Grocery Stores in the USA

[LAtoBA]

Since some of the Argentines on this board are always complaining about the lambasting their food gets on this forum here's a positive one.

I've gone to Tupe several times with my coworkers in Recoleta (on Tagle....food is always pretty good). Had the special of the day "Medallon de Lomo". I am not a steak type of person, never have been. In spite of that the meat was very good and did not come out well-done like many others have suggested on this forum. In fact I was scared they were going to cook the hell out of it so I asked my Argentine boss what was the customary cooking temp. He told me that if you don't say anything it's normally medium to medium well, not "bien cocido". And that's how the meat came out.

So yeah the beef here is pretty damn good. Of course to spoil all that on the same day I found bird shit on the lettuce I bought at a new verduleria.

 

[sergio]

What has happened with expats? They used to insist that EVERYTHING is better in Argentina. This praise of supermarkets in the US is pure heresy! Every self-respecting expat knows that you'll find better produce, the freshest vegetables, the tastiest meat and the friendliest, most efficient employees at COTO. And not to forget about the lovely atmosphere of the stores that makes shopping such a delight!

WHOLE FOODS? Who needs an army of smiling, friendly young employees to answer questions and help you find what you want? Disco has battalions of snarling, resentful underpaid workers only too happy to make your life hell. I mean, let's get real. Who needs that phony good manners stuff.

A vast display of domestic and international cheese for sale at prices lower than the 3 or 4 decent imports available in BA or the bland Argentine imitations -- who could care about that? Everybody knows that Argentines know more about food than anyone in the US -- after all, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Los Angeles and the scores of other major cities don't have a single fine restaurant to commend them. The American people are so stupid they couldn't tell the difference between a Michelin 4 star restaurant and McDonalds. Everybody knows that. Just ask the Argentines. They know more about fresh food, good cooking and nutrition than anyone else. If the cheese has ZERO flavor and costs $120 per kilo, if the beef was produced in a feedlot (the norm in Argentina nowadays) and has been cooked to taste like shoe leather, that's because the people like it that way so it HAS to be good! I mean this is universal knowledge, no? Anyway, I heat the American food and the American people are just so bad. I mean everybody knows this. Just ask anyone.

 

[SaraSara]

if the beef was produced in a feedlot (the norm in Argentina nowadays) and has been cooked to taste like shoe leather, that's because the people like it that way...

Your post is right on target, and very funny. But I disagree with those two points:

a) Most cattle in Argentina is still grass fed, but producers are now changing to feed lots.

b) In my experience, it is next to impossible to get a shoe-leather steak in an Arg. parrilla. I won't eat anything but that, and saying "bien cocido" does not work - the steak comes pink on the inside. I've learned to ask for "SUELA DE ZAPATO", but even then the steak is often underdone, and has to be sent back to the grill. I guess it's against the religion of self-respecting parrilleros to send out anything that's not dripping blood.

I may add that both waiters and friends regard me with a mixture of pity and horror when I demand a "suela de zapato" steak. In Argentina, that seems to be sacrilegious.

 

[hannstew]

Yesterday I had to go to 3 different major chain grocery stores in my area of town before I finally found hamburger buns. In the US I could find buns in the damn gas station/ convenience store, and could pretty much bet that they would be fresher than what I get here.
Just my 2 cents..

 

[SaraSara]

Yesterday I had to go to 3 different major chain grocery stores in my area of town before I finally found hamburger buns. In the US I could find buns in the damn gas station/ convenience store, and could pretty much bet that they would be fresher than what I get here.
Just my 2 cents..

I hate to break this to you, but this is Argentina, not the US. Most locals don't care for hamburger buns - they prefer mignones fresh from the bakery. So not many stores stock those buns, and few people buy them.

By the same token, every gas station store in Argentina sells fresh croissants, while in the US they sell Hostess Twinkies. People in different countries prefer different things - not better, not worse: just different.

 

[sergio]

Sara, Glad you enjoyed my satire. Seriously, I have found, over the years, that beef is overcooked. At asados at people's homes it is really overcooked. I don't know the actual % of feed lot beef but I think it is around 50%. This has been commented on elsewhere on this website. Maybe someone familiar with the industry can enlighten me. I know that in fifteen years in Argentina I have noticed the deterioration in the quality of beef. I now have to ask if it is grass fed because I've been served a lot of tough meat. Croissants? I find them horrible in Argentina. They don't seem to use butter. AROMA used to have very good croissants and one or two other places but in general they are hard and flavorless. Porteño bakers tend to have a heavy hand. They just lack the finesse of the French, Austrian or other European bakers. People in Argentina don't want to pay for quality ingredients, if they even exist. When it comes to baked goods just about everything is artificial and/or made with the lowest quality ingredients.

 

[SaraSara]

I don't like butter croissants but am very partial to medialunas de grasa, coarse and crunchy. Now, just to prove that Argentines have hopelessly plebeian palates, I must confess that i didn't like the croissants I tried in Paris - too fluffy and buttery, with no body. But the brioches were heavenly.

You got me curious about the feedlot thing, and I'm going to do some research. I have done a lot of driving around the countryside here and have seen only one feedlot so far. Will post whatever I find out.

 

[MizzMarr]

You got me curious about the feedlot thing, and I'm going to do some research. I have done a lot of driving around the countryside here and have seen only one feedlot so far. Will post whatever I find out.

Speaking of, does anybody have any knowledge about how chickens are generally raised and kept here? Are there massive CAFO-esque henhouses, or are they generally more ... 'civilized' (ie. humane)? I'd definitely be interested in more information about this subject in general (though realize the grocery store thread may not be the place).

ETA: I know that the chicken parts that come neatly bagged and styrofoam wrapped in stores like Disco or Coto are factory farmed, but what about the chickens procured by the average corner carniceria? I'm going to ask my chicken dude next time I'm in there...

 

[sergio]

Hi Sara, I dislike the medialunas de grassa but sometimes they are less obnoxious to me than the rock hard alternative. Of course we all have our own tastes but the Viennese are universally considered master bakers. The French too. What passes for croissants here would never sell in those cities, nor in New York.

I am pretty sure that I am right that a large % of Argentine beef is at least partly produced in feed lots. I have seen the feed lots en route to the coast. I am sure that the beef that is exported to the US is grass fed but I would think that the beef sent to less wealthy countries is lower quality. My guess. Again, someone who knows the industry can clarify.

Chickens: My understanding is that they are raised under mass production conditions. Certainly they have no taste and rubber like texture. In the US I can easily get organic or grass fed chicken in any number of conveniently located markets. In Argentina it is one huge pain and I just can't dedicate my life to running all over town looking for what is now considered an oddity by most Argentines: naturally produced food. Speaking of chicken, when I was in the US recently my mother cooked chicken she had bought from the Amish farmers. It's what she buys exclusively (easy to get and inexpensive) It was unbelievably delicious - moist, juicy, flavorful. I have never had anything like it in Argentina. Also the beef she sometimes buys at the supermarket (not WHole Foods but a more ordinary supermarket) was terrific - better than most I eat nowadays in Argentina.

 

[steveinbsas]

Speaking of, does anybody have any knowledge about how chickens are generally raised and kept here? Are there massive CAFO-esque henhouses, or are they generally more ... 'civilized' (ie. humane)? I'd definitely be interested in more information about this subject in general (though realize the grocery store thread may not be the place).

I am about to buy six laying hens. They should be the happiest hens in Argentina, but without a rooster, they won't get l..d.

Isn't that ironic?

Chickens: In the US I can easily get organic or grass fed chicken in any number of conveniently located markets.

Chickens eat grass?

I never heard that before.

I guess I have a lot to learn about being a ranchero.