Food - Drink
How American Food Is Perceived Abroad, According To David Lebovitz
By KATIE HORST
Father of the modern food blog, writer of many cookbooks, and former pastry chef at Chez Panisse are some of the many ways to describe David Lebovitz. The chef and food enthusiast has been in the culinary world for quite some time, and as an American chef located in Paris, he has a pretty good idea of what the outside world thinks of American cuisine.
In an interview with Eater, Lebovitz says, “Most people in the world, their only exposure to American food is through fast food restaurants. They don’t see farm-to-table, they don’t know Blue Hill, they don’t see Chez Panisse. So they just see hamburgers, and that’s what American cooking is to them.”
However, Lebovitz notes that even American fast food chains abroad aren’t exactly serving American food, like the McDonald’s burger with camembert cheese in France, or the McSpicy Paneer available at McDonald’s in India. While chains may keep staples like McDonald’s Big Mac, they adapt their menus to incorporate local ingredients and tastes.