Westernization of the Asian Diet
How do you react when you see Western fastfood joints in Asia? I just came across this article from CNN about Krispy Kreme’s expansion into Asia, first in Hongkong and then to South Korea, Tokyo Indonesia and the Philippines.
On one hand, it’s a welcome development. Asians get a taste of Western cuisine (if it can be called that), and don’t we all love to try everything that’s novel, unchartered, unfamiliar? I can imagine that to a certain extent, for the less-adventurous tourists at least, the sight of a McDonald’s or Burger King restaurant means there’s a place they can seek temporary respite in, and eat something they know. I’ve known a few Europeans for example, who’d occassionally go to Wendy’s just for the baked potatoes, tired as they were of eating rice, rice and rice, three meals a day.
On the other hand, I’m am worried what these establishments’ impact on the local culture and cuisine can be.
Your thoughts?
1 Comment
Asian cuisine will remain unaffected.
I’m in China, and most Western joints (with the exception of Rotten McRonnie’s and KFC) are a bit steep for the general population. i.e. only a small fraction of the Chinese masses are going there. Examples: Subway, DQ, Pizza Hut. Some of these are just too expensive for most people.