“No Good Mexican Food in Columbus”
Andy shares his response to that incorrect assumption, plus Weiland's Market kicks off a series of healthy eating workshops.
My Response to “There's No Good Mexican Food in Columbus”
By Andy Dehus
It’s a refrain I hear with surprising frequency, often asserted with an air of unwavering certitude: “There’s no good Mexican food in Columbus.” I hear it in person and online, and far more often from locals than from the newly relocated to the area, who oftentimes seem more inclined to seek it out and find satisfaction.
It isn’t true, of course. If you don’t trust me, you might trust the many Mexican cooks and chefs throughout the service industry who delight in sharing their favorite spots to go for a taste of home. If you don’t trust them, then trust one of the most respected figures nationally in food writing, Kenji López-Alt.
So why does this idea persist to the point that it has taken on a meme-like inevitability? To the point that it reflexively supersedes a simple Google search?
My suspicion is that there are two things at play, with the first one being that it’s easy to just assume that a Midwestern city couldn’t have good Mexican cuisine. The second being that many people are unwilling to go to the primary source of the astonishing vitality of Mexican cuisine in Central Ohio: the more than 100 taco trucks dotting the metropolitan area.
While I get genuine pleasure out of exploring taco trucks, I can understand why there are many among us who prefer to dedicate their scant time and dollars to a more complete (and less risky seeming) dining experience than a mobile food vendor could provide.
Luckily for them, good Mexican food is not confined to a taco truck box. Below is a solid (but far from comprehensive) list of brick-and-mortar, sit-down Mexican restaurants serving up the real deal.