Ibu Trish: Fast Food

Dear Ibu Trish: Can I get Dunkin Donuts in Jakarta? Signed, Boston Creme Junkie

Why, yes! You can! Dunkin's hasn't achieved quite the market penetration here that it has in, say, Somerville, Mass. But there are quite a few of them. Plus, they sell ... brace yourself, Jason Sylvis ... durian jelly donuts! Also lychee-orange, which is rather tasty. Try ordering those in Davis Square!

There's also McDonald's, Long John Silver's, Pizza Hut, and KFC. McD's sells the usual burgers, but their real stock in trade seems to be a combo meal featuring fried chicken, scrambled eggs, plain white rice, and soup. This is weird, not just because it's weird, but because I've never seen that combination of foods anywhere else. I guess it works for them. The McD's near our old hotel had Coke but no Diet Coke, which is clearly a travesty.

McD's is not that expensive here - the fried chicken meal is about 2 dollars, or what you'd pay for a sit-down meal at a fairly cheap restaurant. Street food, of course, is cheaper. If you don't want to spring for McDonald's, you can get a burger from some guys who walk the streets selling them from carts.

McDonald's in Singapore is hyping these new burger-y things that they sell on wedges of compressed rice, instead of buns. They looked ... weird.