We began amid the stacked baskets of about-to-be-fries (processed potato, cooked in palm oil, heated to 375 degrees), and traced the evolution of the Big Mac meal.Rashid was an entertaining host. When he found out I was British, he quickly pointed out: "There's no mad cow disease here all our beef comes from New Zealand." Using a high-temperature grill, each patty is cooked from frozen in precisely 39 seconds.Fast food is a multinational business in terms of supply as well as demand: McDonald's apple pies are imported from China. I didn't ask about the provenance of the mayonnaise, but the dispenser looked alarmingly like something a vet might use for artificial insemination.The whole operation was clean, cheerful and clearly appreciated by the local people queuing up for a fast-food feast. For the price of a Big Mac (just 70p in Kota Bharu, compared with £1.99 in central London), you get an insight into a pervasive world.I spent longer in that branch of the burger empire than I have in total since the UK's first McDonald's opened in Woolwich High Street, south-east London, in 1974 And I left in a quandary.
Visitors learn that any burger which has been standing, unsold for 10 minutes is thrown away.Not given away, nor eaten by the staff, but chucked out. In a hungry world, should a traveller who finds this practice distasteful buy the burger to save it from the bin, or steer clear of the fast-food chain entirely to avoid funding further waste?Do you know the way to San Jos?I ask because Britain's biggest airline seems unsure. One of my tasks in the McWeb caf?as to check out some deals on the British Airways website. My eye was caught by a new feature, "Miniguides", which promises the inside information from Fodor's on cities served by BA. With a few clicks, you can tailor-make your own guide.It was a surprise to see San Jos?Costa Rica included in the list, because the airline abandoned its flights from Gatwick to Central America a year ago (Canc?n Mexico is soon to disappear from the route map, too). But there it is, at www.britishairways /holiday/miniguides: "Your guide to San Jos?Costa Rica".The capital is clearly in the ascendant.
"In the last few years the downtown area has become a major destination for entertainment, arts, nightlife and sports," glows the guide. Can this really be the same shambles of a city where, the Christmas Day before last, I was mugged at dawn?I moved on to the eating out section, and liked the look of Aqu?where the speciality is "grilled ahi and a wasabi vinaigrette". Across at Sent Sovi you can sample "spice-glazed roast quail stuffed with gingerbread".Goodness, things have changed; a year ago, the standard fare was casado (rice, beans and stew, possibly enlivened by a bit of salad; an egg on top makes it a casado especial). At the point where the guide began to praise a "Napoleon of lobster salad with toasted cumin crackers", I started to smell a ratatouille (or perhaps it was the aroma of some deep-fried Chicken McNuggets rising from the kitchen on the floor below).Further inspection of the guide revealed that "buses run efficiently, although not as frequently as the visitor might like".
