Taco Bell - Page 2 - TravelPUNK Backpacker College Student Budget Travel Message Boards!

**Brookers13** · 09-12-2006, 07:12 PM

when i was in europe this summer, i craved taco bell..like daily....i had food poisioning when i came home but as soon as i could eat anything i got taco bell..and i got it 2 days ago when i was drunk

best food ever

SleepIsTheCousinOfDeath · 09-12-2006, 10:44 PM

I nominate the export of White Castle to atleast 6 of the 7 continents. However I think the science stations in Antartica should probably know what onion chips and chicken rings are. Fucking christ allllllmighty.

But seriously. [size=6]FUCK Mcdonalds

**TheJake** · 09-12-2006, 11:04 PM

dude we don't even have white castles west of the mississippi. Let's get them over to the west coast first and then move on to global dominance.

Cause it's what i crave and we don't have em!

**Joker** · 09-13-2006, 12:33 AM

Omid and I both saw the same thing on the ride to the hostel, about a year apart. Freaked me out. I immediately wondered if the Ticos go to Denny's at 2am after the bars close like we do back home. Moons over My Hammy!!! :D

What floored me were the American fast food chains setup along Avenida Central in San Jose. Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING was there- Taco Bell, McD's, Starbucks, Papa Johns Pizza, Subway, KFC, Church's Chicken (blows KFS outta the water!), it was all there, and all were packed. Its referred to often as "Coca-Cola Diplomacy," where American brands permeate the marketplace. It works, look at the fall of the Soviet Union. Specifically, if you ever get the chance to see the documentary made about the first McD's in Moscow, its mind-blowing. McD's spent millions establishing an infrastructure to allow their massive restaurant to run, from cattle to potato farming, processing, everything. Private ownership was unheard of in the USSR prior. Really good stuff if you can find a copy.

Anyway, yes, Virginia, there is a KFC buffet. I've eaten at one frequently in the past. For about $8 you could gorge yourself on EVERYTHING!!!

**omisan** · 09-13-2006, 01:14 AM

Joker - going to Avenida Central helped speed my decision to hightail it out of San Jose!

As for the KFC Buffet.... here's an amusing story about it in Texas. If you make it to Plainfield, Indiana, they apparently have one there.

Personally, I think their mashed potatoes are terrible. And the idea of their Famous Bowls mortify me, but I'll admit, it's an oddly satisfying drink after a couple of hours of drunk-ass softball. There's a KFC/Taco Bell right by my team's pub. Dangerous.

**patchouli Lover** · 09-13-2006, 02:14 AM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(TheJake @ Sep 13 2006, 01:04 AM) [snapback]139667[/snapback]</div>

Quote:

dude we don't even have white castles west of the mississippi. Let's get them over to the west coast first and then move on to global dominance.

Cause it's what i crave and we don't have em!
[/b]

Hehe... Harold and Kumar go to White Castle :D Love that Movie

**lauren313** · 09-13-2006, 07:11 AM

Yeah, these American guys were from West Virginia, somewhere called Daneville, I think. That's where the buffet was. It sounds amazing!

SleepIsTheCousinOfDeath · 09-13-2006, 04:30 PM

funny how much response this thread has gotten. lol still no word on Taco Bells in South America except florencia said No go in Argentina.

**BigE** · 09-14-2006, 07:49 AM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(SleepIsTheCousinOfDeath @ Sep 13 2006, 07:30 PM) [snapback]139754[/snapback]</div>

Quote:

funny how much response this thread has gotten. lol still no word on Taco Bells in South America except florencia said No go in Argentina.
[/b]

One time a friend of mine and I were watching a football game and he said, "you ever notice that the commercials are all about food and sex?" He is right!

**patchouli Lover** · 09-20-2006, 01:48 PM

Awww... food and sex, the two things that make up life. Wait. What? There is more to life than that?

hehehe

**BigE** · 09-20-2006, 05:02 PM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(patchouli Lover @ Sep 20 2006, 04:48 PM) [snapback]140415[/snapback]</div>

Quote:

Awww... food and sex, the two things that make up life. Wait. What? There is more to life than that?

hehehe
[/b]

Traveling is part of our lives, which probably involves food and sex anyway. But it isn't all inclusive.

**marc873** · 09-20-2006, 05:29 PM

I hate to be the one to say it, but have any of you Taco Bell junkies ever read about the grade meat that they are allowed to use. I eat there to, but only things with refried beans. As for all the freaking american chains everywhere I travel, I hate it. For me personally, American stores and restaurants are the last thing I want to see when traveling in a foriegn land. I'm trying to leave all that behind damnit!!!

Although, Mcd's seems to taste different in every country I've been to, and wouldn't you know the U.S. ones are the worst. Hollands seemed the best out of all the countries so far, or it could of just been the GREAT grass!!! heehee

**Somnambulation** · 09-20-2006, 09:43 PM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(patchouli Lover @ Sep 20 2006, 01:48 PM) [snapback]140415[/snapback]</div>

Quote:

Awww... food and sex, the two things that make up life. Wait. What? There is more to life than that?

hehehe
[/b]

You forgot TV. Food, sex, and TV - the George Costanza trifecta.

**Joker** · 09-20-2006, 10:47 PM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(marc873 @ Sep 20 2006, 05:29 PM) [snapback]140420[/snapback]</div>

Quote:

I hate to be the one to say it, but have any of you Taco Bell junkies ever read about the grade meat that they are allowed to use. I eat there to, but only things with refried beans. As for all the freaking american chains everywhere I travel, I hate it. For me personally, American stores and restaurants are the last thing I want to see when traveling in a foriegn land. I'm trying to leave all that behind damnit!!!

Although, Mcd's seems to taste different in every country I've been to, and wouldn't you know the U.S. ones are the worst. Hollands seemed the best out of all the countries so far, or it could of just been the GREAT grass!!! heehee
[/b]

Horseshit. TB and all the fast food joints use the same grade of USDA-inspected beef. Its not horse, its not cat, etc. Its not USDA Prime or Choice that you'd find at your local restaurant, but is "select," the 3rd grade down, and perfectly acceptable for ground beef purposes. In fact, most supermarkets carry "select" as their ground products.

**BigE** · 09-21-2006, 02:56 AM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Joker @ Sep 21 2006, 01:47 AM) [snapback]140448[/snapback]</div>

Quote:

Horseshit. TB and all the fast food joints use the same grade of USDA-inspected beef. Its not horse, its not cat, etc. Its not USDA Prime or Choice that you'd find at your local restaurant, but is "select," the 3rd grade down, and perfectly acceptable for ground beef purposes. In fact, most supermarkets carry "select" as their ground products.
[/b]

Then how the hell did I get food poisoning. I use to eat my meat rare, but now I eat the meat medium-well. I just don't trust food anymore. It is a long process from the butcher to the dish.

**marc873** · 09-21-2006, 06:16 AM

I wasn't slamming Taco Bell, I was just saying that I as well have gotten sick after eating there. I think it was the meat, so thats why I always get refried beans instead. Not sweatin you TB lovers!!! Don't get so upset.

chelseafc05 · 09-21-2006, 06:48 AM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Joker @ Sep 13 2006, 05:33 PM) [snapback]139675[/snapback]</div>

Quote:

.

Anyway, yes, Virginia, there is a KFC buffet. I've eaten at one frequently in the past. For about $8 you could gorge yourself on EVERYTHING!!!
[/b]

no way maaan... imagine how much skin you could just eat...

**omisan** · 09-21-2006, 10:18 AM

Food poisoning from fast food chains isn't from the quality of ingredients that they use (they're all "adequate," as far as health standards go) but from their own sanitary/health practices in the kitchen and elsewhere.

The food arrives to them pretty safe and clean - when your stuff comes from wholesale manufacturers frozen and hermetically sealed, there isn't much in there that'll hurt you. (Save for widespread e. coli outbreaks in things like, oh, bagged spinach.) If there's one thing you can say for our mass-produced, widely-distributed, over-processed food, it's been boiled poked and prodded to the point that pathogens are broken down into nothing.

What happens is that you then have guys that don't wash their hands, disgruntled employees who piss in the sauce, cheap managers who won't throw out spoilt stock, or simply poor food storage practices, things go wrong. Maybe they've reused that fryer oil for one week too long (eww!) or maybe they stored chicken on an upper shelf of a fridge and the juice dripped down into the lettuce that got leafed (or more likely, chopped) into your taco.

SleepIsTheCousinOfDeath · 09-21-2006, 11:48 AM

Yeah after growing up in a household where the mother is an infection control nurse, I can back Omi on the food poisoning issue. You get it cuz people take a shit and then touch your food. Bon appetit

**marc873** · 09-21-2006, 12:20 PM

Sounds super yummy. Thanx for clearing all that up for me. I guess its just not the food for me. Every Taco Hell I have ever been in has been pretty nasty. And I do love the greasy fingers everywhere you look in KFC. Makes you wanna lick those fingers. But I have also worked in fine dining for about 8 years in my past, and there was shit that went down in the kitchen there just as fucking nasty, so I think all restaurants are hit or miss, thats the chance you take to not have to cook.