Restaurant which in Mexico was called "taqueria" that is, go if you want to taste Mexican food such as enchiladas, tacos, and very diferent kinds of typical food. It's in Monterrey, in region of Nuevo Leon. Be careful with spicy food specially one chilli called "chile havanero" or you miss will sense of taste. You can find in it many kinds of mexican beer and the famous "sangrita". It's a glass of tequila and a glass of juice tomate and you have to drink mix it. If you prefer, not far of this site, there is a "tortilleria" where you can buys good pancakes cheaps to make your own "tacos".

My first residence in Mexico, and the Americas for that matter, was Radisson Plaza Gran Hotel Ancira. Opening in 1912 and known as the most beautiful building of its time because of its French architectural style, it is still considered an artistic monument and part of Mexico's national heritage to this day. For me, it has one of the best hotel lobbies I have ever seen in Mexico--grand but not boisterous, spacious but always pleasantly teeming with life and all things beautiful. The 263-room hotel is also home to Barandales Restaurant and Bar 1900, with a resident band playing Latin grooves and Mexican classics live nightly, and where I had my first taste of that toxic drink called mescal and the larva of some insect resting at the bottom of the bottle, apparently reserved for the guests of the hotel, especially those from the other side of the globe, or so the bartenders said. On top of its exquisitely designed and furnished rooms, Radisson Ancira shares the prime location of Zona Rosa in downtown Monterrey with another gem of a hotel where I stayed the longest later in my Mexican stint, Fiesta Americana--close to the Macroplaza, Barrio Antiguo, the Sunday flea markets by Sta. Catarina River, and the general goings-on of the city. I'd love to see this hotel again after 10 years of my last stay, and see if I can recapture my special past with Ancira.

Fiesta Americana Centro Monterrey is a modern hotel structure that from the outside shows off nine storeys of exquisite rooms concealed by large floor-to-ceiling glass windows. It has a lobby bar and restaurant that both offer a spectacular view of Cerro de la Silla. Like Radisson Ancira where I stayed for the first 4 months in Monterrey, Fiesta Americana has a privileged location right in the historical center of Monterrey, within walking distance to the Macroplaza, Barrio Antiguo, the museums, restaurants and businesses in and around the area in Zona Rosa. I, on the other hand, had the privilege of staying here for the last half of my 1-year business stint in Monterrey, easily making it my most comfortable home in Mexico. A funny thing happened to someone in my big group of Mexican friends that visited occasionally at the hotel: he was held up with a knife by a fellow Mexican and was robbed of his wallet, money and credit cards and all.

My business visitor status in Mexico from 1999 through 2000 did not allow me to rent an apartment like a resident was entitled to, so I was given an option to pick any of the hotels in and around Monterrey at my bidding. I ended up staying at the Radisson Ancira around Zona Rosa for 4 months, Hilton Garden Inn 2 months, and Fiesta Americana for almost half a year. I think Hilton's 2 is a giveaway. There's no way anyone can't be at home at the Hilton, but the middle-tier Hilton Inn franchise is just that, middle-tier--characterless in such a historic city as Monterrey, even antiseptic in its comforts. It has spacious and comfortable rooms with an ample kitchenette (another colleague actually cooked saffron rise in her own room at the same hotel), but the location is in a lonely part of the highway (almost 10 years ago anyway) between the city center and the Axtel office in Sta. Catarina where we worked, so the shuttle service was a big relief. After 2 months I went back to Zona Rosa in the city center for obvious reasons, not least of them to escape from antiseptic Hilton Inn.

It happened pretty much like when I was just getting started in Makati after years of working in South Cotabato: I got a phone call and within a week I was in Singapore, my first stop outside my native country. After less than two years in Singapore I got another phone call and within a month I was in Monterrey, Nuevo León, México--the most memorable of all my overseas stints so far--one full year of fraternity and fun with the Regiomontanos, mariachi, Dos Equis, las gringas and my beloved Elvira.

It wasn't without hurdle, however. First I had to learn not only española latinoamericano but española mexicano (most especially) as well. The Spanish we know in Sugbuhanon, my mothertongue, have mutated to extreme proportions in some cases, so that our rice cake puto is not equivalent to the male prostitute puto in Spanish, in general (my biggest boo-boo so far). Over the course of my stay and with the help of my friends and the locals, I've learned that ¡que mango! and ¡padrissimo! have nothing whatsoever to do with mangoes or fathers.

Of course, I also had to do the bit about mixing a shotful of lime juice and another shotful of chilli sauce into my beer (trust me, Coronas are so not cool to the Mexicans!) for my first michelada, as well as eat the dead larva of some insect at the bottom of a bottle of mescal. And the dancing, oh my, Elvira would ask me to dance with her everytime she heard a good song no matter where we were or what we were doing! (I learned that the hard way when she didn't speak to me for a whole day after I refused to dance at one point just because I was ashamed at what other people would say. Yeah, WRONG reason, I know that clearly now.)

There is that warm spirit of spontaneity, openness and intimacy that Mexicans exude in their dealings with each other and with visitors like myself, something that stays with you for a long time. When finally I left at the end of my work assignment there, I didn't say ¡adios! Just like the first time, it's ¡Hola! Mexico all the way.

SEP 1999--We celebrated Mexico's 178th Independence Day in front of the Governor's Palace in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, being one with the multitude of Regiomontanos.

Backgrounder: The Mexican Independence Day is a major holiday in Mexico, the celebration begins every September 15th at 11 pm in every single city and town in Mexico. In Mexico City, the President, following the ritual, rings the historic liberty bell that Father Hidalgo rang to call the people. Then gives the El Grito (The Cry). He shouts Mexicanos, ¡Viva Mexico! and the crowd echos back, establishing the tradition which has been solemnly followed every year thereafter.  And it is echoed by the governor of each state throughout the country.

The Cry may include other acclamations, such as the one included by President Benito Juarez to honor all those who sacrificed to make Mexico free: Long live the Heroes of our Independence! No one really knows what Hidalgo actually told the people. Many respected historians believe he said, ¡Viva the Virgin of Guadalupe! Death to bad government! Death to the gachupines! (Gachupines is a derisive term for Spaniards.) Because the term Mexico at the time meant Mexico City, Hidalgo probably did not say ¡Viva Mexico!

After the last ¡Viva México! is cried, the president waves the flag, rings the bell, and the National Anthem is sung. The next day, there is a civic ceremony, and a military parade. The actual day of September 16 is similar to Fourth of July in the United States. There are rodeos, parades, bullfights and horseback rider performances. The people feast and recall Hidalgo's speeches. There are statues in memory of Father Hidalgo and people decorate them with flowers. In cities with large Mexican communities outside of Mexico, the Mexican Consul does the traditional Grito. The show usually features traditional Mexican dances, singers, a rock group formed by Mexican students and of course, the mariachis.

JUL 1999--Bio Parque Estrella is a safari park and rainforest sanctuary where more than a thousand animals comprising 50 different species reside. The park is only about a 30-minute drive from downtown Monterrey in Nuevo Leon, Mexico. Elvira,  Nancy, Fernando and I earlier decided to visit el bio parque one Saturday in July, but I didn't know the exact date until that fine morning when they showed up at my hotel room at Fiesta Americana around Zona Rosa in Monterrey. So after a hearty brunch at the hotel's restaurant, off we went to Bio Parque Estrella in Elvira's compact car.

The day was a little bit overcast, a really bad day to use those cheap point-and-shoot film cameras. Strangely enough, I don't remember seeing or running into any of the animals, not even a pesky monkey that always pesters visitors for food. The natural creek running through the forest was very refreshing, and the giant boulders by the water provided a private retreat from the children running wild in the forest trails.

I don't remember much else from the trip except that we were goofing around the entire time, as can be seen in the photos, which I scanned for the purpose of publishing them here. Imagine, those photos are almost 10 years old now.

I love salads and soups. When i was living in Monterrey, i used to eat very often at this place. And i loved it! That´s the reason why i have decided to write a review about my favorite restaurant in this city. Here you can find a variety of salads, soups, wraps and natural juices. All of them are high quality food and you can really feel the natural taste of them. Natural juices (called aguas frescas): Horchata Jamaica Limonada Tamarindo Guayaba Melón Fresa Sandía Soups: Crema de Elote Sopa de Tortilla Caldo Tlapeño (definitly the best one!) Crema de Brócoli Crema de Frijol Sopa de Verduras Sopa del Día Salads: Buffalo Tender Salad Lechuga, pollo empanizado, salsa buffalo, jícama, apio, zanahoria rallada, queso cheddar, bacon bits, frituras y aderezo a su elección. De Atún Atún, pasta, jamón y queso cheddar con aderezo especial. De Pollo con Papa Pollo, papa, chícharo, zanahoria y mayonesa. Santa Fe Lechuga mixta, zanahoria, col morada, frituras, pollo, queso cheddar y aderezo ranch. Santa Fe Spicy Lechuga mixta, zanahoria, col morada, frituras, pollo lemon pepper, pico de gallo, aguacate, queso cheddar y aderezo ranch spicy. De Cangrejo Cangrejo, apio, cebollín y morrón verde con aderezo especial. Paraíso Manzana, nuez, durazno, fresa, con crema dulce. Mohave Lechuga mixta, pico de gallo, elote, jalapeño picado, frituras, pollo BBQ en fajitas, queso rallado, cebollín, bacon bits y aderezo blue cheese. Arrachera Grill Salad Arrachera en fajitas, lechuga mixta, frituras, col morada, pico de gallo, zanahoria, queso cheddar, aguacate con aderezo ranch picante. Grilled Chicken Cesar Lechuga romana, fajita de pollo marinado, tomate, champiñones, queso parmesano, croutones y aderezo césar. Italiana Pasta, pepino, tomate, cebolla, aceituna, jamón, apio, queso manchego y parmesano. Del Chef Lechuga, rábano, pepino, tomate, brócoli, queso panela y cheddar, huevo cocido, jamón de pavo, pechuga de pavo y aderezo de tu elección. Asiática Pollo, cangrejo, pepino, pimiento rojo, cebolla morada, germen de soya, cilantro, salsa asiática y ajonjolí. Santa Fe Grilled Lechuga mixta, zanahoria, col, aguacate, frituras, fajita de pollo marinada y queso cheddar, con aderezo ranch. Marinera Pasta, lechuga mixta, cangrejo, atún, camarón, zanahoria, aceituna, pepino y aderezo de tu elección. Cesar Pollo Lechuga romana, pollo croutones, queso parmesano.

Monterrey is a big city on the nordeast part of Mexico. It´s only 2 hours far away from the United States border (Laredo and McAllen). If you love beer, that will be the right place for you because here you are going to find a lot of varieties of selfmade beers. Sierra Madre Brewing Co. is a brewery. But you will find also typical mexican food, it´s very tasty. These are the beer types you will find here: -Sierra Madre Brewing Chipinque Red Ale (my favorite).Strong taste. -Sierra Madre Brewing El Fraile Porter -Sierra Madre Brewing Mata Canes -Sierra Madre Brewing Obispado Kolsch (very light taste) -Sierra Madre Brewing Regio Pilsner If you are hungry, i recommend you to taste: -Pan árabe -Enchiladas suizas

The last two weeks flew by.

Today, we climbed the land mark ridge of Monterrey City, Cerro de la Silla.

I stayed outside the city and have to say that's the way to go. If you like to shop (ladies) then you might want to drive into town and you'll have more at your fingertips than you can imagine. No haggling in the large shopping centers but in the smaller markets, have at it! I purchased a hand made bathroom sink for $25 that would have cost several hundred in the US! For the adventurer, I would try and find some of the smaller, off the beaten path places. Although you won't get Ritz Carlton accomidations, you'll get more of a genuine Mexican experience. The people that live in the suburbs are very friendly and you'll quickly learn that posessions are worthless but the family structure is far superior to the US. The local food is wonderful (have families cook, no resturaunts) and people are always willing to share. Enjoy!

Who knew seafood could taste so good in Monterrey. If you're ever in town, this is THE place to go for a variety of some great seafood dishes.