Ask Lemmy

I live in Texas and have traveled some in Europe and Mexico. Maybe the Europeans like it, but let’s generously say it’s, well, not designed for the southwestern American palate, and definitely not for the Mexican palate. Restauranteurs do what they can do, though, and the ones that survive cook what will sell, so I shouldn’t judge too harshly, especially as an American who loves Chicken Tikka Masala and Sweet & Sour Chicken. Enjoy it for what it is, but don’t assume you understand the various varieties of Mexican cuisine from either side of the border.

Now that I’ve been nice, I’ll be personal: it ranges from god awful to utterly inauthentic but edible. The worst I ever had was at the late and unlamented “Texas Embassy” in London. Apart from a passable margarita, it was utter garbage. The “cheddar” looked like a dayglo shotgun site, the salsa was ketchup with varying amounts of weak-ass vinegar-pepper sauce stirred in, the white cheese was neither queso fresco nor Jack, but possibly mozzarella. All tortillas were clearly bagged and stale. Spice profile was all over the place, but never hot. Europeans think paprika belongs in Mexican food. It does not.

Perhaps not ironically, the better tacos come from your run of the mill “every fast food” takeaway. Some places trying to get “upmarket” from greasy American fare —that they can’t do right anyway— will have fresher tortilla-like flat breads and will come up with flavor profiles that sort of evoke the nicer “authentic Mex” places I’ve been to in Texas and Mexico (including CDMX and Monterey, in addition to your standard beach resorts), but it’s still off, saved by having actually been done well, though still within the inauthentic context.