I live in Hong Kong and it feels like most American fast food here involves oil and deep fried food. Then I remembered at one point HK local fast food were full of MSGs.
It led me to this question. What is your local fast food obsessed with? It can be an ingredient, spice, sauce, cooking method, etc.
Not exactly fast food but Japan’s version of Chinese food is to dump this starchy sauce on everything on the plate.
Looks like what we called Chop Suey in the eastern half of the US at Chinese restaurants. One of the owners confessed that originally Chop Suey was the Chinese equivalent of Kitchen Sink Soup. That was all the leftovers and they put them in a starchy sauce, and stupid Americans ate it and loved it.
Cheese Curds
Yeah, I live in Wisconsin, who’d guess.
In Lebanon, it’s getting extra garlic (toum) on your chicken shawarma.
That sounds amazing
We are blessed with insanely good food, and insanely terrible politics!
oh hell yes.
In Canada, our fast food obsession is making fast food as expensive as sit-down restaurants.
But it’s still cheaper because you aren’t expected to tip.
But the people at fast food restaurants and at sit-down restaurants are paid the same amount hourly, so it doesn’t really make sense. But we tip like Americans because culture and habit are hard to change.
But the fast food payment terminal still “gives you the opportunity” to tip
Fast food isn’t really cheaper in HK either. Tipping culture is non-existent here so that doesn’t cause a difference.
Our fast food isn’t really fast, either. I’m not sure what the appeal is aside from known consistency, I guess.
I live in France. For a time we had loads of poke places, still do. Insane that people pay €14 for a bowl of rice…
The biggest up-and-comer now is smash burgers (€15 burger prepared in 5 minutes anyone?), but might be tied with fried chicken which is also everywhere.
Prior to this we had a wave of French Taco joints (which are not tacos at all!).
I don’t live in a very large city though, so perhaps Paris, Marseille, and Toulouse have trends I haven’t seen yet.
Insane that people pay €14 for a bowl of rice…
I would imagine the expensive part isn’t the rice.
That French taco doesn’t sound too bad. Sounds like a crunchy kebab.
I’ve made Canadian style donair with the traditional garlic sauce fries, and this reminds me somewhat of both of those, only put together.
The French taco is incredibly silly, certainly if you consider that French supermarkets stopped selling the hard shell taco years ago as it’s not authentic (they do sell little pre formed tortilla bacs in a similar shape).
Chicago restaurant scene is obsessed with Nashville Hot Chicken right now and it’s frankly embarrassing
I live in Hong Kong and it feels like most American fast food here involves oil and deep fried food.
That’s pretty much universal regarding American fast food.
Yeah, I was about to say I’m in America and most of the fast food involves oil and deep fried food.
Germany: Döner Kebap ist still the most common fast food.
Sadly…Too much Döner joints per km^2
Döner joints per km^2 is the most German unit I’ve ever encountered
And I will love them until the day I die!
nasi goreng (fried rice) everywhere
Interesting. Fried rice is more commonly found in traditional restaurants for us. Not much in fast food.
That’s nice. The best kind of fast food.
Fries and snacks slothered in mayonnaise and other sauces, like curry, ketchup and peanut sauce.
We have names for sauce combinations:
Fries and … : means fries and mayo, witch is so common it needs not saying the word.
Mayo, curry/ketchup and diced raw onion: fries special.
Mayo, peanut sauce and diced raw onion: war fries.
Fries with doner kebab, salad, garlic sauce +chilly sauce, topped with grilled cheese: fries barber parlor (because the guy that came up with it worked at a barber shop)
Curry. Most chip shops will give you the option of chippy curry sauce or Chinese curry sauce. Some of them even do Irish curry sauce. So many Indian takeaway shops in my area and a lot of the non Indian takeaway shops are owned by Indian families. love curry so it’s like I’m in heaven lol
It’s funny, when someone mentiones curry, the uk is the first place i think about.
Personally indian or japanese places
Oregon / Washington - Deep fried sweet walla walla onion rings:
Basque country aka northern Spain: fast food is usually kebab places, Chinese places, pizza places, and burger places. There’s also poke places but just like 3 and they are not that famous.
There’s no predominance where I live at least, you can pick any of those.
Then I remembered at one point HK local fast food were full of MSGs.
That’s convinient. I always carry a small can on me for emergencies.
MSG was so prevalent until people said it was bad. One of our local fast food chain restaurants still has a “No MSG” poster in some of their branches.
MSG is just a kind of salt. It’s absolutely fine and one guy basically said “I always get a headache after eating Chinese food, it must be those darn Chinese people’s fault” and created a completely bullshit study out of nowhere and the health food nuts jumped on it and now here we are and even in China MSG has become a dirty word.
https://rightasrain.uwmedicine.org/body/food/msg-isnt-unhealthy
https://www.foodrepublic.com/1429861/msg-food-safety-myth-origin-racism/
tldr: food tastes better with a little MSG and there’s no link between it and any known health issue.
That’s terrible slander. At least you know which restaurants to avoid!
swedish burger chains put jalapeños and avocado on everything.
also there’s the pizza salad thing
