A Mcdonalds Branch in Japan. Konichiwa (from the PerezHilton website)
I am Filipino, and being Filipino, I am exposed to a host of culinary influences. One of the most common types of cuisine Filipinos tend to be exposed to would be that of the United States.
Now, lets see. McDonalds is ubiquitous. Whether you're in Manila, Amsterdam, Singapore, Los Angeles, or Berlin, McDonalds tends to be a fixture of a country's fastfood landscape.
There's KFC, Burger King, In and Out. McDonalds does not necessarily win on quality. It wins out in the game of emotional connections.
The Big Mac. For me, it is the motherlode of burgers. Yes, we have more "gourmet" burgers out there, but to the everyman, to the Joe on the street, to spoiled kids who think Ronald McDonald is their best friend and not a threat to public safety, The Big Mac is the supermodel of the yum yum world, the Porsche among rickety old Buicks. Healthy? Not quite. Good? Yes. Maybe its an artificial good, but hey, taste is taste. It is not necessarily something you anchor to your blood lipid profile.
McDonalds is something that a lot of people associate with their respective childhoods. And why not? I mean, since time and memorial, McDonalds' target market has always been children. They haul in kids through letting the kids dictate the whims of their parents. Parents normally have the final say, but kids normally make their worlds go round. Lets face it. What Little Jimmy says after an hour of tantrums, goes.
The French Fries. More particularly, the Twister Fries. My memories of such? My granddad used to bring me McDonalds value meals on a regular basis when I was very young. Having fries and a burger with my dear old grandpa underlie some of the best memories I have of the man.
First dates. Joyous fate. The person whom I consider to be the love of my life and I began our journey to bliss with fries. Wholly appropriate, especially when you consider the fact that the richness of food tends to become congruent with the richness of memory. Indulgence. Living. Ah, yes. La Dolce Vita. What could be better?
My sister loves McDonalds. She has loved it so much, for so long, that during long trips to the province as kids, we would seek out McDonalds branches in urbanized areas and buy in bulk while in transit to less populated places. Why risk going hungry when you can stock up on MC for a rainy day?
Food always tastes better, or seems less ordinary, when you associate it with emotions, company, insights, recollections. For me, McDonalds, oddly enough, holds a special place in my heart. I remember my parents, my grandparents, my friends, my sister, my girlfriend. Food is a strong catalyst which may spur us towards returning to places long gone, and towards creating new realms of profundity.
That's a whole lot of "good time, great taste" in the greater scheme of things.
MC
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