I’ve recently returned from Mérida, Mexico – the capital city of the Yucatán region – where I threw myself into a self-proposed project to taste as much of the street food of Mérida as possible. There’s a lot to love when it comes to the street food of Mérida too. It’s a place where taco-like panuchos and salbutes are sold on street corners, large steamers of tamales wrapped in banana leaves are peddled from roving tricycle carts and intoxicating smells waft from the simmering pots of the tiny fondas that ring almost every public square in the city. The street food scene is so vibrant that you’ll never be able to try it all.
Though you’ll see from the photos that I gave it a good go!
If you haven’t been to Mexico or immersed yourself in its cuisine it’s easy to assume that tacos and burritos are the best the country has to offer. While these two favorites certainly are ubiquitous, Mexico, much like Italy, is a country of great culinary diversity and clear regional differences. To know and love the real food of Mexico is to delve into the specialties specific to each region.
This is especially true of Mérida. The culinary delights of Yucatecan food are quite distinct from traditional Mexican cuisine. The food is irresistible, influenced by Mayan, Caribbean, and Spanish cuisines. Key ingredients range from locally grown products such as pumpkin seed, oregano, red onion, sour orange, sweet chili, tomato, achiote, the xcatic chile, and habanero pepper to turkey meat. You might not consider turkey to be a Mexican ingredient but it’s a traditional component in many of the regional specialties of the area.
Before I get into all the street food let me tell you a little about the city. Mérida, Mexico is an architectural jewel of brightly painted mansions lining a grid of cobblestone streets and interconnected public squares. Considered the capital city of the Yucatán it has one of the country’s largest historic centers outside Mexico City. It’s an elegant place where Mayan ruins and colonial architecture come together gracefully – reinvented by a newly emerging expatriate community who are converting the colonial mansions and haciendas into sophisticated hotels, bistros, and beautiful private homes.
While it’s true that Mérida is becoming a world-class restaurant town and boasts an exquisite gastronomic heritage, it’s also a place where simple street food may be the most exciting culinary contribution to the city’s culture. The Plaza Mayor is a vibrant meeting place in the center of town where locals escape the mid-day heat sipping champola on leaf shrouded benches or chat with friends late into the night over scoops of icy sorbet. On weekends the choices become even more exciting as food vendors invade the square from all corners.
Street food in Mérida dates back to pre-Hispanic times – the Spaniards were probably amazed to find an array of ready-to-eat food for sale on the streets when they arrived. Not much has changed since then: the streets still teem with carts and makeshift fondas slinging fast, cheap, delicious eats. Who needs Michelin stars when you have street eats this good? GREG
Hey Greg, nice list! Do you remember any of the names or locations of the spots where you got all of these delicious looking eats? I’m going next month and am salivating already!
William, I don’t know if they have names or not. Some of them were nothing more than roving vendors selling from a tricycle with a steam oven in the front. Although most of them were temporary “fondas” that rim the perimeter of the main square by the cathedral and in Parque Lucia on the weekends. Still, there are lots of permanent everyday vendors at Parque Hidalgo and Parque Santiago (we preferred Santiago) Everything we ate from just about every vendor was very good. We had no “issues” with stomach ailments, we merely chose the food stands that seem to be run well and looked clean. A lot of tourists looked at us like we were crazy to be eating street food, but that just made it taste all the better! GREG
Your photos are making me hungry. It has been a long time since I visited Mexico. I need to go back.
Mérida wasn’t on my radar scope at all, but now that I’ve read this, I want to go! And eat. And eat. And eat. 🙂 Great post — you had some good eats. Thanks.
What an incredible food journey! You really did sample it all (or from the looks, most of it!). The food is not as simple as I would have expected street food to be, and it looks delicious (also another surprise). It really puts our street food to shame. Last year (or the year before) someone tried to do ‘healthier’ street food here in Toronto but the city nixed it, too difficult to police, they said. Or they are too lazy. So we have burgers (bad ones, at that), hot dogs, some tacos, and soft serve ice cream. They also have poutine trucks. What a huge difference to the street food you showed us in this post.
Just continued proof that good food — and I mean seriously good food — doesn’t have to be fancy or complicated. Thanks for “taking one for the team” and trying all these foods so that you could share them with us.
Wow! You’re not kidding about the great food. It all looks and sounds delicious. I especially love the plantains chips and fruit cups. Hello, they’re probably not the fanciest things among what you showed, but the universe must be telling me I need more fruit.