Order Up and Good Libations: Cinco de Mayo edition
Happy Cinco de Mayo everyone!
No matter where you live, we are all looking for an excuse to get out, party a little and enjoy a holiday. Well, Cinco de Mayo certainly fits the bill.
Cinco de Mayo has, in just 40 or so years, become one of the largest celebrations here in the United States. We celebrate the day with cervezas (beer), margaritas (delicious, addictive drink) and plenty of Mexican cuisine and fanfare. With Cinco de Mayo falling on Friday this year, there will be much celebrating at our favorite Mexican restaurant, enjoying a cerveza and saying "una mas" to whoever will listen.
History of Cinco de Mayo
The celebration of Cinco de Mayo (meaning Fifth of May in Spanish) should not be confused with Mexican Independence Day.
Mexican Independence Day is celebrated on Sept. 15 (eve of Independence Day) while Cinco de Mayo falls on the Fifth of May.
Mexico declared its independence from Spain on August 24, 1821. This modern holiday began when a group of California State University students decided to hold the first Cinco de Mayo commemoration in the United States circa 1967. The students felt that there were no Chicano holidays and needed to do something about it. They wanted something to recapture their history and decided that the Battle of Puebla was symbolic and they could connect it to their struggle for the formation of a Chicano Studies program at the university.
While Cinco de Mayo is not an American holiday, it is celebrated on a much larger scale by Chicanos in the U.S. than in Mexico. In Mexico, the celebration of Independence Day is considered more important.
Cinco de Mayo is the celebration of the courage of the Mexican people during La Batalla de Puebla on May 5, 1862 where 4,500 Mexican soldiers defeated the Mexican traitors (exiled Mexican Conservatives) and French army of 6,500 at Puebla, Mexico, 100 miles east of Mexico City. The Mexican forces were made up of untrained commoners. This victory did not win the war, but it showed the courage and strength of the Mexican troops. The "Batalla de Puebla" became a symbol of Mexican unity and patriotism.
Source: A Quick History of Cinco de Mayo
Like every Cinco de Mayo, Mexican and non-Mexican food lovers alike will likely find themselves out at a Mexican restaurant. Luckily for Anderson, Pendleton, Clemson and beyond, there are plenty of Mexican restaurants to go around. If you are looking for one in particular or just want to find out what these restaurants are doing to celebrate Cinco de Mayo, here is a list of a handful of the many Mexican restaurants in our area:
1708 E. Greenville St., Anderson
186 Station Drive, Anderson
4355 S.C. 24, Anderson
2407 N. Main St., Anderson
Taqueria El Guiri Guiri
114 Fredericks St., Anderson
Taqueria El Taco
192 Civic Center Blvd., Anderson
221-B Brown Road, Anderson
Happy Donkey Mexican Grill
3230 S. Main St., Anderson
Papa's and Beer
160 W. Beltline Blvd., Anderson
1475 Pearman Dairy Road, Anderson
2114 S.C. 81 North, Anderson
Fiesta Mexican Restaurant
3626 S.C. 81 North, Anderson
Blue Tolok Grill and Bar
304 SC 28, Anderson
Mi Pueblo Mexican Restaurant
133 E. Queen St., Pendleton
Pancho's Mexican Restaurant
111 W. Main St., Central
Monterrey Mexican Restaurant
1710 W. Main St., Central
530 Old Greenville Highway # 1, Clemson
Fiesta Mexican Grill
163 Old Greenville Highway, Clemson
Going out to eat at a Mexican restaurant, it can be easy to fall back on standbys like burritos and tacos. But if you get more adventurous, there are many descriptions of Mexican fare that can seem, well, foreign. If you get stuck and too embarrassed to ask your server what something is, just refer to this handy, dandy glossary of some of the more popular dishes and food styles on a Mexican restaurant menu. It might save you time and a red face.
Buelo: A thin fried pastry finished with a sweet topping.
Burrito: A large flour tortilla filled with meat, cheese, or beans.
Carne Asada: Pieces of thin-cut beef that is grilled. Literally, "roasted meat."
Carnita: A dish made with small pieces of pork.
Chalupa: A thick boat-shaped corn tortilla fried and filled with other ingredients. In Mexico, a chalupa is a small canoe.
Chile Con Queso: A melted cheese dip flavored with mild green chilies.
Chile Relleno: Cheese-stuffed mild green chilies, battered and fried until the outside is crisp and the cheese inside is melted. Literally, "stuffed peppers."
Chimichanga: A burrito that is sealed closed and fried till crisp.
Chipotle: Dried, smoked jalapeno chilies.
Chorizo: A Mexican sausage made with ground pork and spicy seasonings.
Enchilada: A tortilla dipped in chili sauce, then filled with meat or cheese, rolled up, and baked. Usually served topped with salsa and cheese.
Fajita: Meat brought to the table on a metal platter, sizzling loudly, with tortillas and condiments served on the side.
Flan: A rich custard dessert with a layer of soft caramel on top.
Flauta/Flautita: A small corn tortilla that has been stuffed with meat or beans, then sealed and deep-fried until crisp. Literally, "flute."
Guacamole: A dish made from mashed avacado and lime or lemon juice, with onions, chilies, and seasonings added. Often used as a condiment in Mexican dishes.
Jalapeno: A medium-hot green chili pepper.
Margarita: A cocktail made with tequila, an orange-flavored liqueur, and lime juice.
Mexican Rice: White rice roasted in a skillet with garlic and onions until light brown, then steamed or simmered with tomato sauce and chicken stock.
Mole: A spicy, rich sauce consisting of nuts, seeds, spices, chilies and a small amount of chocolate.
Nachos: Crisp tortilla chips topped with melted cheese and chopped chilies. Invented in 1943 by Ignacio "Nacho" Anaya in Piedras Negras, Mexico.
Pico de Gallo: An uncooked tomato, onion, and chili relish. Literally, "beak of the rooster."
Poblano: A large mild green chile. Poblanos originated in the Mexican state of Puebla.
Quesadilla: A flour tortilla filled with meat and cheese, folded in half, and toasted.
Ranchero Sauce: A spicy tomato-based sauce that includes onions, green chilies, and seasonings.
Suizo: A creamy white sauce. Literally, "Swiss."
Taco: A corn tortilla filled with meat, cheese, or beans.
Tamale: Corn masa encasing some type of filling, usually pork. Traditionally steamed in corn husks.
Tortilla: A thin, round unleavened bread made of either corn flour or wheat flour and baked on a griddle.
Tostada: A toasted tortilla topped with meats, beans, or cheeses.
Popular Mexican Beers
Corona is a light lager beer, and is the top selling Mexican beer abroad. Corona is widely available at bars, restaurants, pubs, clubs and supermarkets.
Negra Modelo is a dark beer, very smooth and described as a "Vienna-Munich" type beer by the brewer.
Modelo Especial is a lager beer (described as a Pilsner lager by the brewer) and has a slightly richer taste than Corona.
Victoria is described as Pilsner-Vienna type beer by the brewer, and is a cross between a light lager and a dark beer.
Sol is one of Corona's main competitors in the market, and like Corona it is a light, tasty lager beer.
Tecate is a lager beer, light, but with a sharper and stronger taste than Sol.
XX (Dos Equis)
"Dos Equis" is a light lager beer.
Bohemia competes with Modelo Especial and is a light, rich lager beer.
Serving Mexican beers, especially the light lagers such as Corona, with a slice of lime, is done primarily for tourists. Outside the tourist areas, and among native Mexicans, it is considerably less prevalent. However, a traditional drink does exist known as the michelada, which is a drink composed of mostly light beer with a lot of lime juice (the equivalent of several chunks of lime).