I’m always on the lookout for something new here. It’s exciting to see familiar businesses open up. In the U.S., a lot of restaurants seem to stick with certain regions of the country. For example, you’ll see my favorite donut spot, Tim Horton’s, in the Ohio area, but not down in South Florida. Duffy’s, one of my favorite places to go for beer and hot wings, is a really cool bar & grill in South Florida, but I’ve never seen them anyplace else. Red Robin, which has my all-time favorite burger (The A-1 Pepperjack burger) was in Ohio, Florida, and even in Anchorage, Alaska, but they’re not everywhere. Jack in the Box has limited locations, mostly in California and Texas.
Panama seems to be a melting pot, where businesses from any region can join together. Some of the restaurants you may be familiar with that you’ll find here are Tony Roma’s, Bennigan’s, Hard Rock Cafe, TGI Friday’s, Hooters, Benihana, and of course fast food hotspots like Wendy’s, Burger King, KFC, McDonalds, Taco Bell, Dominos, Pizza Hut, Subway, Quiznos, Dunkin Donuts, and Cinnabon. I’m sure I’m missing a few.
Papa John’s pizza and Carl’s Jr. have recently joined the ranks. You can find Papa John's in Costa del Este, Punta Paitilla, and now in Brisas del Golf. If you’ve got a hankering for delicious chili cheese fries, you’ll find Carl’s Jr. on the third floor of Metro Mall, in between McDonalds and the movie theater. I read online that there’s a Carl’s Jr. in the Tocumen airport as well, but it’s been awhile since I’ve traveled outside of Panama, so I'm not sure about that. Johnny Rocket’s is a recent addition to the Albrook Mall food court.
I took a walk through the new wing at Multiplaza Mall last week and I couldn’t believe my eyes. A Chuck E. Cheese is coming to Panama. I’ve been saying for a long time that there’s not enough for kids to do in Panama and how great it would be if a Chuck E. Cheese would open up here. Well the dream has come true. Now, let’s just hope that the prices stay the same as they were back in the U.S., or even lower. And let’s hope that the owners can keep the place clean and in working order. Many of the kid-friendly pizza chain’s locations back home were really rundown. At a couple of their locations I spent more time getting my coins returned (due to broken games stealing change) than I did actually playing with my kids.
Ruby Tuesday will be directly above Banana Republic in the new wing at Multiplaza Mall
Also coming to Multiplaza is a Ruby Tuesday, which I remember frequenting at the Palm Beach Gardens Mall in Florida. They had great bottomless fries. Bottomless fries could be a crowd pleaser here. Businesses change a lot when they open up overseas though, so the name might not mean that it’ll be the same.
For example, I worked for Tiffany & Company years ago. It’s a great company. I walked into the branch in Multiplaza Mall, to get my watch fixed (a Tiffany Mark T-57), and they couldn’t fix it. I don’t think the salesman had ever even seen the watch before. So not everything is the same here. Some things are better in Panama. I think Domino’s Pizza here is much better than back in the states. Taco Bell tastes a little different, but I’ve gotten used to it.
I thought this was a Buffalo Wild Wings (the logo is almost exactly alike) but I think it's a different chain. Plus, its location in the mall looks way too small to be a Buffalo Wild Wings. :(
Other stores in town, the non-restaurant type, are Zara, XOXO, Tiffany & Company, Kenneth Cole, Victoria’s Secrety, and many more. Claire’s is opening up in Metro Mall (which my kids are thrilled about). Their selection of affordable and cute earrings and jewelry always drives my girls crazy. A/X Armani Exchange is coming to Multiplaza Mall, as is Banana Republic.
A few other places I’d love to see in Panama:
Ikea - As much as I hate having to put their furniture together, I can spend hours going up and down the aisles of an Ikea. Am I that much of a nerd that I have such a great time seeing all the neat, random stuff I could spend hours putting together with an allen wrench? And being able to drop my kids off at the play area is an added bonus. Come on Ikea. Come to Panama.
Boston Market - Panamanians love chicken. It’s not a stereotype, it’s a fact. KFCs are everywhere and even the fast food joints like McDonalds, Burger King, and Wendy’s sell fried chicken combos. Grilled and roasted chicken is usually handled by local places though. I really miss good ol’ American comfort food, so being able to get my hands on a moist rotisserie chicken, a few slices of meatloaf, or a chicken pot pie would be awesome. And corn bread with macaroni & cheese. If not a Boston Market, even an Old Country Buffet would be great.
Starbucks - There have been rumors of Starbucks coming to Panama. There’s a special place for Starbucks in my heart as I spent countless hours typing out screenplays at the Starbucks off Michigan Avenue in Chicago. Something about the relaxed atmosphere, the chill laid back music, combined with an apple fritter and iced coffee not only added on pounds (damn apple fritters), but helped me write...a lot. This blog would probably have a thousand posts by now if I had a Starbucks to hang out in.
Arby’s - Would an Arby’s do well in Panama? I’m not sure. I think Panamanians are more open to trying new things now. I heard Taco Bell failed years ago, but they’ve since opened several branches and seem to be doing well. Having a fast food option other than burgers, pizza, and fried chicken would be great. I could go for a roast beef with melted cheddar all over it right about now. And the curly fries...mmmm.
Cold Stone Creamery - Panama has a few of its own ice cream chains. Plus Dairy Queen and Baskin Robbins are in town. They’re all old news though. I think something cool like a Cold Stone with its variety of unique flavors would be a hit here. And the kids always get a kick out of hearing the staff sing "Hi ho, hi ho, we thank you for your dough" every time you tip them.
Build-A-Bear - Build-A-Bear isn’t cheap. So I don’t know how many locals would want to spend that kind of money on a bear, but it’s something new that you don’t see here. And kids love building their own little animals (at least mine do...the little Frankensteins that they are...love you kids!!!). If placed somewhere in Costa del Este or in Multiplaza Mall, where the higher end stores are located, I think Build-A-Bear would be a nice addition here. Plus, aside from the larger department stores, there aren’t any real toy stores here, except for Felix Juguetes in Los Pueblos.
A Roller Skating Rink - I heard there was a roller skating rink here in Albrook Mall at some point in time. I’d love to take the kids to a roller skating rink. Or an ice skating rink might be even better. Not sure how well the rinks would do here, but it would be cool to have one.
A Waterpark - For cryin’ out loud, this is the tropics, why don’t we have a water park? And I’m sorry, but Avalon doesn’t count! I’ve been to Avalon (see my post about taking my kids) and it is technically a water park, but it almost seems as if it has been abandoned. There is water...and it is a park. I guess it’s owned by Avalon Resorts so I don’t know how likely they’d be to sell, but geez, if somebody would just take over the place, slap some paint on it, fix the slides, clean it up, add a few fun twists, it would be so much appreciated...by me at least.
Like the song goes, “These are a few of my favorite things.” At least we’ve got Chuck E. Cheese and Ruby Tuesday coming in the meantime.
I’d love to hear from anyone else living in Panama. What would you like to see arrive in Panama? Answer in the comments section below and who knows, maybe someone reading is looking for a business opportunity, and you might be the person to clue them in.
Thanks for reading,
Chris
two winters ago there was a small ice skating rink in multiplaza down the escalator from the mac store. this year it was the big christmas tree instead :-(
ReplyDeleteHey Emma,
ReplyDeleteYeah, I forgot all about that. That's right. They do put up an ice skating rink sometimes during the Christmas season. I remember they had something like that in Anchorage, Alaska too, on the bottom floor of the mall, but it was all year round. I always felt weird knowing that people in the mall were watching me skate. I wonder if a regular ice skating rink would do well here?
There is a lot of US fast food and other businesses here in David as well. I'm not sure I like it though. I don't want this place to feel more and more like the US, and I'm not sure we're doing the locals any favors by providing less healthy food. Funny, I also wrote a post on this same subject just a week ago http://thepanamaadventure.wordpress.com/2013/01/14/america-is-taking-over-panama/
ReplyDeleteHey Kris,
ReplyDeleteThanks for commenting. I'm not sure why web addresses aren't coming out as links in my comments section. I was hoping yours would come out as a link, but at least the address will be there.
I checked out your blog. Great post. And I think you're right. I have mixed feelings about this. I don't want this place to become another US, but like I said in my post, I do get excited to see some things arrive...like the Chuck E. Cheese. But the Ikea, Walmart, Target, would probably all be bad ideas. They'd create tons of jobs, but rip apart the small businesses in this country.
As far as fast food goes, I don't know if we could make it much worse for Panamanians. Panamanians love their fried food. In fact, even though I love an Egg McMuffin every now and then, I can't hang with the fried breakfast foods in this country. I was just out yesterday morning with an electrician I have doing some work around the house. I took him for breakfast. I couldn't figure out where to go to get normal breakfast at 8am on a Sunday morning. He wanted Pio Pio (which is like a local KFC here). I wanted something other than fried empanadas, tortillas, and all the other oil drenched breakfast foods around. Niko's Cafe offers a little more variety, but again, most of it is slathered in grease.
In the end, I settled for what this guy wanted, and I wound up eating a fried chicken breast and two fried empanadas for breakfast. I felt horrible after.
So maybe I should add to my list...an IHOP or something like that. I'd love to get a nice stack of pancakes, or waffles, or biscuits and gravy. I never know what to eat for breakfast here. At home I usually just eat hard boiled eggs and turkey bacon from PriceSmart.
Kris, thanks again for checking out my blog. And for commenting. You too, Emma. I think it's great having a network of bloggers here. We all have unique perspectives and it's nice to see everyone's point of view.
Chris
I guess I don't eat out enough here either, especially for breakfast. I've had lunch at the neighborhood fondas but it's rice, beans or lentils, chicken or beef, maybe a little salad or slice of plantain pretty much all the time.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy your blog and I'm always interested in other Americans here and how it's working out for them. We're a couple old retired folks in David, which is very different from a young guy with a family in the big city so it's even more interesting to see things through your eyes.
Wow Chris,
ReplyDeleteI was talking to Kris on her blog about moving to Panama, but all the fried food would get to me too. I like going out to breakfast once in awhile, although we don't go out much. Are you telling me there is no place that has US breakfast food?
Sunni
Hi Sunni,
ReplyDeleteIt's funny because I just sat down to a plate of eggs, hojaldres (which is like fry bread or a flattened out donut minus the hole in the center), and fried chorizos. I've been good all week so I allowed myself to join the rest of the family for fried breakfast.
So...about US breakfast food here. You can find the stuff you want. Most of it anyway. It's just not as easily accessible as you might be used to. There's a popular, kind of buffet style, restaurant here called Niko's Cafe. When I say buffet it's because you slide down the counter and tell the server which items you want. You'll be charged for each individual item. You can usually find pancakes and eggs and bacon and sausage...stuff like that at Niko's, along with all of the fried Panamanian breakfast foods.
In a hip and trendy neighborhood of Panama City, El Cangrejo, you'll also find a New York Bagels, which I've never personally visited (I need to since I always complain about the lack of bagels here). It's a popular place and it's supposed to be excellent. Again, though, it's in one neighborhood in the city.
Many of the hotels offer American-style breakfast, but it's not cheap. I went to the Marriott with a friend one morning (he treated me for my birthday) and I think one plate came out to about $25. That's expensive for breakfast anywhere, especially in Panama. I've heard that the Riu hotel offers American-style breakfast too, but the Riu is one of the nicest hotels in the city so I can't imagine it's any cheaper than the Marriott.
What I meant by what I posted on Kris' site is that there's no good real pancake spot here. If there is, I've never heard of it. Places like IHOP or Waffle House or even Denny's don't really exist here. Panamanians sort of stick to their foods for breakfast and occasionally serve pancakes on the side. I'd love to get a plate of biscuits and gravy somewhere.
If you like to cook, you can find any of the items you'd need to create a great American-style breakfast at the Riba Smith supermarket, which is the most Americanized supermarket in Panama. You'll find bagels (frozen and not cheap), cans of biscuits (much more expensive than what you're used to), and other things, but they're all imported so they cost more. But those things are available. Some of the more local supermarkets like Super 99 and El Rey are starting to pick up more of the imported items, but mostly only in the higher-end neighborhoods like Costa del Este and Punta Pacifica.
I wouldn't let the food situation deter you from moving here. Plus, with the rapid rate at which this country is growing, and with the amount of foreigners moving here, someone will eventually open up a good ol' fashioned American comfort food restaurant. I'm sure of it. Hell, I'd do it myself if it weren't for the hassle of running a restaurant.
Sunni, thanks so much for checking out my blog and for commenting. I really do appreciate it.
Chris