Food

 

I never thought much about food back home.  For breakfast I made my own ham sandwiches.  For lunch, I’d go to a local, fast food restaurant.  Dinner was waiting for me when I got home from work.

Here, things are different.  It’s not that my eating habits have changed much.  It’s the food, or should I say, the freshness of the food that is different.

At home, when my wife shopped, she’d stock up on food.  Meats were frozen.  Bread was same day from the bakery and frozen or refrigerated.  Luncheon meats were put in a refrigerator for 7-10 days.  Here, you shop 2-3 times a week for anything perishable.  It’s not unusual to pick up your vegetables a few hours before you prepare them.  Me, I’m in the habit of buying my bread 15-20 minutes before I eat it.   That’s for dinner.  In the morning, it’s 5-10 minutes. 

I can recall a few times in my life I ate bread, still warm from the oven.  Here, it’s a daily event–and we dont have to bake it ourselves.  

Meats are NEVER, EVER frozen.  You buy what you’re going to eat a day or two before.  When I buy luncheon meats, like bologna, ham, bacon or sliced chicken, it’s always 100g, just enough for a day or two.

Living in this part of Pocitos clearly makes a big difference in how one eats.  With 3 supermarkets within 3 blocks and hot bread baked daily in one of them it makes no sense to do big, northern shoppings.  If we feel like a roast chicken, there’s a rotisserie 2 blocks from the house.  Fresh made pizza is across the street.   One of the best ice cream shops in Montevideo, La Cigal, is one block away.  There must be a half dozen chivito places within 3 blocks.  Marco’s (the most famous in Montevideo) is much farther–at 5 blocks away. 

Good thing I dont eat a lot