Las Tiendas: Introduction

Mexican Markets

Mexican markets are interesting places to visit to learn about the foods that are eaten in Mexico. Most Spanish-speaking countries have a market where people go to get fresh foods on a daily basis because they prefer to have foods that are fresh as opposed to frozen or canned. The marketplace is a very colorful place where you typically see a great deal of diversity represented. Some foods are those we don't even eat in the United States.


La Comida Rápida
The influence of the United States is evident in many Spanish-speaking countries in many ways. One area in which the influence of the United States is very clear is in the area of fast food restaurants. Though these eateries are not very popular with adults, young people like them a lot and frequent them. You can see many of the kinds of foods that you can see in our cities if you are in a large Spanish-speaking city such as Mexico City, Quito or Madrid. According to the Los Medios y Mercados de Latinoamérica 1998 study, 12.5% of Latin Americans between the ages of 12 and 64 ate at a McDonald's restaurant in the preceding six month period. Just for fun, let's look at some McDonald's restaurants in Spanish-speaking countries. See if you think they look more interesting than ours.

McDonald's in Buenos Aires, Argentina:

McDonalds in Buenos Aires

McDonald's in Mexico City, Mexico:

McDonald's in Mexico City


McDonald's in Santiago, Chile:

McDonald's in Santiago

They are all easily identifiable as McDonald's restaurants. The menus are written in Spanish and do not vary too much from the menu in McDonald's restaurants you may have visited.