by Stacey Rue

Created on: November 27, 2008   Last Updated: May 14, 2012

Authentic Mexican or Americanized?

Ah, chewing the deliciously moist and tender mole (moh-lay) chicken then eating a spoonful of Mexican rice or washing down some beef fajitas with Dos Equis Special Lager. You are enjoying Mexican food but is it authentic? If you have gotten past the chocolate in the mole chicken, then perhaps you can already tell. But right now if you thinking, "chocolate and chicken", well then you need to weed out those Americanized Mexican restaurants and find yourself some good old authentic Mexican cooking.

Now, I have experienced the pleasure of eating in Mexican restaurants across the United States, though that also includes the ones that the waitress asked me what kind of tor-till-las do I prefer. No, fear I have also enjoyed Mexican food cooked by real live Mexicans who have never heard of fried ice cream. I have had street vendor tacos in Tijuana, a lovely fried eggs with tortillas breakfast in Rosarita and plenty of good stuff in Cancun. And perhaps most importantly I have eaten many meals from the kitchens of my Mexican in-laws.

For the most part authentic Mexican restaurants seem to have typical Mexican decorations. Oh, you might see some Dos Equis and Corona beer signs. Perhaps, a sombrero will be hanging on the wall. Papers with cut out decorations may be strung across the ceiling. Either way you are probably seeing a lot of green and red. And I am not talking about the salsa just yet. They'll sit you down (or you find your own way) and bring you a basket of tortilla chips.

Now, here's the first thing to look for. The tortilla chips. Authentic places often serve them fresh and I mean hot and fresh from the oven. If your chips are warm that is a clue the place may be authentic. If they put two salsas in front of you and you have to ask them which one is hot, then you probably have an authentic place on your hands. If one salsa is green and one salsa is red, you really are getting a treat.

Next, you will get your menu. If the menu has more stuff on it then you recognize or have heard of it before then the place is probably legit. Snack on those chips, but do not eat too many because if one of those salsas is way too hot you probably will be eating some good food soon. Now look for caldos, that's soup. If there is chicken noodle soup you may want to leave before you annoy your taste buds. Don't be scared off if you see French fries on the menu, occasionally the good places have them for the picky kids. Look for Horchata or Jamaica

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