Fall in Mendoza

Fall in Mendoza
View outside our house

Friday, June 18, 2010

Grocery Shopping in Mendoza Part One

Got lot's to say about grocery shopping in Mendoza, Argentina...therefore this will be a multi-part blog.

Let's get this out of the way real quick.  The meat here is awesome!  Argentina is known for their meats and I can confirm that it is a well placed honor.  Most people get their meat from a "carnicero,"  neighborhood butcher.  We get ours from such a butcher.  The meat is extremely fresh.  I spent some time with Luis, our butcher, and I can testify that these guys are artisan butchers.

Luis gets his beef in half cow carcasses!  From there he cuts it down himself to the specifics of his customers.  Can't say enough about the quality and the tastes of the meat.  When we grill the meats, all you need is salt...yum!  There will be a Blog about Asado's,

Enough of that...

First impression of going to the major grocery chains is that there is not much different from U.S. stores;  the same layout and the same concepts.  Most major chains have two types of stores.  Large, all inclusive stores and small "express" type stores.

The large stores are just that...huge.  They are like Walmart Superstores in the U.S.  They sell TV's, clothes and of course food.  The selection of food is decent.  As someone who enjoys cooking, there are little options.  It doesn't matter where you shop, you well get the same brands and the same food.

As for said-called brands, 99% are Argentine brands.  When I first went grocery shopping I noticed that almost everything that was bottled or canned said, "Industria Argentina" on the back of the product.  This means made in Argentina.  What a concept, made in your own country?

Not being an economist, I figure this is good for the country, but being an outsider looking in, not good for the consumer who wants to have a large variety of foods and options.

Let me explain.  In the U.S., I was used to not only a large selections of products from the U.S. and abroad, but there seemed to be new products being developed and introduced to the consumer on a weekly basis.  The large multi-nationals that cater to the U.S. consumer are constantly looking to outdo their rivals, therefore we were bombarded with a million types of cookies, chips, etc.

Made in Argentina, means no multi-nationals competing for your money.  This is what there is and well, this is what you buy.  At first I liked all the new things they offered that in the U.S. we don't eat.  But after a while, I wanted diversity...choices.

All this talk of food is making me hungry.  Next post will be about the U.S. brands that we do have in Argentina and how much it costs!  OUCH!!!

2 comments:

  1. I love this Mocha! Keep it coming! xx Deb

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  2. man, i never thought about how different something as simple as food shopping could be..

    i'm excited for part 2!

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