I could never have expected the insane quantity of KFCs around the globe, I saw the Colonel more then I saw Ronald McDonald.

I have often traveled with people who don’t want to eat at a fast food chain because they “want to experience what local people eat.” Well, the restaurant is there because local people eat there.  The next time you’re in a foreign location, go into a chain that you know and look around, I would bet that most of the people in there are not tourists, and it may be the most genuinely “local” meal you ever eat. International chain restaurants are just another result of globalization, and an indicator that there is no “pure culture” anymore; everyone has been impacted by everyone else. I agree that while traveling one should try to get traditional foods or local specialties, food is a great way to get immersed in a culture. I just want you to keep an open mind while you travel and think about what the location really is like, and McDonalds and KFC may really are a part of that culture, whether you want it to be, or not. While in Japan Adam, Emily and I stopped at a McDonald’s in a train station. Below is a link to our experience. It was interesting to see the differences in their menu, not unlike the discussion of the Quarter Pounder with cheese being called a “Royale with Cheese” in France in the film Pulp Fiction.

What are your thoughts on fast food in other countries? Would you ever eat at one?

-JDB