Mexico City Travel Forum

We will be travelling in early February to Mexico City and possibly Oaxaca and or Puebla. We want only meatless meals- (some fish OK). Must we avoid salads/fruit, even in restaurants? That will make things much more difficult. We do not need vegan or strictly vegetarian restaurants- just some places with choices. THANKS!

any vegetable or fruit with a skin/peel that you can eat and also lettuce can contain amoebas if not washed properly. simply washing w/ water doesn't always work. so if your fruit or vegetable does not have this or you can cut it off, you'll be fine. more upscale restaurants should have properly prepared food but not always. it also depends on how your stomach is at handling the stuff. you will find some options especially in peppers. if you can find chiles en nogada with no meat, that's really good stuff. do you consider grasshoppers (chapulines) non-vegetarian?

i have been 4 times to mexico and spend almost 6 months in the country and never had a bad stomach eventhough i eat street food every day.
i have the stomach of a mexican stray dog though and that might be why.

i always thought of mexico as a vegetarian nightmare (and a gourmet paradise).
in 6 months i can not recall seeing any vegetarian restaurants, but i didn't look for them and i guess there are some.
i once travelled in to mexico from the US with a german girl who was a vegetarianb and she went back to the US after 5 days cause she couldn't find vegetarian restaurants, but she was also a freak who refused to eat in a place where meat was being served.

I lived in Mexico City/Cancun for 7 years and ate lots of salads and fruit in restaurants, but only fruits that I could peel myself on the street. There are lots of sushi places around in Mexico City/Cancun so I presume they are also in other places too. Why not try typically Mexican stuff like "queso fundido" literally melted cheese that you eat with small tortillas in the taco cafes - taste really good - also "quesadillas" which are melted cheese in toasted tortillas. Also "atole" - a thin rice pudding drink for breakfast (sold in the street usually near underground (metro) stations) and the great "tamales". Some savoury ones do contain meat but the sweet ones (such as strawberry) are really good and are kind of a steamed maize snack wrapped in the maize leaves! I can tell you that the few times I fell sick in Mexico were the times I ate in expensive restaurants, never from street food!!

Most upscale restaurants are ok re: fruits and salads being washed or prepared properly. Ask the waitstaff if they are or not; they will not be offended. The same for water as well. I would consider Mexican cuisine heavy on the meat, but you do have options, esp. in Oaxaca where it's a bit more touristy.

I would suggest posting in the chowhound Mexico board (www.chowhound.com) regarding restaurants and where to eat if you're a veggie. They were very helpful in our upcoming visit to Central Mexico. Have fun!

I have travelled in Mexico several times and never had a stomach problem, although I ate fruit salads from fruit and juice stalls in the streets. Perhaps my stomach is resistent to those kinds of bugs, or I was just lucky. But I have made the experience in many countries that the people who avoid everything to not get a stomach problem always get it first, and those who are less scared have less problems.

Although I am no vegetarian I do not like eat meat every day and have always found a lot of vegetarian choices in any kind of restaurant, like vegetarian burritos, quesadillas, peppers stuffed with rice, or rice with beans and other vegetables. It is true that there are not many vegetarian restaurants but you do not need such places to get vegetarian food. And if you really go to a place without vegetarian choices on the menu just ask for something without meat (sin carne). If you do not speak Spanish just ask someone to write down some sentences for you, and you will be fine.

Sissi

I think you'll be good. My friend is a vegetarian, (she traveled with me, as I was her translator)-- and she had no problem.
Restarurant staff in the country are just happy to serve you and will accomodate you dish to your tast. I tried to avoid meat and milk myself.

Consider: tamales, quesadillas, enchiladas, chiles rellenos, and caldos (soups).

Feliz Viaje

Erika

I'm mexican, living in Mexico City.

Yes we have some vegetarian restaurants -- located mostly within shopping malls -- such as 100% NATURAL, LA BUENA TIERRA, MAS QUE NATURAL, SAKS, VEGETARIANO Y DIETETICO (this one is right in Downtown, Madero street no. 56), etc. However, you don't have to go to one of these places in order to eat a salad or some fruit or non-meat dishes. You can try, especially in Oaxaca and/or Puebla where you might not find all of these vegetarian restaurant options, to go to chain restaurants such as VIPS or SANBORNS or WINGS or TOKS where they have a good choice of meat and meat-free dishes. As long as you eat in a well established place (non from the street stalls) you should be able to find at least 2-3 meat-free food choices and they will be perfectly safe (hygienic) to eat. Even the smallest cafeterias will provide options.

Good luck for your trip.