Almuerzo a la manera yucateca
Acaba de abrir un nuevo restaurante de comida casera a la vuelta de la esquina. Este lugar antes era una tienda que fabricaba tornillos por encargo, y por eso las puertas todavía conservan el nombre: Casa de Los Tornillos. El restaurante es una bienvenida al barrio, con siete mesas muy ordenadas y paredes blancas, cada mesa cubierta con manteles de hule, un portanapales y un pequeño florero con flores de plástico. Las sillas son proporcionadas por Coca-Cola.
Todos los días en el nuevo Mary Soco’s hay dos o tres comidas para elegir. Hoy había un tipo de guiso de res en salsa de tomate, y la otra opción era algo llamado Pesuñas Rebozadas. Pedimos ver la comida, porque no teníamos idea de qué eran las pesuñas… y Mary estaba friendo algo en batter que se veía como un chile relleno grande. “¿Hay carne?” preguntamos. “Sí, claro. ¡Cerdo!” Bueno, nos gusta el cerdo. Vamos a probar uno de cada uno.
Nos sentamos y nos sirvieron una Coca y una Coca Lite, como pedimos. (La otra opción es Sabor, que técnicamente significa “sabor”, pero en realidad quiere decir “otra soda que no es Coca”). La mesera de Mary Soco’s (¿hija? ¿sobrina?) nos trajo a cada uno un tazón de sopa lleno de frijoles negros en su propio caldo, un recipiente de madera con tapa con tortillas de maíz calientes y cubiertos frescos, y después, el plato fuerte.
Un plato tenía arroz blanco cubierto con trozos de aguacate yucateco (más ligero y aguado que el aguacate al que estamos acostumbrados en Estados Unidos) y unos seis cuadrados grandes de res en guiso de tomate. Era Puerco Empanizado y estaba delicioso. El segundo plato traía una ensalada con los mismos trozos de aguacate, medio chile habanero y dos grandes rellenos, rebozados y cubiertos con cebolla rosa encurtida, omnipresente en la cocina yucateca. Todavía curiosos por saber qué había adentro, nos aventamos a los rellenos y encontramos… un hueso blanco, bastante limpio, del tamaño del nudillo de un hombre grande. Intentamos de nuevo… otro hueso. Resulta que las pesuñas son codillos de cerdo.
Debemos admitir que no nos parecieron particularmente atractivas.
Pero esa es la diversión de comer ahí… a veces no te sale como esperabas. Pero otras veces descubres algo que te encanta. En cualquier caso, puedes sentarte y ver al BARRIO ENTERO llegar a comer. Mientras estábamos allí (como media hora), al menos cinco mujeres de mediana edad entraron con sus bolsas y tápers para llevar comida a sus esposos. Lo mismo los niños de la escuela, llevando almuerzo para sus padres. Una señora mayor y su hija adolescente, obviamente recién llegadas de la escuela, entraron y se sentaron, luego un hombre que parecía recién salido de una obra. El tipo medio loco de la siguiente cuadra, que habla sorprendentemente bien inglés, entró y nos dio un cómic en español. Esto era un regalo de agradecimiento porque le habíamos comprado una muñeca vieja (para nuestro cachorro) el día anterior por 9 pesos, para que pudiera comprar pilas para su radio. Todos se conocían… el ambiente era relajado, amigable y divertido.
Para los yucatecos, el almuerzo es la comida principal. Es un momento para pasar tiempo con amigos y familia, comer a gusto y luego retirarse a la siesta… porque generalmente, como hoy, hace MUCHO calor afuera. Así que eso es hacia donde vamos ahora. Hasta luego…
Comments
Bruce Coppola 17 years ago
I don't know when you posted this article, but it looks like the place my wife and I happened upon on our last (and so far only) visit to Merida in '04, I think. Had a great Poc Chuc, and got a good tip from an older local gent about where to get my Panama hat (bought expensively a few years earier in Playa del Carmen) cleaned and blocked in the mercado municipal.
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Working Gringos 19 years ago
A quick editor's update: This place is now called Doña Tere's, which is stenciled on the bright red doors. We think Doña Tere is one of the ladies in the kitchen, and we know that their mother, Doña Ophelia, occasionally comes by to help as well.
The food here just keeps getting better. We take everyone we know here and we've never had a bad meal. Some things are better than others, but all are home-cooked with loving care.
The place is very popular now and if you get there after 2 pm, chances are they will have run out of food.
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Khaki 19 years ago
I don't know how in the world I ever missed this article! The comments are hilarious! Can you imagine this being the first introduction a potential expat has to the gringo community in Yucatan? LOL Well - this is it, folks. Pretty much how we/they are! Must be the heat!
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Andrea 19 years ago
Love the one on the corner by our house (47 & 66). Today I didn't feel like cooking so I went and got food para llevar. The bag was so heavy for 140 pesos I could barely make it home. All 5 of us ate and we had leftovers! Today's meal was pechuga empanizada, (breaded chicken breast) and carne res something or other. I could only figure out it was beef. But it turned out to be delicious chunks of beef and I think squash in a yummy sauce. What a value and convenience and best of all the people are so nice. I spilled a little tamarindo on my skirt and an older man sitting near me handed me a napkin!
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sweeping mayans 20 years ago
We love Mary Soco too, though we are going to miss the orginal Casa de Los Tornillos. Los Dos Camelos (The Two Camels) just around the corner still sells screws and they have a lovely and colorful collection of brooms and dusters. Something dear to the heart & sole of the sweeping mayans. The sweeping mayans love to rub shoulders with the gringo's here in gringo gulch but we'd like to point out one thing to the Hermit and like minded
ma’ ko’ohi tuucha’,
In the book FOODS OF THE MAYA in the forward by Jeffrey Pilcher the opening line
"The ancient civilization of the Maya has intrigued outsiders since John Stephens first ventured through the tropical forests of the Yucatan in the 1840"
EXCUSE US. We have been intriguing outsiders since before Columbus was too afraid to land his canoe at Tulum. But thanks for bringing those pigs, dude.
Pre Cristobal we had some interesting outsiders pass through. You don't really think those elongated skulls are from the sweeping mayans tying stones on their chaanpal pol.
aanteni
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The Hermit of Santa Isabel 20 years ago
I love Mary Soco's I cannot say enough fabulous and positive thinks about Mary. As a christian and potential saint I am shocked to hear that she has opened a place called the "House of Screws" but hey that is between her and her god. I just wanted to be nice and post the recipe for Yucatecan Marinated Onions. Love em to death. I don't want to infringe upon any copy right laws so I will just plug the darling little cookbood called
FOODS OF THE MAYA
a taste of the Yucatan
a place with all kinds of tastes! but that is a whole other blog!
Nancy and Jeffrey Gerlach (no known relation) are the writers, editors and photographers of this tastey tome. How convenient as my friend Church Lady would say.
with out further ado or comment, the recipe
Cebollas Encuridas
"These pickled purple onions are traditional accopaniment to a meal of chicken or pork pibil and are also popular with any number of other local dishes [i.e. pied du cochon]. They are found on virtually all tables throughout the Yucatan as a condiment, along with salsa and salt."
(ok it is hard enough for the hermit to stay on subject without blatant lies like this. Now do not come down here to the land of sweeping mayans expecting to find salt, salsa and marinated onions on every table in the mundo maya. I have at least 7 tables in my house and only one of them has salsa and salt on it. and I have never seen the 'miracle of the marinated onions' on any of my tables. Ah but this is a christian home here, the hermitage.) I digress.
the recipe with no further comment or French I promise.
1 large purple onion, thinly sliced or coarsely chopped
Boiling water, to cover
10 whole black pepper corns
3 whole allspice berries
2 cloves minced garlic
1 teaspoon dried oregano, Mexican preferred
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/4 teaspoon salt
Pour the boiling water over the heathens, I mean onions, let sit for 1 minute, then drain. Discard the water.
Place all of the remaining ingredients in a pan with the onions and bring to a boil. Immediately turn off the heat and allow the onions to marinate for a couple of hours or days before serving. The onions will keep indefinaely in the refrigerator.
yield 1 to 1.5 cups
note: this recipe requires advance preparation.
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