New U.S. franchises open
The Cheesecake Factory opened its first restaurant in Mexico in Galerias Mall last week and Jalisco Governor Aristoteles Sandoval Diaz was there to cut the ribbon. The restaurant offers more than 200 different dishes.
Sandoval also inaugurated P.F. Chang’s, a part of the same umbrella of franchises run by the Alsea group. Alsea operates fast-food restaurants and casual dining outlets primarily in Mexico and Latin America. It has 120 franchises in Jalisco and over 1,200 restaurants in Mexico and South America with more than a billion dollars in sales. Alsea brands include Domino’s Pizza, Starbucks, Burger King, Chili’s, California Pizza Kitchen, Pei Wei Asian Diner, P.F. Chang’s China Bistro, Italianni’s, VIPs and El Porton. Alsea plans to open another 36 to 40 eateries in Jalisco in the next five years.
Military expo
The Plaza de la Liberacion behind the Cathedral has been taken over by the Mexican military. No, it’s not a coup, but an exposition of the country’s naval power commemorating a century since the U.S. military’s occupation of the port of Veracruz.
Not just a show of arms and military vehicles, the expo also has some activities for children and youngsters, including trip lines and face painting. Opportunities for photo ops on armored vehicles is a big draw.
Governor Aristotoles Sandoval has congratulated Secretary of the Navy, Admiral Vidal Francisco Soberon Sanz, on the exhibit, which will allow ordinary citizens to interact with cadets, sailors and officers. He also said the state will continue to work hand in hand with the service to protect citizens.
The exhibition is open to the public from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. through Monday, July 28.
Subway culture
The Orquesta Juvenil de Jazz gave a standing room only concert at the performance space in the San Juan de Dios Tren Ligero (subway) station last Saturday (see photo righit). Other upcoming train station events include classes in belly dance (July 22 and 29, 7 p.m.), salsa dance (July 24 and 31, beginners 7 p.m., intermediates, 8 p.m.) and hip hop (July 21 and 28, 7 p.m.) open to the public at Washington station. San Juan de Dios station puts on theater and dance presentations, July 24 and 31, 5 p.m. And a reggae, rock and Latino funk concert by Los Galacticos, July 19, 5 p.m. Other pop concerts play at the same hour on July 20, 23, 26, 27 and 30. Juarez Station is holding an exhibition of 24 winning Tonala Tastoan dance masks up through the end of the month. Plaza Universidad station holds dance presentations July 19 and 25, 7 p.m. Entrance fees for all events are the cost of a subway token.