The trend in Adana is sushi rolls. Sushi restaurants are everywhere. Metro, the Costco-like store that supplies restaurants, carries everything you need to run a sushi roll, maki, restaurant. There is a popular chain of eateries called Maki. They serve everything but sushi rolls are a big part of the menu.
An assortment of sushi rolls including with fries on them…
I can’t figure it out, but I also saw it in Italy.
Korean rice rolls called kimbap.
The other thing, and sort of connected, is the rise of Korean places. Maybe it’s the rise of the “cute” culture? Kawaii is the Japanese word for “cutsie culture” and this infantilization is popular in many places. So far I have only seen one person dressed sort of in this way. But, Flying Tiger arrived in Adana. Flying Tiger is a Danish “dollar store” chain that sells many cute, and sometimes practical, things. (Flying Tiger is derived from the sound of a “tenner” in Danish sounding like the word for tiger).
Recently a Korean store opened up. Also filled with cutsie things.
Sushi with mayo…
Maybe the sushi roll is not so strange. Adana has rolls made with meat and flat bread.
Turkish flatbread rolls.
I predict that the next trend is tacos. You read it here!
Americans, gringos, are obsessed with Tex-Mex food and celebrating anything with margaritas, chips, and salsa. May 5 is a day that gringos have taken to heart as a reason to eat Tex-Mex food and drink Corona beer and margaritas (first invented in the 1940s). But what was Cinco de Mayo? Is it Mexico’s national day? No, that is on September 16.
Some bar… I can’t even recall. I think I was with my tia…
Cinco de Mayo, also known as Battle of Puebla Day, is a holiday that commemorates the Mexican army’s 1862 victory over France at the Battle of Puebla during the Franco-Mexican War. The battle lasted one day but the Mexicans won so May 5 is a local holiday. The French went on to win the war but their occupation of Mexico was brief.
In the United States, Cinco de Mayo is an change to celebrate Mexican culture. Depending on which source you believe, the celebrations began in 1863 in Columbia, California by Mexican gold miners celebrating Mexican resistance. Other sources say that in the 1960s, hispanic activists began looking for a way to honor their history and culture. What is clear is that in the 1980s, beer companies started using the day as a sales campaign. In 2013, beer sales ($600 million) for Cinco de Mayo outdid those for the Superbowl. The biggest Cinco de Mayo celebrations are held in cities with large Hispanic populations, such as Los Angeles, Houston, Chicago, and New York.
In 2005, the US government issued a resolution (a resolution is not quite a law but is official) to make May 5 a day to officially observe the celebration of Mexican/hispanic culture.
This was from a Mexican place in Poland.
Today, almost every bar and restaurant uses Cinco de Mayo as a commercial opportunity, and do not really care about the actual reason behind the day. And when the day falls on Tuesday… for Taco Tuesday… watch out. Or take Wednesday off.
The main plaza in Mexico City.
But now you know. Also, as an aside, Mexico City did not have a Day of the Dead parade until after the James Bond movie, Spectre from 2015. Since 2016, Mexico City has celebrated the Day of the Dead with a massive parade, tacos, margaritas, and beer.
Tacos from a Honduran restaurant, Tacos Kings. Pork and beef (out of focus, but so well seasoned!).
It’s the new year and time for new fashions. The Italians are fashionable and this includes what type of food they eat. When not eating Italian food, they eat what is trendy.
A few years ago it was all about sushi. Last year, it was all about poke (but most of these places are not serving Hawaiian poke. They are serving stuff on a bowl of rice). My guess is that the next trend is the ever-loved-by-gringos: tex-mex. As I have mentioned before, wherever I go in the world, and no matter how yummy the food, someone will always ask me where they can find “Mexican food” and American Tex-Mex. I wrote about the top ten Mexican restaurants in Rome, back in 2020. Once I got to Rome, I asked my gringo friends and they told me which ones they recommended…
Tacos from Lu’um.
Pico’s,Vicolo della Renella 94, 00153 Rome Italy, in Trastevere has grown so much that they had to re-locate to a larger space further down the street. I like that this place has normal height tables. This restaurant was started by two Italian guys who had traveled to Mexico. Sometimes the cooks are American, Bangladeshi, Canadian, and Italian.
Jalapeno, Via Aurelia 483 (on the outside of the Inerio Market) is located on the outskirts of Rome so it’s not so easy to get there but the good thing is that there is a small shop next door where they sell Mexican food items.
La Cucaracha, Via Mocenigo 10, Prati: Is highly recommended.
Lu’um’s appetizer plate of nachos, meat, beans, etc.
Lu’um Mexican Bistrot, Via Agri 20 in Parioli. The owner lived in Mexico for a long time. He and his family decided to open a Mexican place in 2021. I found the tortillas to be overcooked but otherwise things seemed good. Once in a while there was a bite of spice.
Tacos Kings, Via degli Esqui 56: Is a new Honduran restaurant but you can still get really good nachos (addictively good) and guacamole. Really good prices too. Their tacos have only meat inside because the meat is fully marinated so does not need sauce, or lettuce, or anything… It was perhaps cheeky of me to lead off a photo of non-Mexican tacos, but of all the ones I have tried in researching for this article, theirs were the tastiest.
Nachos from Tacos Kings.
Pulgarcito, Piazza Attilio 41, Garbatella: This place is a bit far out but if you want a pupusa, then this is the only Salvadoran restaurant in Rome. They also make tacos but those were not as good as their “pasteles” which are deep fried corn pasties/empanadas.
Four pupusas.
Along with Lu’um, there appear to be a few new places to try:
La Punta Expendio de Agave, 4.4 stars.
Los Cabos APS Las Calaveras, 4.1 stars, Via di Monte. Testaccio, 91
Fiesta y Siesta, 4.2 stars, Via Nomentana 155
Guac smear is appearing everywhere, here at MiVa in Prati.
Along with the increase in “Mexican” restaurants, avocados are appearing on more and more menus. More Tex Mex products are available in stores as well. It will be nice when Italy grows avocados all along the peninsula and not just in Sicily.
Seen in a local grocery store.
I’m done with my research having had some fairly mediocre tacos along the way. But, I’ll be going back to Tacos Kings for another tamarind margarita and those corn tortillas.
