Pamplona Burger King health warning

[Lachance]

Thanks to Oztrekker and BK for generating such a lively discussion. Will be re-reading, me encanta comer .

Apropos eggs, have to wonder whether the probs with under-cooking, lack of refrigeration etc, which as several have pointed out are both relatively recent and particularly associated with western/'advanced' economies, are not unrelated to the unnatural and revolting conditions imposed on the poor chooks in these countries?

 

[Coleen Clark]

Speaking of culture in Spain.

Did you know the four major epochs of Spanish culture can be traced through the use of arches?

First there are the Romanesque arches used to build the ancient bridges and aqueducts. The Roman age.

Second there are the horseshoe shaped arches of the Mozarabic. The Cathedral in Cordoba has fine examples of such. The Moro age.

Third there are the arches used to build the flying buttresses and domed ceilings of Cathedrals such as the one in Burgos. The Catholic age.

Fourth there are the golden arches found in front of certain fast food emporiums. The modern age.

Progress marches on ...

You forgot the Fifth... Falling arches of the Pilgrim Age.

 

[Oztrekker]

As long ad we are not into the age of the golden arches.

Mcdonalds

 

[Deleted member 3000]

McDonalds is on the Camino only in Pamplona, Burgos, Leon, Ponferrada, and Santiago de Compostela, so the age of McDonalds does not seem to have arrived in Spain. The Chemin du Puy has a few more!

 

[whariwharangi]

As long ad we are not into the age of the golden arches.

Mcdonalds

It could be worse. Soylent Green ... yum.

 

[Icacos]

It could be worse. Soylent Green ... yum.

Hmmmmm .... I was going to say something about the Pyrenees vultures, but perhaps not.

 

[Oztrekker]

It could be a case if beating them at there own game.

Yac donalds from annapurnacircuit.

 

[C clearly]

Apropos eggs, have to wonder whether the probs with under-cooking, lack of refrigeration etc, which as several have pointed out are both relatively recent...

I got food poisoning in 1971 in Spain from an egg. The lunch was packed for me by the family with whom I had been staying and eating happily for 2 months. I was taking the train from Malaga to Madrid, and spent an unhappy night in a hostal with a shared bathroom. The next day I was feeling tired and weak, but my afternoon meal was a delicious plate of sliced tomatoes, cucumber and onion, with a glass of red wine. Then I was fully recovered!

 

[Hal]

AFAIK, the color of the yolk is related with the food eaten by the animal. I was told the egg white is what can be used to get an idea of how fresh is an egg: the less sprawled, the more fresh but I can't confirm it either.

I had eggs with red yolks in a hotel in Tokyo. Quite a novelty. I didn't actually taste it as I am intolerant to the proteins in cooked yolks, but my dining companions told me they had a sweet umami richness. They had red yolks because of the diet. I cannot recall what, seaweed or soy.

Of the post-cracking egg freshness tests, I have been told much the same - a plump yolk and thick white indicates fresh, a flat, wrinkled yolk and watery white does not.

 

[Pattii]

I invite you all to experience Canada. Here were celebrate the multi cultural flavours of our neighbours and enjoy expressing who we are as Canadians regardless of whether we are Ukrainian, Dutch, Chinese, Canadian Native Indian, Somalian, Liberian, Jamaican, Spanish, French, German....The list goes on and on and on ....We are all Canadian once we are in Canada. We celebrate our "Canadian" Heritage which includes all of these cultures and foods and ideas and art and faith. I love Canada for that very reason. In fact we have a huge festival each year in Edmonton call Heritage Days...where over 65 countries are represented with their food and art and dance/music...its fantastic. You will rarely if ever get people arguing if they are Newfies or BC hippies or Cowboys from Alberta...let alone arguing over who is actually Canadian and what type of Canadian they are regardless of where they originated. Food from all of these places is considered "traditional" and in fact Canada has very very few dishes that foodies could call truly Canadian.
So when I am in Spain it won't matter which area I am in and I won't care if its Catalonia or Basque or what ever else I might find in Spanish restaurants. If Im in Spain its Spanish. Just the same for me here whether I am eating poutine or pierogi, bannock or baklava. It's all Canadian to me!

 

[Coleen Clark]

I hope you have a big house Pattii, because you just made Canada sound sooooo good! I've gone over the border a few times, from the eastern end and the western end of our countries, and found wonderfully friendly people and, as you said, very diverse cuisine. I'll check my calendar and see when I'm able to visit you. (I'll bring a hostess gift.)

 

[journeycakes]

Pamplona is where you eat pinchos, not North American fast food! Several bars on or near Plaza del Castillo have pinchos during most of the day and evening. I have a couple of favourite places to go - one is on calle San Nicolás and the other is around the corner toward the plaza.

 

[Icacos]

It could be a case if beating them at there own game.

Yac donalds from annapurnacircuit.

View attachment 19442

A friend who spent some time in a far distant remote region of Tibet said she did not have one meal that did not have some yak hair in it. Fine dining at its best.

 

[Pattii]

I hope you have a big house Pattii, because you just made Canada sound sooooo good! I've gone over the border a few times, from the eastern end and the western end of our countries, and found wonderfully friendly people and, as you said, very diverse cuisine. I'll check my calendar and see when I'm able to visit you. (I'll bring a hostess gift.)

I've got the extra bed made up! Any time my dear...I have a cat so if you are allergic bring your own allergy meds! Hahaha! Big huge Canadian hugs!

 

[jeffnd]

After a tour of the Cathedral and dropping our packs off at the albergue, my friend from Holland and I went looking for a place to eat. There were a ton of those little quaint bars and restaurants. It's hard to tell one from the next. Will you get a good meal for you money? Or will you just get overpriced crap? Then we saw it.

"Should we just get a burger?" he asked.

It was pretty much heresy to suggest such a thing. I mean, here we are, on this holy journey, where we are supposed to eschew the trappings and conveniences of modern life. After all, "A pilgrim must suffer," right? We should pick one of these little holes in the wall, sit outside in the blazing hot sun, attempt to order from a menu in a language we don't understand, and be grateful for the privilege! But I was hungry. I wanted to see more of the city. I've never been a foodie anyway. Just give me some crap to shovel into my pie-hole and a carbonated beverage to wash it down! In and out and ten minutes! That's what I want!

"Screw it! Let's go!" I said. And yes, we went in. And unapologetically wolfed down our Whoppers and fries. We actually had a good cultural exchange during our meal. I learned that Europeans enjoy their fries with mayo instead of ketchup! Crazy, right? Who knew?

I also learned that the Pamplona Burger King does not have a stamp for pilgrims. With the all the commercialization on the Camino, I expected to see a statue of the Burger King king dressed in pilgrim garb, with a giant chicken fry instead of a walking stick, and a sesame seed bun in place of the scallop.

I'll stop there. I don't want to give them any ideas.

 

[Camembert]

Ho

After a tour of the Cathedral and dropping our packs off at the albergue, my friend from Holland and I went looking for a place to eat. There were a ton of those little quaint bars and restaurants. It's hard to tell one from the next. Will you get a good meal for you money? Or will you just get overpriced crap? Then we saw it.

"Should we just get a burger?" he asked.

It was pretty much heresy to suggest such a thing. I mean, here we are, on this holy journey, where we are supposed to eschew the trappings and conveniences of modern life. After all, "A pilgrim must suffer," right? We should pick one of these little holes in the wall, sit outside in the blazing hot sun, attempt to order from a menu in a language we don't understand, and be grateful for the privilege! But I was hungry. I wanted to see more of the city. I've never been a foodie anyway. Just give me some crap to shovel into my pie-hole and a carbonated beverage to wash it down! In and out and ten minutes! That's what I want!

"Screw it! Let's go!" I said. And yes, we went in. And unapologetically wolfed down our Whoppers and fries. We actually had a good cultural exchange during our meal. I learned that Europeans enjoy their fries with mayo instead of ketchup! Crazy, right? Who knew?

I also learned that the Pamplona Burger King does not have a stamp for pilgrims. With the all the commercialization on the Camino, I expected to see a statue of the Burger King king dressed in pilgrim garb, with a giant chicken fry instead of a walking stick, and a sesame seed bun in place of the scallop.

I'll stop there. I don't want to give them any ideas.

hope not BK is adapting your idea. An insultment to all peregrinos.
Love the word "pie-hole" here in Holland we sometimes use the word " broodmolen" which means as much as a mill to grind your slice of bread"

Put it into your bread-mill

 

[waveprof]

If one must indulge in the postmodern image of a burger on Camino, try it in Santiago at Hawai'i Elder. If you need postmodern imaginations of burgers, then you can't get more extreme than this (and they do, surprisingly taste quite good!!! Especially the ones with Hawai'ian ingredients as imagined by Galicians)

 

[waveprof]

Pamplona is where you eat pinchos, not North American fast food! Several bars on or near Plaza del Castillo have pinchos during most of the day and evening. I have a couple of favourite places to go - one is on calle San Nicolás and the other is around the corner toward the plaza.

Yep! Although it's actually pintxo

 

[SabsP]

Also in SdC ....good hamburgers, all food is good there btw at restaurant O Paris.
https://www.facebook.com/oparisdc/p...0.1434905709./738244552912106/?type=1&theater

 

[Castilian]

First there are the Romanesque arches used to build the ancient bridges and aqueducts. The Roman age.

I think you are mixing Romanesque (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romanesque_art) with Roman (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_art).

The Moro age.

The connotations that can be given to the word moro in Spanish make it a(nother) controversial term.

In some countries/cultures/cultural contexts it may unwise to start a conversation about politics or about religion or about sports, and in others it may unwise to start a conversation about language or about the Euro or the European Union project as such, while religious or other political issues may be totally safe.

...and in others may be unwise to start a conversations about most of (or all) the topics you quoted.

Welcome to the cultural diversity of our big old continent.

Not everyone thinks it's big, not everyone thinks it's old and not everyone thinks it's a continent...
Welcome to the cultural diversity of planet Earth!

 

[Castilian]

Yep! Although it's actually pinxto

Pintxo (note spelling) in Basque.
Pincho in Spanish.
Same pronunciation.

 

[whariwharangi]

The connotations that can be given to the word moro in Spanish make it a(nother) controversial term.

Just so there are no 'connotations' my dictionary describes 'Moro' as:

Ref a un Musulman que vivio en España en la epoca comprendida entre los siglos VIII y XV.

 

[Kathar1na]

Welcome to the cultural diversity of planet Earth!

Sure. But I was mainly thinking of those from the New World who might not be aware of the fact that topics related to language (official language, language used in education, etc) can be a hot potato in various parts of Europe and is best avoided or approached with care. At least in my experience with three different EU countries.

How did we get to this subject? Aren't we supposed to discuss the ergonomic functionality of the seats in a fast food restaurant in Pamplona?

 

[Pattii]

I've been messaged twice about this privately so I want to go on the record ...and to restate the obvious...that this is about food not politics. There is a vast difference when comparing food to political issues that face a country. I am not saying anyone is right or wrong, or that their stories or situations do not need to be considered or heard but we are not talking politics or religion. Someone asked me about the Quebecois. Trust me their issues are not about whether we see poutine or maple syrup as a Canadian food or not. There can be a vast diversity of political views, religious views and even language barriers in Canada...even within its original peoples however...and I say this not to ignite any more controversy but to just make a point... none of what gets debated regarding the Quebecois or the Inuit or the Canadian First Nations is food. It is about recognition of a people not about how we cook.

 

[waveprof]

I've been messaged twice about this privately so I want to go on the record ...and to restate the obvious...that this is about food not politics. There is a vast difference when comparing food to political issues that face a country. I am not saying anyone is right or wrong, or that their stories or situations do not need to be considered or heard but we are not talking politics or religion. Someone asked me about the Quebecois. Trust me their issues are not about whether we see poutine or maple syrup as a Canadian food or not. There can be a vast diversity of political views, religious views and even language barriers in Canada...even within its original peoples however...and I say this not to ignite any more controversy but to just make a point... none of what gets debated regarding the Quebecois or the Inuit or the Canadian First Nations is food. It is about recognition of a people not about how we cook.

Great post.

 

[waveprof]

Here is a (highlly subjective) food blogger's list of top five burgers in Spain.....
http://theburgerguide.com/best-burgers-in?country=Spain
That said, all five of his are in Madrid, so maybe a bit biased. But who knows.

I'll throw in that the Cafe de la Concha in Donostia makes a very good (though very overpriced) burger. One of my favorites in the world They put a fried egg on theirs (if you want to bring this thread almost full circle). Here is a link to their website http://www.cafedelaconcha.com/home.htm


I can't find a close up picture of the burger, but if you look closely you'll see two on the table. You'll also notice the cafe has a nice view, and, to make this thread go even MORE full circle, you'll see some patatas bravas in the foreground

 

[waveprof]

If one must indulge in the postmodern image of a burger on Camino, try it in Santiago at Hawai'i Elder. If you need postmodern imaginations of burgers, then you can't get more extreme than this (and they do, surprisingly taste quite good!!! Especially the ones with Hawai'ian ingredients as imagined by Galicians)

I found a picture online of a Hawai'i Burger at Santiago's Hawai'i Eder. The picture doesn't really do it justice, but thought it worth including:

 

[MendiWalker]

Have just read in El Pais today - There are 36,200 MacDonald´s outlets in 120 countries. In Spain there are 485 MacDonald´s outlets while Burger King has 600 outlets in Spain. I think someone isn´t telling the truth .

Ondo Ibili !

 

[waveprof]

Have just read in El Pais today - There are 36,200 MacDonald´s outlets in 120 countries. In Spain there are 485 MacDonald´s outlets while Burger King has 600 outlets in Spain. I think someone isn´t telling the truth .

Ondo Ibili !

I'm just bothered that there are over a 1,000 of them combined in Spain

 

[MendiWalker]

I'm just bothered that there are over a 1,000 of them combined in Spain

I´m not. If you don´t like them simply don´t go. But let other who wish to go go.

Ondo Ibili !

 

[waveprof]

I´m not. If you don´t like them simply don´t go. But let other who wish to go go.

Ondo Ibili !

I'm not joining in the judgement of those Spaniards who choose to go, and I am torn....I do like the idea that people have options......and it wouldn't seem right to say Spain should have no such establishments.....but I'm just sad every time I see the homogenization of difference in the world. The sadness, for me, is less about if I think McDonalds or BK are good quality establishments, I don't but to each their own, I just think 1000+ of any hegemonic, American food in a country the size of Spain is a bit sad. I'd also be sad if all local USA restaurants were replaced by tapas. It isn't about better or worse, it's about sameness. There are a lot of good things that come with globalization, but food homogeneity is not one of them

 

[Coleen Clark]

If one must indulge in the postmodern image of a burger on Camino, try it in Santiago at Hawai'i Elder. If you need postmodern imaginations of burgers, then you can't get more extreme than this (and they do, surprisingly taste quite good!!! Especially the ones with Hawai'ian ingredients as imagined by Galicians)

Oh. My. Goodness. Now I'll have to pack my coconut bra....another pound in my backpack. Sigh.

 

[MendiWalker]

I'm not joining in the judgement of those who go, and I am torn....I do like the idea that people have options......but I'm just sad every time I see the homogenization of difference in the world. The sadness, for me, is less about if I think McDonalds or BK are good quality establishments, I don't but to each their own, I just think 1000+ of any hegemonic, American food in a country the size of Spain is a bit sad. I'd also be sad if all local USA restaurants were replaced by tapas. It isn't about better or worse, it's about sameness. There are a lot of good things that come with globalization, but food homogeneity is not one of them

You could have fooled me. In any case cheer up life is short.

Ondo Ibili !

 

[MendiWalker]

Oh. My. Goodness. Now I'll have to pack my coconut bra....another pound in my backpack. Sigh.

Well if you get to Fisterra you can burn it there or on the roof top of the cathedral as in days of old.

Ondo Ibili !

 

[Coleen Clark]

Well if you get to Fisterra you can burn it there or on the roof top of the cathedral as in days of old.

Ondo Ibili !

May I remove it first? Thank you.

 

[MendiWalker]

May I remove it first? Thank you.

You´ll make the front page of the local papers if you do.

Ondo Ibili !

 

[waveprof]

You´ll make the front page of the local papers if you do.

At Fisterra? A beach in Spain? I doubt that! lol

 

[MendiWalker]

At Fisterre? A beach in Spain? I doubt that! lol

No ! On the cathedral rooftop.

Now let´s get back on topic before we all get warned.

Ondo Ibili !

 

[Oztrekker]

Had a win, found the supermecardo in burgos, on the way back from the pool. had a 2 pack of microwave cheeseburgers - euro 1.25 with some packet capucino.

Breakfast in burgos municipal was good.

Oz

 

[Tia Valeria]

When I lived in Jamaica no one at all stored eggs in the fridge...many didn't have a fridge. I also was used to seeing people leave food out overnight including fried chicken or fish...covered of course... and it never made anyone sick. I think we have become overly concerned with germs and bacteria...etc. Honestly the older I get the more I am told I shouldn't do things that never made one blink an eye back when I was growing up. Now the one time I remember getting really really sick from food contamination was when I bought potato salad at a grocery store in Canada...lol

When we lived in S America I earned a nickname due to my habit of holding eggs offered to me at the door over a torch. At times I suggested that they should be returned to the sitting hen to complete their incubation as they were obviously well on the way to hatching.
No problems with the unfertilised ones though.

On topic:- we avoid fast food outlets and love the variety of Spanish food we have found on every Camino.

 

[Thornley]

You call it "dining" at a Burger King, Mc Donalds, Kentucky Fried Chicken" .?
I have different thought about "dining" The services these "companies" offer is a direct and severe insultment to mankind. Lining up for food, paying in advance and the rubbish they sell thrown on a plastic plate and your hot drinks in a cardboard cup, covered with a plastic lid so they are'nt not responsable when you burn yourself by spilling the hot stuff that they call coffee. Over my dead body I never put one step in these degenerated way of supplying "food". Do not make me mad !
In Spain are real local restaurants . They deserve to be visited. Not that fastfood crap.

This year falcon I will visit after walking to Santo Domingo Haro and Vitoria before San Sebastián because the info I have on their food is very, very , good.
How can people travel around the world be in another country , with different cultures, different food etc and resort back to the fast food crap.
Imagine going to China for a maccas, Spain for a burger,
Paris for a hot dog"......"
Only if they had a decent seat in the burger place this would not be consulted.

 

[jeffnd]

Had a win, found the supermecardo in burgos, on the way back from the pool. had a 2 pack of microwave cheeseburgers - euro 1.25 with some packet capucino.

Breakfast in burgos municipal was good.

Oz

The most "un-Camino" meal I had was a burger from a vending machine. You put your money in, and the machine would cook (microwave) you food. I don't know what the pilgrims of old would think of that!

 

[Mark Lee]

I'm just bothered that there are over a 1,000 of them combined in Spain

Yeah, that's a bit disturbing.
They are all over Asia. In Thailand you are greeted by that familiar garish, creepy looking clown doing the traditional greeting (wai) in front of the locations.
Look inside the place and you will see it filled with foreigners of all types. The only locals inside are employees.

 

[Oztrekker]

People get homesick so fast food restaraunts offer familiarity emotional and financial security.

I paid 1 euro for a tomato from a tienda no price on it. You can buy a kilo for 1 euro 12 at dia. I just did not have the energy to fight the woman and she pretended not to understand when i protested. So yes ronald would never screw me over a tomato. You need language skills or else some proprietors will take the piss.

I had to wait until 630pm for the carnicerio to open. I was super hungry. These times help the restaurants and bars make money off hungry pilgrims. This meant i had to fast untill 730. I.was not going to be forced into a pricey restaraunt because of some weird grocery purchasing opening times in a village.

The good news the meat purchased was top quality, so mescal salad, potato mash, steak and pepper sauce. My meal came to 5 euro. Would have been cheaper if not for the expensive tomato.

Microwave burgers are kind of weird. Allot of albergue provide no cups or mugs just that weird expensive coffee machine. I have had to microwave water in bowls and a satchet of cappucino.

 

[Kathar1na]

The most "un-Camino" meal I had was a burger from a vending machine. You put your money in, and the machine would cook (microwave) you food. I don't know what the pilgrims of old would think of that!

I tend to think they would have loved quick, cheap and plentiful food and would have flocked to the Burgher Kyng. And I cannot imagine that say a pilgrim of the 14th century found it fashionable and desirable to live like a pilgrim of say the 10th century, i.e. a tendency to imitate the old ways, like we do.

 

[Mark Lee]

I tend to think they would have loved quick, cheap and plentiful food and would have flocked to the Burgher Kyng. And I cannot imagine that say a pilgrim of the 14th century found it fashionable and desirable to live like a pilgrim of say the 10th century, i.e. a tendency to imitate the old ways, like we do.

Yeah, good point.
A bit amusing the notion some have that you are supposed to suffer as a pilgrim. Live like they did (but make sure you have wi-fi ha ha). The pilgrims of days gone by were hungry, thirsty and suffered not out of choice. If given the opportunity to, they would have scarfed down paper sacks of greasy burgers and fries, slurped Cokes out of a paper cup, and jumped in the back of a pickup truck and rode to Santiago on four wheels.

 

[waveprof]

Yeah, good point.
A bit amusing the notion some have that you are supposed to suffer as a pilgrim. Live like they did (but make sure you have wi-fi ha ha). The pilgrims of days gone by were hungry, thirsty and suffered not out of choice. If given the opportunity to, they would have scarfed down paper sacks of greasy burgers and fries, slurped Cokes out of a paper cup, and jumped in the back of a pickup truck and rode to Santiago on four wheels.

Yes. There never was a "true" pilgrim, and the idea of trying to emulate one gets a tad silly. And the notion that you should skip fast food because it is a modern convenience, but then eat a dinner of spaghetti at the albergue, doesn't really hold up. My argument against fast food on the Camino has to do with immersing yourself with the culture you are in......not about modernity/ease. I have a good feeling a medieval pilgrim would have been pretty happy to have an iPhone and yellow arrows to point the way.

 

[waveprof]

I had to wait until 630pm for the carnicerio to open. I was super hungry. These times help the restaurants and bars make money off hungry pilgrims. This meant i had to fast untill 730. I.was not going to be forced into a pricey restaraunt because of some weird grocery purchasing opening times in a village.

It isn't really a "weird" opening time, and certainly isn't meant to force you into pricey restaurants (though it may have that unintended, unfortunate consequence). It's just that it's running on spanish time not camino time. Most restaurants in Spain don't even open until 830 pm (and don't start hopping until 930) and many stores close in the afternoon hours as you encountered. It isn't a great conspiracy, it's just how they live, and it is a time schedule that I find is actually pretty nice when I've lived it (though to each their own). But Camino lifestyle doesn't match Spanish time/lifestyle very well (even for Spanish pilgrims). The time a pilgrim is in, rested but tired, and wanting stores and food......is the time that many places are traditionally closed in Spain. It isn't convenient for the pilgrim. But at least most restaurants along the camino open much earlier than 830 for the pilgrim's convenience, it is very thoughtful of them (and allows them to make money).

 

[Luka]

This is a joke, right?

 

[Luka]

I just passed the BK in Pamplona. It was almost empty. The bars around it were full.

 

[waveprof]

I just passed the BK in Pamplona. It was almost empty. The bars around it were full.

I'm sure it's because they are worried about the uncomfortable chairs!

 

[whariwharangi]

I saw a McDonald's Restaurant in Leon. I thought about going but by then I was already addicted to the bottle that comes with the menu peregrino.

You can say what you like about Burger King et al. None of them provide a bottle of wine with their burgers, not even as part of the 'happy' meal.

 

[HalfDomeOrBust]

I saw a McDonald's Restaurant in Leon. I thought about going but by then I was already addicted to the bottle that comes with the menu peregrino.

You can say what you like about Burger King et al. None of them provide a bottle of wine with their burgers, not even as part of the 'happy' meal.

Now that's funny.....

 

[ivar]

Let's move things along to more Camino relaelted topics...