mexican food • 13 comments • Never having been to Mexico before, we've been pleasantly surprised with the variety of new tastes and ingredients. Although Mexico City offers global fare, we've been sticking to Mexican dishes. We ate lunch at El Califa, a neighborhood favourite. Their signature appetizer is chicharron de queso (crispy fried cheese). I obviously had no choice but to try it: Mina's preferred dish is the taco al pastor, which can be likened to shawarma on a soft corn tortilla with lots of cilantro. My pick is the ribeye taco, although the condiments are a touch too spicy for me. A generous serving of limes seem to be a standard side. Tomatos, onion and avocado are rarely missing from the table. Although Mina and I usually don't drink alcohol, I like to sample local drinks (alcoholic or otherwise). A waiter suggested I try a Michelada, which was a mixture of beer, lemon juice, and salt. I've tried lemon-beer drinks before, but the salt was an interesting touch. Mina has always hated beer, but was curious enough to try it. We both agreed that it had it's appeal, but that we probably wouldn't order it again. The best thing about all of this amazing food is how affordable it is. Most of our nice dinners together have cost less than $20. -Alex
