Food from Home

“Is there a McDonalds nearby? That question was posed by a man from India who had just arrived in Los Angeles.  He was there for to make a presentation at the annual IFFTI (iffti.com) conference.  He explained the reason for his question:  “We just traveled for 24 hours and want food from home.  McDonalds or Subway would be good.”  I just shook my head remembering my delight at finding McDonalds at the Delhi airport.  Food from home! I thought.  How similar we travelers are, wishing to offset the challenge of the voyage with a taste of home and finding ourselves thinking of the same place as our 'food from home'.  Who would have guessed?

While the menus in Dehli and Los Angeles don’t entirely match (LA lacks chicken maharaha-mac and Delhi doesn’t offer a quarter pounder with cheese)  there’s still so much that’s familiar.  McNuggets and fries, Colors and packaging.  In the midst of  a new environment, a touch of the familiar to put us at ease.  Can you imagine  how happy McDonalds or Subway would be to know that a customer from across the world  associates their food with home.


And where did our visitor eat?  Not at McDonalds or Subway.  There wasn't one nearby in downtown Los Angeles.  However, a good India restaurant was just across the street.  Food from home.