Long weekend in Mexico City

Anybody out there got some tips for Mexico City? We'll probably be staying in the Zona Rosa area. I'm also knocked up and leery of street food -- am leaning slightly upscale for this particular vacation. Other than basic cleanliness, no dietary restrictions whatsoever.

I have not been to Mexico City but I do not worry about street food that has been deep fried in front of my very eyes and handed to me at about 12,000 degrees Kelvin. Actually, contrary to the usual expectation about Mexico, I thought my inner workings were unusually becalmed the week I spent in Playa del Carmen, possibly because I was eating the least processed food of my life.

That said, I am not now, nor have I ever been, pregnant, so my concerns are not the same as yours.

Mike G wrote:nor have I ever been pregnant

You mean, not that you KNOW of.

Any way, I was in Mexico and D.F. a lot during the 70s, and I never got sick. The wife, however, did get sick, we think from eating a watermelon paleta from a street vendor. I think if the food is cooked, you're probably going to be just fine. To play it safe, you probably don't want to eat anything made of water (like a paleta) or rinsed in water (like lettuce). Folk wisdom also suggests against eating anything that grows "on the ground" (like watermelon).

For pregnant people traveling south of the border, it might be wise to consult a doctor and, perhaps, get what in Mexico they call a "prophylactico" (protective antibiotic, as it's evidently too late for the latex variety).

Hammond

Hi,

My Grandfather owned a home in Puebla and condo in Acapulco. Whenever I visited him in Acapulco, we would dine 'out,' which was by street vendor. My other relatives went to restaurants, I got the lucky VIP treatment. Whatever was hot off the grease is what we ate or anything else freshly cooked. My only residual effects were bean-related and since every meal included beans, never went away as long as I was there.

Anyway, My Grandfather would chuckle how careful Americans visiting were about the water. Always insisting on bottled drinks, yet they always wanted ice. Yes, often the ice was made from the local water they were carefully trying to avoid.

BTW - Visitors to the United States also get intestinal discomfort when visiting us. I guess a change in environments is something which takes some acclimatizing to no matter where you venture.

Regards,

David Hammond wrote:The wife, however, did get sick, we think from eating a watermelon paleta from a street vendor. I think if the food is cooked, you're probably going to be just fine. To play it safe, you probably don't want to eat anything made of water (like a paleta) or rinsed in water (like lettuce). Folk wisdom also suggests against eating anything that grows "on the ground" (like watermelon).

My advice would be similar, but try to balance your desire to try everything in sight with the caution that their water contains organisms that we're not used to drinking. This includes fruits and vegetables that contain mostly water, like lettuce, tomatoes, and watermelon. I guess I did eat fresh tomatoes though. I had lots of fresh avocado. My only occasion of getting sick was with a bad batch of ceviche.

I went to lots of great places in Colonia Polanco, which is an upscale mostly business area on the North side of Chapultapec park, including an amazing al pastor place. Unfortunately I can't tell you their names since I was being taken there.

You probably won't miss the huge market area, or Coyoacan, or the Anthropology Museum. A nice day trip is to Tepoztlan, towards Cuernavaca, where I also found a nice restaurant that I can't tell you about.

Cathy2 wrote:BTW - Visitors to the United States also get intestinal discomfort when visiting us. I guess a change in environments is something which takes some acclimatizing to no matter where you venture.

This can be true on a smaller scale as well -- for the first six months I lived here (after moving from Boston), I had to drink bottled water, and I still need filtered, nearly seven years later. (But this may be my allergy, as I've heard the area of the lake near the city's intake pipes is rife with mollusks and other watery critters.)

Rich4 wrote:

David Hammond wrote:The wife, however, did get sick, we think from eating a watermelon paleta from a street vendor. I think if the food is cooked, you're probably going to be just fine. To play it safe, you probably don't want to eat anything made of water (like a paleta) or rinsed in water (like lettuce). Folk wisdom also suggests against eating anything that grows "on the ground" (like watermelon).

My advice would be similar, but try to balance your desire to try everything in sight with the caution that their water contains organisms that we're not used to drinking. This includes fruits and vegetables that contain mostly water, like lettuce, tomatoes, and watermelon. I guess I did eat fresh tomatoes though. I had lots of fresh avocado. My only occasion of getting sick was with a bad batch of ceviche.

I went to lots of great places in Colonia Polanco, which is an upscale mostly business area on the North side of Chapultapec park, including an amazing al pastor place. Unfortunately I can't tell you their names since I was being taken there.

You probably won't miss the huge market area, or Coyoacan, or the Anthropology Museum. A nice day trip is to Tepoztlan, towards Cuernavaca, where I also found a nice restaurant that I can't tell you about.

The advice I got long ago, which may be purely anecdotal, was to only eat fruits and veggies that have a peel (and have been peeled). I have always stuck to that bit of advice when visiting Mexico and have never had any ill effects. Whether this bit of advice has any basis in fact or not, I can not say.

stevez wrote:The advice I got long ago, which may be purely anecdotal, was to only eat fruits and veggies that have a peel (and have been peeled). I have always stuck to that bit of advice when visiting Mexico and have never had any ill effects. Whether this bit of advice has any basis in fact or not, I can not say.

Stevez,

Yes, I've heard that one, and I think it probably applies to bananas, mangoes, oranges, and the like.

Hammond

SteveZ wrote:The advice I got long ago, which may be purely anecdotal, was to only eat fruits and veggies that have a peel (and have been peeled). I have always stuck to that bit if advice when visiting Mexico and have never had any ill effects. Whether this bit of advice has any basis in fact or not, I can not say.

However, if the fields are irrigated with water which is mixed with raw sewage, then the problem is an integral part of the fruit.

As much as we favor fresh in our fruits and vegetables, I prefer cooked because the heat-treatment just eliminates any chance of bacteria. It's only a weekend.

I remember on the other board, Dickson visiting Chile, I believe. He ordered a platter of fresh oysters and other fruits of the sea. He then heeded the warning flash in his mind from a Lonely Planet passage and ditched the food. He was about to get on a long distance flight where having intestinal discomfort was less than welcome.

A friend of mine did have major intestinal discomfort on a flight between New Dehli and London. There was a long line to the toilets, but his need was pressing. He went to the front, where people began to protest. He advised his pending distress and didn't know whether he needed to vomit or sit down first. They cleared the way. When his flight arrived to London, he was met by an ambulance which took to the Heathrow Airport hospital.

Illness and travel, the worst of both worlds.

David Hammond wrote:

stevez wrote:The advice I got long ago, which may be purely anecdotal, was to only eat fruits and veggies that have a peel (and have been peeled). I have always stuck to that bit of advice when visiting Mexico and have never had any ill effects. Whether this bit of advice has any basis in fact or not, I can not say.

Stevez,

Yes, I've heard that one, and I think it probably applies to bananas, mangoes, oranges, and the like.

Hammond

That's always been my take on it. IOW, skip the tomatoes, lettuce, etc.

Yes, everyone says that about peeled fruits and so on-- and yet. I wonder if that's just antiquated advice that doesn't really apply much today. (Though again, if you're pregnant it's a whole different ballgame.)

Playa is in the Yucatan, which is supposed to have the cleanest water systems in Mexico. (Again, I agree with those who say that it's not that the water elsewhere is dirty or clean relative to ours, it's that it's just got a different set of beasts in it. I've gotten mildly sick from the water in both France and West Germany, yet I find it hard to consider either one dirtier than the US. Heathen, yes, but clean.) After being hesitant about it all for days, I finally decided to buy fresh fruit from the beachfront stands, and never had any reason to regret it.

I guess I've seen enough dirty restaurants to feel that the Steak and Shake rule-- a place that's willing to show you where they cook is probably pretty clean-- so I actually have fewer concerns about a nice-looking cart than many sitdown restaurants.

Kasia wrote:Anybody out there got some tips for Mexico City?

Two of my favorite restaurants in the world:

1. El Danubio, a seafood restaurant near the Zocalo

2. Haciendo de los Morales, alta cocina mexicana in Polanco. http://www.haciendadelosmorales.com/

Bill/SFNM

These are lessons learned from an extended sojourn in Colima and Guanajato, they are a little strict and best suited for a SHORT visit:

1. Squeeze lime on everything uncooked (great on mangoes!). Its a natural and effective means of laying low contamination.

2. Yes, you can eat salads, but with one caveat: make sure the restaurant states affirmatively on its menu that its salads 'take the pill', i.e. all ingredients are washed in water into which halogen pills are dissolved. The halogen kills amoeba--about the worst gastrointestinal peril that potentially afflicts everyone--indigenous and visitor alike. That's the way everyone at home handles this issue. If its an upper end restaurant, this goes without saying. If its mid-priced or lower, ask.

3. Street food is fine--just make sure it incorporates NO uncooked ingredients, such as lettuce or fruit. If you want a mango peeled by a street vendor, ask yourself in what quality water he last washed his knife. Don't miss eating at the market, in the La Fondas--everything is cooked.

4. Eat in restaurants where people dress like you. Along with salads that take the pill, this is probably your best defense.

5. I NEVER drink soft drinks at home, not ever. But I have to say that soft drinks ('refrescos') and Coke bottled in Mexico and made with sugar not corn syrup are damn good. You might like Sidral--an apple cider soda.

6. For your short visit and considering your delicate condition, you might should consider avoiding unpastuerized white 'ranch cheese'. But pasteurized dairy products like milk are fine, and yogurt especially good.

7. Fresh squeezed oj is ubiquitous--go for it. In fact juice places are everywhere.

To make a point, I think I'm going to repeat myself "Eat in restaurants where people dress like you. Along with salads that take the pill, this is probably your best defense."

I think you will find people extraordinarily friendly--Mexicans LOVE children (its said there that they cost nothing to make and a great deal of fun can be had making them), and if you are showing, well, that will be a great door opener! :-)

Don't know if this suggestion is coming too late, but if you want to get out of the Zona Rosa area, a great spot to check out is a little plaza called Jardin Centenario in Coyoacan, on the south-ish side of the city.

I can't make specific recommendations, since the last time I visited was 1996, and my memory of specifics is foggy, at best, but there are a bunch of little restaurants lining the plaza, and a wonderful (not completely hectic and zany) mercado just a few blocks north.

It's way less touristy than the Zona Rosa, and not nearly as hustle and bustle as the big squares near the city center. You could easily make an afternoon out of a visit to Frida Kahlo's home, which has been converted into a museum, and a walk around the Jardin followed by a meal (not necessarily in that order).

Rick Bayless' show "Mexico: One Plate at a Time" on WTTW this weekend showed one of the better episodes of this show that I have seen. It was Rick touring Mexico City and going to some of his favorite restaurnats allowing the chefs to show their stuff. It was in interesting look at what could be considered to be Rick's counterparts who are natives of and cooking in Mexico. There is also a little mini-tour of some arts and craft type shops that looked very ingteresting. If it's goi9ng to be rebroadcast this week, it would be good to check out.