A few weeks ago, I signed up for lafourchette.com. It's similar to OpenTable in the US in that you can rate your experience at a given restaurant, read other people's reviews, and book a table online. It's perfect for those of us who don't like to talk to human beings over the phone but like eating good food :) An added bonus with LaForuchette is that many of the restaurants will offer a discount on a set menu if you book online - it's a win-win situation. Anyway, all that to say that LaFourchette also sends around the occasional advertisement, like the one I received yesterday: With a title like "the burger crosses the Atlantic," how could I not be intrigued? Apparently, LaFourchette has declared that Feb 24 - Mar 2 is burger week here in Paris, with select restaurants offering 50% off your fine burger dining experience.
The ad goes on to say that last year, French people ate 970 million burgers. Wait, what?!? That's a lot of burgers for a gastronomically superior nation. This phenomenon was actually first brought to my attention by Michael (who scoops me on everything) a few weeks back, who found an article on CNN claiming that 45% of all sandwiches sold in France last year were burgers - to the sad and slow decline of the ubiquitous French baguette sandwich. I did a quick search for a comparable statistic on burger consumption in the United States, and according to an article published on the reputable outlet that is the Huff Post, burgers make up 40% of all sandwiches sold in the US each year. France may beat the US in the burger-to-other-sandwich ratio game, HOWEVER, the article goes on to announce that Americans consume nearly 50 billion (with a B) burgers every year. So there's that to be proud of. And while it's unlikely France will ever catch up to the sheer volume of hamburgers consumed on American soil, it's not for lack of effort on the part of the American fast food industry. France is apparently the second-largest market for McDonald's after the United States. So on behalf of Americans the world over who don't particularly find McDonald's appealing (but do love a good burger), we're sorry they got to you too, French friends.
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AuthorBecause why not get married and move to Paris to really kick off your thirties? Archives
December 2016
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