Mertonium

[A copy of a post on my old blog.]

Lovely ladies fixin' up some gorditas!

Doña Tota Gorditas

“What do you want to order?”

“A numero dos. You?”

“A numero uno. What’s in a numero dos?”

“I don’t know. What’s in a numero uno?”

“No idea.”

“Sounds good. Let’s do it.”

That was the conversation Laura and I had just before we ordered our first food in Mexico. After a long walk around Monterrey, and some hemming and hawing over where we should eat, we saw Doña Tota.

Doña Tota is a chain of restaurants that serve gorditas. Gorditas are small round tortillas, with a slit cut in one edge so the tortilla can be used like an envelope. These torti-velopes are then filled with all kinds of deliciousness.

Both my numero dos and Laura’s numero uno where variety platters of five random gorditas. Some were mixtures of meat and sauce/salsa, some were refried beans and cheese, some were mysteries. After hearing so much talk from guide books and doctors saying how dodgy Mexican food could be, I couldn’t help but be a little apprehensive before that first bite.

But with that first taste, my tongue beat my apprehension to death. I would have gladly spent the whole next day puking and shitting if it meant I could eat just one more gordita.

A new favorite was born.

San Luis Potosi, Mexico
2007