Week 3

When talking to my Tica mom about restaurants, she said that many people eat out for special occasions or when family comes. However, my family does not go out to eat very much, if ever. My mom packs lunch for everyone in the family, so no one ever needs to go out for lunch. My Tica mom also cooks dinner every night, and everyone eats it at some point in the evening. She said that fast food chains are popular for students because of the social atmosphere. However, when we went to McDonalds on Sunday for lunch after our weekend trip, we predominantly saw families with children. That being said, I think restaurants are dominated by the younger generations. 

Restaurants that are popular in Costa Rica fast food chains, Chinese restaurants, and sodas. My mom mentioned the chains of Burger King, McDonalds, and Taco Bell specifically. When I asked her about more restaurants that were more culturally centered, she said that Chinese was the most popular, at least in her opinion. Sodas are popular with every student because they are cheap and relatively decent. At the  University, there is a soda for every school within the university. There are also tons of sodas on the streets surrounding the school and within the city of San Jose. My Tica mom doesn't think the restaurants are positive or negative, she think's they're just there. She doesn't go to them often, and neither does anyone in my family. She thinks that if people want to eat there, they can, but she would rather eat at home. I think this shows how modern my Tica mom is. She respects others opinions and does what she wants.

PHOTOS:

I took pictures of three kinds of restaurants. I have McDonalds, a fushion restaurant from Puerto Viejo, and a soda from the University of Costa Rica. The first photo is of a soda from UCR. The menu is set up similar to that of a fast food restaurant, with all of the options listed above your head. When you go to order, it is like an assembly line of food in front of you and you tell the person behind the counter what you would like. You then sit down at little tables similar to those in a food court.

The second photo is of a fushion restaurant in Puerto Viejo. Let me begin by saying it was one of the best meals I've had in 2012. On the menu there were tacos, curry dishes, jerk dishes, fresh seafood, and desserts to die for. It was a relatively touristy restaurant, but it did not matter. The food was incredible and everyone was satisfied with what they had ordered. It had the set-up of a typical restaurant with a kitchen in the back and tables in the front.

The third photo is of McDonalds in San Pedro/Guadalupe. It is nothing like any of the McDonalds I have ever seen in the US. The prices were high ($7 for a McNuggets combo????) and there were significantly less options. In addition, the seating was pristine and clean, looking almost like a Panera or a Starbucks. However, the food tasted the same and we enjoyed the experience nonetheless.