Cinco de Deliciousness

I used to go to Mexico. Nearly every year. For a decade. Just me and my dad. 

We would lounge in the sun during the day. I would read and listen to music and swim and nap. We would order our “lunch” of tortilla chips and fresh pico de gallo to enjoy poolside. We would chat politics, history, China, and watch CNN at night. Breakfast was either chilaquiles at the breakfast buffet or, more often, coffee, fruit and grocery store tres leches cake eaten on a balcony overlooking the Pacific. For dinner, we explored the restaurants and flavors of Jalisco, delighted at nearly every turn. 

I haven’t been back since 2008. My husband has never been. And now I live in London and Mexican food there is, for the most part, subpar. I mean every time I see a branch of “Wahaca” I cringe: how difficult would it have been to just use “Oaxaca?” And then those billboards a few years back, advising Brits on how to pronounce “chipotle”… 🤦‍♀️ 

It seems things are changing for the better, though. There’s @sonora.ldn and there’s @coolchileco , of course. But I’m still in Michigan and I’ve got easy access to tomatillos and hominy and I’m with my dad and there’s no sun and it’s been, like, 5 degrees Fahrenheit outside and so I made @kenjilopezalt / @seriouseats green pozole and it was INSANE.