Artwork by Michael DiMilo
By Geoff Carter
Mexican Street Vendor
Tomascastelazo, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Fast food is an institution in our culture. McDonalds, Burger King, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Subway, Chick-Fil-A, Arby’s, Domino’s, and Taco Ball franchises are everywhere. You can’t drive down a city street or the main drag of a small town without seeing at least one—and probably three or four—of these restaurants.
We are a culture that prizes convenience above almost all else. Between work schedules, getting kids to soccer practice, theater rehearsals, or sleepovers, shopping, and running all the errands necessary to keep up with the Joneses, there’s hardly time to catch our breaths, let alone to cook. So, we get a bucket, a two-for-one meat lover’s special, a party sub, or a family pack for dinner. We stop for an Egg McMuffin or a Breakfast Burrito for breakfast. In some cities, Burger King will even deliver meals by bike to commuters stuck in traffic. We eat in the car, on the run, or in the office. The days of everyone sitting at the dining room table for supper are scarce and nearly extinct.
This wouldn’t be that much of an issue except for the fact that a lot of fast food is very unhealthy. According to Medical News Today, most fast foods are high in sodium, trans fats, sugar, carbohydrates, saturated fats, and preservatives. Consuming fast food regularly can result in short-term adverse effects like spikes in blood sugar, increased blood pressure, and lowered immunity. Long-term adverse effects can include obesity, heart disease, higher risks of cancer, and digestive problems. While some fast foods are healthier than others, for the most part, our burgers, pizzas, fried chicken, and buffalo wings will eventually kill you.
In Morgan Spurlock’s 2004 documentary film Super-Size Me, he chronicled a thirty-day period in which he ate nothing but food from McDonald’s. During that time, he gained twenty-four pounds, drastically increased his cholesterol count, experienced mood swings, sexual dysfunction, and suffered higher liver fat counts. This was only over the course of a single month. Imagine the effects of eating fast food for years.
The U.S. is not alone in its desire for fast food consumption. Many American fast-food franchises have thrived in Europe and Asia. American fast food franchises, however, have not achieved the same degree of popularity in all countries.
While vacationing in Mexico recently, my wife Kris and I were struck with the number of street taco stands and small restaurants in both Puerto Vallarta and Mexico City. Some blocks had three or four of these open-air stands that provided tacos, gorditas, burritos, enchiladas, tamales, and more. Patrons would take their food para llegar, to go, or have a seat on a nearby stoop or curb to have their meal. There are McDonald’s and Burger King restaurants in Mexico, but not nearly as many as in the States. Nor do they seem to be frequented as much—mostly by American and Canadian tourists.
The Tamale Lady: Photo by Geoff Carter
In Puerto Vallarta, Kris and I ate at a number of these small taqueiras but we mostly frequented three venues. Figueroa’s Burritos is not much more than a hole in the wall. The kitchen is tucked into a small open-air storefront and patrons sat on a limited number of seats outside. They offer everything from shrimp tacos to pollo mole to Filete del Dia there. Another stand in the next block Taqueria La Hormiga (which we affectionately nicknamed Abuela’s because of the spunky old lady who runs it) has probably the best Al Pastor tacos in the city. Our third favorite, only known as The Tamale Lady, is a middle-aged woman who has her entire kitchen stored in shopping cart. She makes her gorditas and tortas to order, plucking up ingredients from containers in the cart. Her homemade tamales are nothing short of spectacular.
Our condo is in Emiliano Zapata neighborhood, located in Vallarta’s old town. It’s a part of town that is filled with small stores, shops, and stands. Because PV is so close to farms, it’s not unusual to see pickup trucks full of melons, crates of limes, onions, tomatoes, pineapples, and bananas dropping off food at these local markets.
It’s also not unusual to run into proprietors of these taquerias, or taco stands, going to these small markets to get their day’s supply of tomatoes, onions, cheese, and seafood for their stands. They cut up and prepare the food right at the stand—it couldn’t be any fresher. Local tortillerias crank out dozens of fresh tortillas every hour that are also bought and used by these same open-air taco stands.
Unlike American fast-food chains, which use processed food and various preservatives to keep their products “fresh”, these taquerias use food almost straight off the vine. The tomatoes, onions, limes, shrimp, and tortillas used to make the delicious tacos, fajitas, and burritos are not canned or frozen. No sugars or preservatives have been added. Many are delivered fresh daily, so—not surprisingly—they are much healthier.
Of course, Mexican food is not completely healthy. Most of it contains fatty foods like cheese, sour cream, or avocados. Tortillas and refried bean are typically prepared in lard, but when compared to a Big Mac or a dinner of KFC, or a Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme, the typical plate of street tacos is much fresher and contains a lower calorie count, fewer preservatives, and less added sugar than American fast food fare.
Most of the street stands and small restaurants in Puerto Vallarta are family owned. The abuela’s taqueria is manned by two sons and daughters-in-law, a grandson, and the abuela herself. Some are assigned food preparation, some cook, and others—usually those who speak English—work the counter. The proprietors and customers are often neighbors or friends, and prices are extremely reasonable. A plate of three tacos cost sixty pesos, or about three US dollars. Tamales from our favorite vendor cost twenty-five pesos, or about a dollar and a half.
While many of these taqueria stands are on the street, attracting a fair number of birds, feral cats, and stray dogs, they are kept meticulously clean. The families scrub them down before opening and after closing, and the strays know better than to get too close. Unlike most McDonald’s or Pizza Huts, the kitchens are open to inspection.
Fresh fruit, vegetables, meat, and shrimp is the main reason for the wholesomeness of street food. Since most of their suppliers are local, only blocks away, there is no need for preservatives, or to freeze supplies or use canned goods. Fresh fruit and veggies also contain higher amounts of fiber than canned goods. And they taste better. The local family-run taquerias use fresh veggies, not only because they are tastier, but because they are readily available.
These same fresh foods are just as available to American fast-food giants, but the McDonalds and Burger Kings and Taco Bells choose not to use fresh vegetables, bread, or potatoes. It’s cheaper to acquire them on the cheap, freeze them, and then ship them great distances. Then, to increase customer appeal, high fructose corn syrup is added to sauces, soft drinks, buns, and even into the ketchup.
According to Psychiatry Redefined, “the more High Fructose Corn Syrup you consume, the more likely you are to develop an addiction—a craving for more food, an inability to stop eating, a preoccupation with the next meal, and withdrawal symptoms when you stop.”
It seems obvious that American fast food is more concerned with profit than with quality and safety. Compared to their Mexican counterparts, they seem to be ruthless and inhuman profit machines that care little about the health of the people they serve. Perhaps they could learn a lesson from the little guys who feed the masses in Mexico City, Puerto Vallarta, and all the great cities in Mexico.
Given a choice, at least in the places I visited, most Mexicans choose to go local when it comes to fast food. The one McDonald’s I’ve seen in Vallarta is usually empty—or close to it. The Mexicanos know a good thing when they see it. And they know their own brand of fast food is tastier, healthier, fresher, and just as convenient. Going local is a no-brainer.
Notes
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6146358/
- https://health.clevelandclinic.org/heres-how-fast-food-can-affect-your-body/
- https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/324847
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Size_Me
- http://www.foodfacts.info/high-fructose-corn-syrup.shtml
- https://www.psychiatryredefined.org/what-not-eat-high-fructose-corn-syrup/#:~:text=Just%20like%20alcohol%2C%20the%20more,withdrawal%20symptoms%20when%20you%20stop.