Job Discussion Forums

[Oreen Scott]

I have read that in Mexico instant coffee is preferred over regular coffee. As I figure out what I can and cannot do without, I can not do without two cups of coffee in the morning. I don't like instant coffee.

So is it easy to purchase coffee beans? ground coffee? What do restaurants serve?

[Guy Courchesne]

I'm drinking an instant coffee as I write this...Nescafe. I don't very much like it either, but I've run out of the ground stuff.

Mexicans aren't voracious coffee drinkers as other peoples are, which I find odd because they produce some excellent stuff in Veracruz, Chiapas, Oaxaca, and Guerrero.

So, it's common to find Nescafe in households and restaurants. When you want the real stuff, you ask for a cafe americano. At least in Mexico City, most restaurants will have some variation of a pot of it going. Relatively easy to find ground coffee here. I get a Brazilian type for 80 pesos a kilo. You can find both cheaper and more expensive.

On the street, or in smaller, family restaurants, it's common to be served cafe de olla. I find it weak and too sweet for my taste though.

Mexico City is currently being overrun by Starbucks, and the idea of the coffeehouse seems to be gaining some popularity here. Similar in other parts of Mexico?

[TheLongWayHome]

SLP just got its first Starbucks! The opening was VIP of course with every sad rich tosser in town proudly walking around Fabricas de Francia with their Starbuck's cups, even if they were empty.

The nice home-produced stuff that Guy mentioned is about $40 to $50 pesos in a supermarket here. You can even buy a coffee machine for about $300 pesos.

'Cafe Punta del Cielo' (the Mexican Starbucks) is quite nice. Some vandals recently stole the n from Punta here in SLP. If it ain't screwed down in Mexico...

[ls650]

I found that on the Oaxacan coast (where a lot of coffee is grown) I didn't have too many problems getting 'real' coffee as opposed to Nescafe, and there were even a few decent coffee shops.

Now getting good tea - THAT was difficult.

[MELEE]

Several years ago the international coffess prices bottomed out and the Mexican government decided to implement a plan to promote coffee drinking since it wasn't paying to export the large crop. One hurdle is that there are many many excellent hot drinks in the Mexican repetoir. But I think the plan is working. When I first arrive in this town there were no establishments you could call "a caf�" and only one restuarant had expresso/capachino worth considering. Now there are at least 5 cafes and a couple of them hopping. Same with Oaxaca City. Ten years ago there were a few coffee shops, then before "las problemas" there was one on every block. Many of those folded, but it is still a caf� city.

It's not hard to find beans, ground or not, coffee makers all all sorts, and filters. But cheaper restuarants will have a jar of nescafe on the table, and that's all a lot of people will have in their homes. That and Caf� de Olla which is a different drink, but lovely--as long as you don't take a sip with your regular coffee in mind.

[Phil_K]

Be careful with the cafe de olla though. Many places claim to sell it but it turns out not to be the real McCoy. The best I've had is that I make at home. I buy the small individual piloncillos (blocks of unrefined sugar), measure the water by the cup and add one piece for each person to the olla (ceramic cooking vessel). I add about half a long stick of canela (cinnamon) per person, flaked, and a heaped teaspoon of good coffee each, plus a lttle for luck.

Oh! and it has to be drunk in those jarritos. If you want to know what one looks like, look on the label of a bottle of Jarritos refresco.

Delicious - (the coffee, not the refresco!)

[MELEE]

Phil,
Maybe in Mexico City it's not the real thing some places...

Try adding one clove--no more! to give it a more rounded flavor. Or should I say flavour?

[notamiss]

If you like a good brewed coffee, ask for caf� am�ricano. A genuine caf� am�ricano is half espresso-style coffee, half hot water.

Coffee bars are everywhere now (a long way from 25 years ago when we had to make the pilgrimage downtown for an espresso or cappuccino). Not all of them are good, but don't give up trying; you're sure to find a good one sooner or later.*

There are also many places to buy coffee beans and ground coffee. If you want to go for the top end, Illy brand is excellent but expensive. There are good vacuum-packed ground coffees available in the supermarkets. There are also small shops here and there, and even stalls in large markets selling coffee beans and grinding them for you at the time of purchase.

Starbucks started out good when they arrived in Mexico but after a few months I suspect they modified it for the Mexican taste. I soon learned that I have to ask for an extra shot if I want to be able to taste the coffee in a cappucino.

------Edited to add:
*Anyone finding themselves around Villa Coapa (i.e. near the Tec), I can recommend an excellent place to get coffee, recently discovered.

[Phil_K]

[dixie]

[Samantha]

A friend of mine calls Nescafe "no es cafe" but I have, over the years, become a convert. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em, was my theory. The first time I ordered coffee in Mexico and received a cup of hot water, a spoon, and a jar of Nescafe was very traumatic for me. I've come a long way.

[chola]

i began to really enjoy "no es cafe" with La lechera in it....mmm, sweet goodness!

[Oreen Scott]

Many thanks to all of you who answered my question. I now know more about coffee in Mexico than I do about coffee in Canada.

[dfields3]

Just look for an Italian Coffee Company. The last time I was in Mexico I noticed them EVERYWHERE. Even in the middle of nowhere on a bus they are usually right next to a Pemex station. They have decent coffee and it ain't starbux. I think the owner of the company is that EXTREMELY rich guy (can't remember his name) which would explain why they are always next to a Pemex.

[Guy Courchesne]

Carlos Slim? I wouldn't be surprised...it's hard to spend a dime in this country without giving at least 11 cents to him somehow.