Subway Franchise Is Dying in Argentina and I’m Not Shedding a Tear

Subway, the fast food franchise that sells sub sandwiches, is dunzo in Cordoba province. In 2018, they cleared out right under our noses and were replaced by HOLA Sr. THOMPSON. It's a semi-imitation of Subway, but with an Argentine twist to their menu. The name is also a reference to an episode of "The Simpsons" where witness protection agents were training Homer to respond to "Hello, Mr. Thompson."

But did Subway leave Argentina for good? That would be a no. There are still tons of Subway restaurants throughout the province of Buenos Aires, which was lucky for me, or so I thought.

In 2019, I paid another visit to the Argentine capital and decided to go to a Subway restaurant for a taste of home. I figured this would be the last time I'd probably get to sample a meatball sub or a B.M.T., which contains salami, ham, and pepperoni. But my final experience with the Subway franchise wasn't all it was cracked up to be.

For starters, their store hours claimed they'd be open at 10 a.m. I got there at 11 and was welcomed by a shutter full of graffiti. I waited patiently until about 12:20 p.m. Then a Subway employee lifted the shutters and opened the door.

He told me the soda machine only dispensed Coke, which was fine. But when I went to pour the drink into my cup, all I got was clear soda water. The guy just laughed at the situation and suggested I wait until the machine warmed up. So I did. The Coke finally came out the right color for me, but came out clear when my hubby tried filling his cup. Despite this, I was really looking forward to eating my sub. 

They didn't have a meatball sub option on their menu either, so I went with the B.M.T. But the sandwich didn't taste right. I've never been disappointed by the Subway subs I've eaten in Florida, New York, or Cordoba, but this was definitely a nightmare to my stomach. It smelled and tasted like all the ingredients in the sandwich had been sitting next to a kerosene canister. 

I tried eating it anyway because I hate throwing food away. But once my stomach started hurting, I tossed the sandwich in the garbage can and walked out. 

Now, given the spiraling Argentine economy and the fact that Subway has had to close several stores to stay in business, I wouldn't be surprised if 2019 is the year Subway vanishes from Argentina. But after this experience, I probably wouldn't shed a tear.

(UPDATE May 2019: The Subway store I referenced on this post has shut down)

Here's Why Taco Box Will Have You Saying Aye-Yi-Yi

It was a lot easier finding a Mexican restaurant in the States than it is in Cordoba, our host province. I've tried a couple of places here and there, but they all failed to impress me. And before you ask, no, there aren't any Chipotle restaurants in Argentina. They don't even have a Taco Bell! How sad is that?

Fortunately, when we went to Buenos Aires, we found a lovely restaurant called Taco Box, which offers outdoor and indoor dining. But given that it was summer, we ate indoors where the A/C would keep us from melting like a snowman in front of heat lamps. In case you didn't know, January = scorching Argentine summer.

When we got there, we walked passed the outdoor dining area and went up a few steps. We found our own seats and noticed a stylish bar on the far end. The place was nice and dim, which as you can tell from some of the pics, made it difficult to take selfies. But there was something very relaxing about the environment, and the staff was good looking and friendly. They even gave us complimentary nachos with salsa. But would they have us saying aye-yi-yi by the end of the night?

So, the first thing we did was look at the drinks they had. I ordered a Pina Colada while Zach ordered a Margarita. 

Then we ordered a dish that contained two burritos, two tacos, and a series of mini-tacos and taquito sticks.

I'll admit, I was expecting the tacos and burritos to contain pieces of meat strips. This is what we've typically encountered when we ordered Mexican food in Argentina. They doesn't usually come with any beans, which is vital for any Mexican dish. But Taco Box exceeded our expectations!

Not only did they use ground beef in each of their dishes, but they also added beans. We didn't even care that this would make us gassy all night when we got back to the hotel. We loved the taste and the flavors, which is a rare but welcomed treat.

Taco Box left us so impressed that we decided to go back the following night for drinks and desserts. Their Pina Coladas were so good that I ordered myself another one and Zach ordered himself a Margarita.

For dessert, Zach got himself this fabulous bowl of ice cream while I ordered a slice of key lime pie. I love all pies, but being a Florida boy, Key Lime pies are one of my favorite. But it's tough finding a decent slice in Cordoba, but not so tough to find in Buenos Aires. The only complaint I have about Taco Box's Key Lime Pie is that they added cherry dressing on top, which is okay for a cheesecake. But I've never had a Key Lime Pie with anything on top, except maybe some lime shavings. Other than that, everything was delicious and affordable. And yes! Taco Box had us saying aye-yi-yi. Just don't say aye-yi-yi outloud in Argentina. Argentines don't use cliche Mexican phrases, at all! 

When we come back to B.A., we will definitely make Taco Box a priority. But if you're in the city or planning on visiting, then here are the meal and drink menus (whose prices are subject to change)

Magic Fades From Buenos Aires's Magic Donuts

It's no secret that we love donuts! But Argentina doesn't have any Dunkin Donuts, and that's just sad. The donuts we've tried at local bakeries in Cordoba are AWFUL! Even the ones sold at Walmart are BLAH!

Then we found Magic Donuts during one of our Buenos Aires trips, and we were ecstatic. But recently, we went to Ayacucho 860 in La CABA, and what greeted us was like a slap in the face.

There was a shutter door with the words Don Us and a series of addresses. Where did Magic Donut go? Once we composed ourselves, we used our phones to find out what happened. Had they shut down? Did they rename their store? We weren't sure. The internet wasn't very forthcoming. So we decided to pay a visit to one of the addresses on the shutter door.

We headed to Florida Street, which is overcrowded and full of pickpocketers. I had one person fondle my behind looking for something to take, but I snapped at him and he walked away. Then, another person tried the same thing as I turned the corner, but I took out a screwdriver I carry for protection and he backed off.

Finally, we found the store called Don Us. It turns out that Magic Donuts had a name change and new address.

We weren't happy with the fact that they no longer had a place for customers to sit and relax like Magic Donut had. They didn't have a lot of variety either, but that was probably because we arrived after 5 p.m. So we ordered a dozen glazed donuts and left.

Were the donuts delicious? Absolutely! But Don Us lacks the friendly, welcoming environment that Magic Donuts had. I'm not sure if the other two locations on the shutter door offered a place for customers to sit, but this location was a total bust, and given its location, I probably wouldn't go twice.

Puerto Madero in Buenos Aires is Lit... Here's Why

I've written tons about my various trips to Buenos Aires over the last six years. My visits have always included the area known as Puerto Madero, where the Puente de la Mujer or Women's Bridge is located. It's a beautiful area to take photos in during the day, but it's even better at night.

I went full-on unicorn in this photo.

The ARA Sarmiento Frigate Ship is lit!

Puente De La Mujer (Women's Bridge)

Things tend to slow down quite a bit once the sun goes down, but not in Puerto Madero. Tourists and locals frequent this area to snap photos, go on dates, or just hang out with friends. 

Taking a stroll through this port is an unforgettable experience you hope will never end.

Best of all, there are various restaurants nearby in case you get hungry. The ones that obviously stick out for us are Johnny B. Good and T.G.I.F. 

You didn't think we'd miss out on a chance to eat at T.G.I.F., did you?

Guess who's ready for Happy Hour?

I'm ready to dig in.

Someone's not happy with their mash

As a writer who loves to travel, Puerto Madero offers three things I love a lot: beauty, water and food! If I lived in B.A., this would be where I would come to if I had writer's block.

The Bronx Pizza Brings Back Memories

It's been six years since I've had anything remotely similar to a huge slice of New York style pizza. Don't get me wrong. Ugi's is amazing! But the slices are still standard size. My husband and I miss those humongous, greasy, heart-attack inducing pizza slices we used to order from John's Pizza in the Bronx. Thankfully, we found a place in Buenos Aires appropriately named The Bronx Pizza, so we decided to check it out.

What can I say about the establishment's interior? It speaks for itself. The wall has pizza inspired messages and New York city skylines. 

The tables are wrapped in printouts of The New York Times newspaper headlines. And the overhead menu is all in English! But would the pizzas be the same as the ones we used to eat back home?

Overhead menu

The pizza slices on displays were certainly a lot bigger than the shrinky dinky sizes they serve in Argentine pizzerias. So that was certainly a good sign. They had a variety of menu options. But I was looking forward to a pepperoni pizza slice because pepperoni is virtually a myth here. The closest thing you can get to it here is Spanish sausage (not as dirty as it sounds), which is too expensive and no one really buys it.

The photo doesn't do the slices justice. I was holding the pepperoni slice while taking a selfie and half of the cheese fell off. My bad. Not theirs.

So we ordered a slice each and the pizzas did not disappoint. The slices were big and greasy. They even stuffed the crust with cheese. Alright so there wasn't as much cheese in the crust as the ones you'd get at Pizza Hut, but it was a pretty nice bonus. But did the pepperoni meet our expectations?

The pepperoni on the pizza was decent enough, but I think it was cut a bit too thick. The pepperoni slices in the States are usually paper thin. These weren't, but who cares? It tasted great, and our taste buds were satisfied.

So we got a little taste of home and friendly service all at the same time. The next time I visit B.A., I will definitely be making a stop (or two) at The Bronx Pizza in Ayacucho 1188.

SIDE NOTE: I know I said I was done with this blog. But when I spoke with my blog (yeah, I do that. It's really weird!), I quoted Jack from Brokeback Mountain and said, "I wish I knew how to quit you." But clearly, I don't know how. So expect more entries in the near future. See you soon!