I think that if properly introduced, Chileans would love bagels and here's why:
1. Chileans looooooooove bread. I've heard different statistics, but all of them put them within the top countries world wide for bread consumption per capita. Bread here is purchased in individual servings (like bagels) and you then have to weigh it at the bread counter. Note the hallulla:
...looks kind of like a bagel without a hole, right? Well, maybe that's a stretch but it's still round.So anyway, Chileans like bread and what is a bagel? Well, lots of bread. One may argue that the average Chilean isn't into stuff in their bread, per se. So maybe they wouldn't be fond of an Everything bagel or cinnamon raisin or even onion. But I don't think they would be opposed to sesame, poppy seed or plain.
2. Chilean's love cream cheese, known here as "Queso Filadélfia" after, you guessed it, Philadelphia Cream Cheese, which I assume was the first brand to be imported to Chile. See, there's already something called queso crema (the literal translation) which comes in a plastic tube and well, is not the same as the cream cheese I know. But I digress. It's popular here to eat cream cheese with soy sauce and sesame seeds (strange, but actually good) on crackers and also, to spread it on warm bread. See where I'm going here? Not such a stretch to put cream cheese on a warm bagel!
3. Sandwiches are quite popular here, and Subway has caught on as well (despite not serving traditionally Chilean sandwiches). So the jump to a bagel-sandwich shop shouldn't be hard to make. If you can make a sandwich with bread, it's even more delicious on a bagel!
So here's my plea to someone smart and who knows about business: start another bagel shop! I would suggest putting it in Providencia, somewhere where you'll get lots of gringo clients to start, and then I'll help you win over the Chileans. I promise, I'll be you're #1 customer!
Or, at the very least, Dunkin' Donuts should start serving bagels. Just saying.
15 comments:
My plan is to become a billionaire within the next couple of years and then start a few things, A. a bagel shop. B. A GOOD pizza place. C. The Cheesecake Factory.
:)
I went to the infamous Unimarc this past weekend and did NOT find bagels. I asked about them and they told me they had "run out" (hello investor reading this!) and she said to me "I'll show you where they are so you know next time you come in." I thought she'd take me to the bread aisle where you find the sliced bread. No. She pointed to the freezer section. Again I was like "BAGELS? You know, with the hole in the middle." And she nodded yes, that's where they usually are. I guess it's fine. I'll take frozen bagels over no bagels but c'mon Chile. Is it that hard to bring us gringos some bagels for the LOVE OF ALL THAT'S SACRED AND HOLY??!! Now, I'm just sayin'.
Am I the only American who highly dislikes the Cheesecake Factory?
Thanks, Kyle, I knew I could count on you!! And AMEN on the Cheesecake Factory.
I used to go to that bagel shop in Las Condes-everything bagel with herb cream cheese and topped with sliced tomatoes... so good. My husband loves it too, and he is Chilean. I second the need for a good pizza place.
honestly i really do believe that when in rome...or santiago...avoid the bagels. the old chilean bagel place was over-priced and sucked (personal opinion of course)it seems that just about every american-ized food that i have tried in chile has come up short. as have most ethnic foods (indian comes to mind) i'm even going to include the breakfast/brunch place that everyone raves about - i just feel sorta blah about it. expensive and really not that great. i seriuosly have begun to think that the only REALLY consistently good food you can purchase in chile = Chilean and Peruvian (made by Peruvians who are living in Chile) also re: kyle's comment - cheesecake factory? seriously? i hate that place and it is so totally a symbol of so many things i hate about american food culture (though no place could ever make me so totally disgusted as maggiannos or whatever it's called - talk about a verguenza for our culture) ok that's enough ranting.
Haha KM sorry for hitting a nerve. I have to admit that I'm not a foodie/food expert/food snob AT ALL, as in I sometimes can't tell what's "good" and what's not, I just know what I like and what I don't like. I thought the old bagel place was okay, not like the best bagel ever, but it satisfied my cravings. I've actually only ever been to the Cheesecake factory three times in my life, but I like the food there. And yes, I somewhat agree with your "when in Rome" theory, but sometimes I just CRAVE something familiar, like a bagel and selfishly wish it were available, you know? As for the breakfast place, I think it's hit or miss. I can make better American breakfasts here in my apt.
Oh, I guess the two main exceptions to the food snobbery thing would be maple syrup and cheese, but that's just because I'm from Vermont.
Oh and Annje, glad to hear your hubby likes bagels. We've already got one convert!
I'm sure Chileans would love plain bagels, but its something new and most of them don't like to try new things and they don't like change.
I just had cream cheese mixed with soy sauce for the first time last week, I kind of thought it was just a weird thing my Chilean friend likes to eat. She didn't put sesame seeds in it though, but she said sometimes she puts green onions in it...
I really could go for a toasty raisin bagel with melted butter on it!!! MMMmmmm!!!
This was spot on! My friend from Chile was in town a few weeks ago and we had this conversation almost every day while eating bagels. I told her we had to come up with some kind of business plan ASAP.
I agree with KM on the cheesecake factory-I went once and never felt compelled to go again-there was something vaguely annoying to me about trying to be everything to everyone-all the different kinds of food.
As for the "when in Rome..." hmm, I don't know, I have mixed feelings. I don't like when travelers will only eat foods they are familiar with and don't try anything local, but I also know the feeling of living abroad and just wanting to get your hands on something you love. Plus, if you totally adhere to the when in rome thing, where does that leave you in the US? I am something of a foodie, but I am not a food purist-Can you only eat pizza in Napoli with certain ingredients or whathaveyou?
So bagels in a STGO unimarc? why not?... though truth be told, I am more interested in tortillas of the mexican variety-we live on those.
and yes, the bagel place was over-priced-which is probably why it failed, ultimately.
Is the breakfast place the one I am thinking of? (haha, like you'd know) I am with you both there too, as Abby says, if I can make it better (or close) at home, why would I pay too much for it somewhere else? I guess that is why I don't go out for breakfast much.
my word verif is "ovenes" like we should be baking.
and man, I am verbose!
I would LOVE a bagel place here because I agree with KM about the current selection being sucky.
And it may take a while, but I agree that Chileans SHOULD love bagels. My favorite Chilean was extremely hesitant to try one and now he just loveeeeees them so at least we're progressing with baby steps
The weird thing is that Chile (well, Santiago) DID have bagel places! I was so excited when Au Bon Pan opened somewhere back in the mid-90s and I could get real bagels! Before that I used to buy big batches and freeze them, wrap them in foil, etc, and import them to Chile for my bagel-addicted friends here. Then Au Bon Pain opened not far from my house and my problems were solved... but you know what? They WERE expensive and apparently didn't catch on enough because there's not a one left in Chile that I know of!
I used to like the NY Bagelry in Los Condes, but again, expensive, considering you could buy a whole kilos of marraquetas for less than one everything bagel w/cream cheese.
I've yet to try the Unimarc bagels and am looking forward to it, but really not counting on it starting a new trend in Chiel!
Ugh...I hate bagel sandwiches! They are so big and I hurt myself trying to eat them. But I love bagels.
I was a bagel baker for years and have too much to say to even start...
but i think the CC with soy and sesame thing sounds reasonable in that it sounds like one of my favorite sushi types but without the salmon...
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