Growing up close enough to Mexico to cross the border for breakfast I know my way around Mexican food, and the majority of what DC Mexican establishments have sold me since I moved here is actually American food with a few extra peppers, or what I like to call Amerexican food.
Here are five tips to tell help you tell apart Tex-Mex and authentic Mexican food:
1. The “Chimichanga” was invented in Arizona, not in Mexico.
The chimichanga is not a Mexican dish at all. It isn’t served in Mexico. Its name literally means thingamajig. There are at least two restaurants in Arizona claiming to have “invented” the thingamajig, but no matter who started it, it was an American, not a Mexican. At best, we can call this dish Zona-Mexicana, and at worst it’s what happens when a short order cook drops a burrito in a deep fat fryer on accident.
2. Fajitas are a product of Texas.
Yes, another well beloved dish is also not Mexican food. Invented in Texas and virtually unknown to much of the Southwest until the 1990s. The term became popularized because of a fast food marketing campaign. I prefer to think of fajitas as McTex-Mex. Though fajitas made of skirt steak are related to the dish arracheros, there is no excuse for chicken or shrimp “fajitas.” They are not made of faja and are not Mexican food.
3. Party Foul: That’s not a Margarita
In Mexico if you order a margarita you will get tequila, lime juice, and some agave on the rocks. Lauriol Plaza is heralded for the best margaritas in town. They aren’t authentic, but they are very deserving Margaritas del Gringos.
4. Don’t eat yellow….cheese
In Mexico cheese is white. Mexico does not make “Mexican Blend” cheese or use Monterey Jack or Cheddar, which are American cheeses. Look for cheeses like Asadero or Queso Chihuahua, like you will find at Rosa Mexicano.
Not to mention, Amerexican food uses cheese as a topping for everything. Mexicans do not. In Mexican cuisine, cheese is an ingredient, not a topping melted over a chimichanga.
5. Know your moles
Though mole is most popular in Oaxaca and Puebla, it is so popular in Mexico nearly all Mexicans have tried it at one point or another. If you don’t see mole anywhere on the menu, it’s a bad sign. If you want the best mole in town try out Casa Oaxaca in Adams Morgan.
So where can you get the most authentic Mexican food in DC? My best advice is to try Casa Oaxaca and Rosa Mexicano. Either restaurant will serve you a traditional margarita on the rocks, fine moles, Mexican quesos, and authentic Mexican cuisine.
Jana Erwin is the primary chef and writer of CherryTeaCakes.com, a non-profit venture combining the love of fine desserts and feeding the impoverished in Washington DC.
