In a now legendary political debate in the US in 1988, then Senator Dan Quayle, who was running for the Vice Presidency, casually remarked that he had the same level of experience President Kennedy had when he ran for President in 1960.
His opponent, Senator Lloyd Bentsen, replied by discussing his friendship with JFK, then making an extremely unflattering comparison and saying, "Senator, you are no Jack Kennedy".
Quayle took offence, demanding an apology. Bentsen replied, "Senator, you invited the comparison, not me". Exactly.
If you think I am about to sound like an American with a bad attitude, then please stop reading now. However, if you hear me out, you might see my point.
So, I was walking in Uppsala with my wife at around lunchtime when we spotted Zocalo, a "taqueria" we'd never heard of or seen. Being a SoCal boy, brought up on Baja fish tacos, carnitas, fresh salsas and chips, burritos al pastor, etc., I have the good sense not to expect much of EuroMex. In fact, I have the good sense and experience to not expect much outside a prescribed zone in the Southwestern US, primarily in California.
But that's not the problem. The problem is that Zocalo promotes the idea that their food is "inspired by" the taquerias in "the Mission District" of San Francisco, where there are so many deservedly famous establishments, each having a particular approach and character. People hotly debate which has the best of various offerings and have fierce loyalties. The main similarity is the freshness, flavour, quality, and the great food you get for very little money at every place.
Most have fresh salsa bars where several types of freshly made salsas and hot, fresh chips are constantly refreshed. And of course, all the main dishes are entirely freshly house made with great care and consistency, seasoned perfectly.
Zocalo not only invites the comparison, but promotes it by going further and calling their stuff freshly made. But when I asked about the carnitas, for example, I was told it was from Germany, pre-made. There are no fresh salsas of any kind. The jalapeños are pickled. You have to ask for chips.
I'll start with the good news. It might be the best you will get in Sweden. Understandably, doing something like Mexican food is highly problematic here because it so much depends on the availability of fresh ingredients of decent quality. The proper ingredients are simply unavailable here, or so expensive that using them would destroy a profit margin. Understood. BUT DON'T DECEIVE!!!
The vegetarian burritos we ordered were OK compared to other faux EuroMex stuff I've tried, but still a pretty far cry from being good. Not much fresh about them.
Zocalo, I lived in the SF Bay Area for 20 years and am extremely familiar with SF Mission taquerias. I love good, fresh, Mexican food. I am a knowledgeable food person, in general. Zocalo, you do not make anything that remotely resembles SF Mission style Mexican food and should not make the deceptive claim that you do. You invited the comparison, not me.
You're busted! read more