Mi Pueblo, Part 2
I haven't been to Mi Pueblo, the massive Mexican supermarket, since the last time I wrote about it in this blog. But boy, have I been missing out. I stopped in last weekend to buy a giant bag of piñata candy for daughter's birthday, and it was like going to un gran fiesta! The brightly painted yellow and red walls, the brassy salsa music, the colors, the smells, the meats so red and thick in their refrigerated cases, the crowds of shoppers, the festive aisle markers -- a sensory overload. The prices are great, the produce is polished and piled in teetering high stacks -- it's amazing. There are cakes, pastries, tacos, and more to be bought, too, all ready to eat.
I simply stopped caring that the food's not organic, most baked goods are made with lard, and sugary drinks abound. When you see a beautifully constructed castle of orange and lemon quart soda bottles, it's hard not to want to guzzle a few ounces of pure fructose corn syrup goodness.
My favorite pan dulce concoction is something called "ojo de buey" -- eye of the ox. It's round, pink, and covered with coconut flakes, with some kind of gooey custard in the middle. Gross, but pretty -- a sort of Hostess snowball from south of the border.
Of course, for a while I felt bad for the little Mi Tierra market right next door to Mi Pueblo. Now I'm sucked in by the siren song of its giant neighbor to the east, and I care no more. Mi Pueblo makes you feel like you're part of something special. Go there.