which are fresh, tasty and cheap, the quality isnt that good here i find.

The only thing i can put it down to is that when you travel alot and sample what other people eat, and like it, you start asking for the same thing in your home country. Asia is close to NZ and AU, so cheap holidays to thailand, bali, vietnam etc exposes us to a great variety of different foods and tastes.

Most of my argentine friends are very picky eaters, and say they dont like something even if they have never tasted it before, i dont know why this is, and it drives me crazy..

 

[A&A]

Ha, I think it is hilarious to even talk about the U.S. supermarkets/food scene and then mention boutique supermarket chains like Whole Check and Trader Joe's.

Firstly, those chains, especially Whole Check, are high end, boutique supermarkets, that cater to (and this is generous) 1% of the population. This is not the "average americans" shopping experience. I am sure that their are equally similar boutique "foodie" places in BA. (In fact my close friend is a celebrated chef and has taken me to several amazing places.) In addition, these chains have only served to replace and eliminate places like Balduccis, and other smaller boutique, independently run food establishments (especially in NY)(..oh Sweetheart bakery how i miss you).

Second, sure American supermarkets have everything all the time, and most of it, especially the produce is a flavorless suck fest. I mean Watermelon in January at the corner deli, does that even seem right? If you have ever had seasonal fruit right out of the field you cannot plausibly argue that a February tomato even from Whole Check is as good as an August one in Calabria. Or the "fresh fish" regardless of the season compared to the ones I just caught this morning. So, having it, doesn't mean it tastes good and often doesn't. Jersey Corn in late summer versus the cow corn you get in March. C'mon. I am not even going to touch the whole global climate/agro-business issues involved in making sure you have out of season produce all year round...or farm raised fish that is killing Chilean fjords.

Finally, have you been to America? I mean like off the coasts? I just spent the summer driving through the South and every single exit, and town is: Chik-Filet, Arby's McD's, BK, Sonic (mmmmm Sonic shake),Longhorn Steakhouse, Checker's, Starbucks, Dominoes...rinse and repeat!!! Every exit!!! That is the American dining experience. Yes, I traveled hither and yon for that "secret local spot" (made a point of it) but they are few and far between, and the everyday locals do not go there...only Food Network producers looking for stories.

As far as food in BA, every time I have been it has been amazing. (Ok, I am with you on the pizza, but I have not explored finding a good place...it's like comparing Domino's to Grimaldi's or Artichoke et al.) Again, You are comparing the food scene in New York and saying that's America. Dig deeper in BA, quality places abound and are infinitely cheaper (if you account for the exchange rate).

Let me tell you, I have been to the American farm and the farmers are not eating organically grown ramps, and "farm raised" hand rubbed pork in a 8 spice rub..as the whole trendy NYC locavore movement would have you think. Whole Check and Trader Joe's just feed in to that bourgeois bull. The FDA only recently decided to phase in what "organic" means in terms of labeling so what was it before. Marketing scam....like you "need" an SUV, or "it's green".

And so there's my rant....your serve.

 

[easyliving]

Don't underestimate the cultural differences here. Unlike Italy, where the home revolves around the kitchen, for many Argentines, the kitchen is a staff area. Although this is changing, it will take some time for the people to be more food focused. I have met many Argentines who literally do not know how to turn on their oven. Wealthy and middle class Argentines send their maid out to do the shopping as well.
Whole foods and their ilk won't be appropriate until the culture changes among the more well heeled in this country.
But on the plus side, I have learned to make many things from scratch that I never thought to before. And I would never go back now. Some things are really easy and taste much better as well.

 

[Choripán]

Next time you're wandering through a Whole Foods, pick up a couple of bars of Voges chocolate. They come with a painfully hefty price tag, but the bacon bars and the roasted chili pepper bars are shockingly tasty.

On the subject of this thread: Remember that America is more diverse than any other nation on earth. We often forget that the America represented in the international news, while no doubt fairly caricatured most of the time, is not the only breed. Sure, there are 250 million fat, sedentary, shallow, reactionary, intolerant and just plain ridiculous hypocrites literally spreading out across our often unpleasant fast food nation. This majority would be laughable if they weren't so dangerous.

But there are another 50 million brilliant, progressive, energetic, open-minded and healthy souls who know the difference between good things and bad things. And they are the ones responsible for the revolution in food that has swept through the United States for the past 25 years.

Long live Micheal Pollan, Alice Waters, and the Moosewood Collective! As Americans we are all dyed in the wool consumerists, but some forms of consumerism are much better than others.

 

[lilabaila2]

Excusing the lack of variety here by saying that Argentines are comfortable with their one-flavor seasoning is like allowing people to be stupid because "ignorance is bliss". Much better to have your eyes open and know what options are available and make educated choices.
And there is NO WAY the produce here isn't stored in refrigerators or sprayed with pesticides and preservative chemicals to make them last longer. I've eaten plenty of bland, chemically fruits and vegetables - at least the US and other countries make an EFFORT with organic farming.

 

[lilabaila2]

I don't mean to be so hostile, but I'm also getting pretty fed up with all the same-old same-old, especially when there's potential for so much more. There's just no demand!

 

[SaraSara]

I don't mean to be so hostile, but I'm also getting pretty fed up with all the same-old same-old, especially when there's potential for so much more. There's just no demand!

Exactly: there's no demand because the locals are happy with what they have. It's only the foreigners who are unsatisfied. Perhaps things would change if enough expats started their own businesses, but for the most part they seem to prefer complaining.

Sometimes it sounds as though people in this forum live in a sort of parallel universe from the one inhabited by the locals. What I read here has nothing to do with what I hear from my Arg. relatives, friends, employees and suppliers. Very interesting.

Frankly, moving to a strange country and demanding to have EXACTLY what you left behind is unreasonable, to put it mildly. The locals are happy with what they have - if foreigners are not, that's their problem. They should stop qvetching and do something about it.

Anyone eating bland fruits and vegetables is not shopping in the right places - check around for a good verduleria. Additionally, there are gourmet vegetable growers which home deliver organic produce. I see their vans in San Isidro all the time.

 

[LAtoBA]

Exactly: there's no demand because the locals are happy with what they have. It's only the foreigners who are unsatisfied. Perhaps things would change if enough expats started their own businesses, but for the most part they seem to prefer complaining.

Sometimes it sounds as though people in this forum live in a sort of parallel universe from the one inhabited by the locals. What I read here has nothing to do with what I hear from my Arg. relatives, friends, employees and suppliers. Very interesting.

Frankly, moving to a strange country and demanding to have EXACTLY what you left behind is unreasonable, to put it mildly. The locals are happy with what they have - if foreigners are not, that's their problem. They should stop qvetching and do something about it.

Anyone eating bland fruits and vegetables is not shopping in the right places - check around for a good verduleria. Additionally, there are gourmet vegetable growers which home deliver organic produce. I see their vans in San Isidro all the time.

Sara Sara I think sometimes you just have to admit a country's shortcomings. Just as a lot of Americans and Australians are obese, Argentina's food is re-bland. And this isn't just commentary from Americans, Aussies, and Europeans....it's from other Latin Americans as well, from Mexicans to Brazilians! And the fruit in Buenos Aires as a whole is not good, but neither was the fruit in DC.

You want good fruit and juices go to Brazil.

 

[SaraSara]

Sara Sara I think sometimes you just have to admit a country's shortcomings.

Argentina has plenty of shortcomings, such as the lack of public libraries, lousy TV programming, unreliable mail, a miserable broadband service, a total absence of quality control on anything, and insanely high import taxes. But I think the local food is a problem only for the foreigners - as I said, Argentines are perfectly happy with it.

Here I must come clean and confess I'm a typical Arg. and don't like spicy food - never did. It must be an acquired taste.