Posted on 10/10/2007 10:25:36 AM PDT by AngelesCrestHighway
It sounds like a fast-food grudge match: Taco Bell is taking on the homeland of its namesake by reopening for the first time in 15 years in Mexico. Defenders of Mexican culture see the chain's re-entry as a crowning insult to a society already overrun by U.S. chains from Starbucks and Subway to KFC. "It's like bringing ice to the Arctic," complained pop-culture historian Carlos Monsiváis. The company's branding strategy "Taco Bell is something else" is an attempt to distance itself from any comparison to Mexico's beloved taquerias, which sell traditional corn tortillas stuffed with an endless variety of fillings, from spicy beef to corn fungus and cow eyes. Taco Bell, a unit of Louisville, Ky.,-based Yum Brands, made its name promoting its menu to Americans as something straight out of Mexico. But it's a very different dynamic south of the border. Here, the company projects a more "American" fast-food image by adding French fries some topped with cheese, cream, ground meat and tomatoes to the menu at its first store, which opened in late September in the northern city of Monterrey.
(Excerpt) Read more at seattletimes.nwsource.com ...
Instead of "bland" I'd say "light" or "delicate".That's what I loved about it...it was light yet very flavorful and very unlike anything I've ever had here.My experience,I must divulge,was in and near what was once called "Canton" which is near Hong Kong.Other areas,I'm sure,have very different cuisines.
They have said that while the American version of Chinese food isn't very close to authentic, they would eat our version over their version.
I guess I'll just have to disagree with them.
I’ve been mad at Taco Bell ever since it discontinued tostados on the menu — at least the one in my city.
can't compare to hot smoked puppy and onion tacos...ummmm!
Per first line of article: “Taco Bell is taking on the homeland of its namesake ...”
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There is a land called “Taco Bell”? I must go there someday.
Kentucky Fried Chihuahua.
I must admit that I've never eaten in San Francisco's or New York's "Chinatown"...the two places in the US where, I'd wager,one can get the best and most authentic Chinese food in the US but I assure you that I don't go to the cheap places.If you're familiar with the Boston area...I've hit one or two places in Chinatown as well as The Golden Temple in Brookline.Very good and not at all cheap.
Isn’t multiculturalism grand (as a well as a concept that cuts both ways)?
The fact that everything mentioned in the Alanis Morriset song is NOT ironic.
I began calling them Alpo Bell for years because their ground “meat” resembles dog food. I used to eat there after closing the bars and having the munchies. The next morning it was hard to tell if it was the alcohol or the Alpo Bell that made me feel so bad.
No wonder Mexicans want out of Mexico. Yo Quero Cow Eyes.
Maybe they take “Run for the Border” literally.
>>And most Italian food in New York is cooked by Mexicans or Ecuadorians!
When I was in the Bay Area, many of the Chinese restaurants had Mexican or Salvadoran cooks. The wait staff was usually Chinese.
“*sigh* but how I miss those tacos from Jack in the Box.”
I can’t believe I am telling anyone this.... I loved the tacos from Jack in the Box. There I said it. Don’t tell anyone.
Must be chile roast season down there, huh? Nothing like coming out of Smith’s and seeing the big bags of chiles and the aroma of roasting.
I could never get used to California’s version of mexican food after growing up the New Mexican variety.
The scent is in the air.
MMMM...Gato Taco....Purrrrfic.
I used to eat Taco Bell on occasion (when I was tired and lazy).
One day I was feeding my dogs WalMart Ol’Roy brand wet beef dog food. Immediately after I went to Taco smell to get a quick bite for myself. As I walked in I was hit in the face by the smell of Ol’Roy brand wet dog food (only slightly altered by the Taco Bell spices).
Never again. Once that association was formed Taco smell makes me gag.
We have many authentic Mexican restaurants here (full of Mexicans, of course!) that can satisfy any need for Mexican cuisine. Taco Bell is totally un-necessary aand I’m really surprised they are still in business. I won’t even buy a soda from them.................
What did you think they put in those tacos? Meat?................
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