Dear Culinary Backstreets,
What and where is safe to eat in Mexico City? We’ve heard horror stories from other travelers about “Montezuma’s Revenge” and would like to avoid getting sick while visiting the city.
Luckily for wary travelers, there are some very easy rules of thumb to follow in Mexico City in order to stay healthy and happy, with a full belly.
1) If a place looks dirty, don’t eat there
This is fairly common sense and should be followed not just in Mexico City but everywhere. It’s usually fairly obvious whether a sit-down restaurant is regularly cleaned or not; if the floors are filthy and there are bits of food on the tables, you can probably assume the kitchen is in the same condition (or worse). After all, lax cleaning habits don’t end at the kitchen door. At street food stands, it can be more difficult to determine hygiene standards. It’s best to observe where the food is being stored, as most stands don’t have real refrigeration. If meat is lying in the hot sun or vegetables are sitting in a bucket of brown water, it’s best not to buy from the vendor. Following this rule will help you avoid places where eating could be hazardous to your health.
2) Choose places that are full of customers
Restaurants succeed or fail based on the amount of business they do, and there’s no surer way to kill that business than to make customers sick. One bad experience is passed around by word of mouth far more often than a good one, so a venue that serves contaminated food will quickly gain a negative reputation. An eatery filled with happy customers enjoying their food is likely not catering to first-timers but to people who have been there before and liked the place enough to return, bringing friends with them. On the other hand, if there’s not a soul to be seen at a venue at comida time (lunchtime) – in Mexico City, lunch is the most important meal of the day – then it’s a good idea to head elsewhere.
3) Trust your taste buds
Even if there are plenty of eaters and a place looks clean and inviting, there are still the rare occasions when something has gone wrong. Perhaps expired food was cooked by mistake or meat was left sitting out too long. The bottom line is: If something doesn’t taste right, stop eating it. Mexico City is arguably the best place in the world – let alone the country – to eat Mexican cuisine, so even when food is subpar, it should still taste good. If chicken tastes undercooked or sour cream seems like it has gone bad, stop eating and ask for la cuenta (the check).
4) Consult the locals
Local residents eat in the city every day and know the good, the bad and the ugly in regards to where and what to eat. They are not likely to recommend a place they did not like or that made them sick, so their advice is generally a good bet. The best part of this approach is that it can lead travelers to excellent food and culinary experiences that they might otherwise might not have had, and thus to a better understanding and appreciation of Mexico City’s food scene.
In short, use common sense, trust your gut (literally) and, when in doubt, don’t be afraid to ask questions. Mexicans, more often than not, want to be helpful and want travelers to come away with a positive impression of their country. Following these rules will go a long way towards ensuring that happens. ¡Buen provecho! – Ben Herrera
For our related advice column on food safety in Shanghai, click here.
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