whiskey tango foxtrot, over?

[swan_tower]

I don't know if this is a California thing or what, but I've come across some appallingly ill-organized stores since moving out here. The Blockbuster within walking distance is so bad I've pretty much vowed never to set foot in it again: not only are 3/4 of the DVDs stacked in haphazard piles rather than laid face-out for ease of browsing, but there are L's in with the A's and C's among the S's, to the point where I had to search the entire section to be sure that if the movie I wanted was anywhere in the store, it was too thoroughly lost to be worth my while.

And the grocery store! I thought for a while they didn't carry Near East couscous, because it's shelved two or three aisles over from the rest of the couscous. (Which is in the aisle labeled "natural foods," including such natural foods as Powerade.) Hunting for taco seasoning, did I find it among the Hispanic foods? Among the spices? No, it's in with the stuffing and gravy packets. Or at least some of it is; either Safeway doesn't stock the most stereotypical brands of such things, or they've hidden the Old El Paso god knows where. In with the pet food, maybe. The cheese, sour cream, and yogurt aren't in with the milk, eggs, and butter -- no dairy section for you! -- they're clear across the store, along with the lunch meats, which are likewise nowhere near the rest of the meat.

Srsly. Is the state of California too busy being hippies in the sunshine to think about how they set up their stores?

Maybe I should hire myself out as a consultant.

Comments

[j-cheney.livejournal.com]

So, does the term "Hispanic Foods" strike you as being....well, weird?

Like they have an ethnicity, but not a geographical affiliation....

[dsgood.livejournal.com]

So they should rename it "The Latin American, Iberian, Southwestern US, sometimes Oregon, sometimes Chicago, sometimes..." section?

Hispanic foods in my local supermarkets (South Minneapolis) include: tortillas made locally; tortillas made in Oregon; canned squid and canned octopus from Spain; Taco Bell sauces; bread made by the Mexican company Bimbo in Texas, including what seems to be a close imitation of US white bread; and pasta made in Texas.

[j-cheney.livejournal.com]

Being from El Paso, I definitely think of it as Mexican food....however, I can see how other parts of the country might not have that bias.

Minneapolis? Not so close to the border....

[swan-tower.livejournal.com]

As far as I'm concerned, tortillas are Mexican* food regardless of where they're made, just as Italian food gets that label anywhere I find it. I'm concerned with where the food genre originated, not the specific product I'm holding. Likewise, I want my bread in the bread aisle, even if it's being made by a Mexican company, unless it's a characteristically Mexican style of bread. So that argument doesn't persuade me much.

I think a better argument for the Hispanic label would be that it allows the section to include components for Cuban food or Panamanian food or, y'know, anything else south of our border that isn't Brazil. (And you could probably toss them in without most people noticing.) But on the whole the label doesn't bother me, unless I see evidence that it offends Mexicans or other Hispanic people.



*Obligatory footnote to acknowledge that I'm not sure which, if any, other Hispanic cultures use tortillas as a part of their native cuisine.

[icedrake.livejournal.com]

I'm getting a crash course in Central/South American dietary differences due to two factors:

1) We do communal lunches at work, on a rotating basis (one person makes food each work day)

2) We currently have two, and are about to have three, interns from Earth University in Costa Rica, but which are rather spread out in terms of countries of origin. So far: Panamana, Venezuela, and Nicaragua are all represented. I've now learned that plantains (platanos) are a popular dish in Panama, but are almost unknown in Mexico.

More updates as they happen, because I'm sure you're dying to know :)

[swan-tower.livejournal.com]

You get platanos in Costa Rica, too. Also more cilantro than you can shake a stick at.

Which is a problem if you, like me, can't stomach the stuff.