Mealtimes in Mexico are different than those in Japan. Breakfast is a light meal that people eat between seven and eight in the morning before they go to work or school, lunch is quite late (between two and four in the afternoon), and dinner is between eight and nine at night. Of course there are individual differences and it depends on the school or job, but that’s the general schedule. The biggest meal of the day is lunch, and dinner is usually something light—bread or cereal, soup, yogurt, fruit—things like that. I’ve heard that one reason for this is that digestion is more difficult at higher elevations like Mexico City. You’re probably wondering whether people get really hungry eating lunch so late, and as you’d expect, people can’t actually wait that long. So they typically eat a light meal or a snack around 11 a.m. The kindergarten that my daughter goes to has snack time at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m., and most kids eat some bread, vegetable sticks, fruit, yogurt, popcorn, or a slice of pizza. The 1 p.m. snack time isn’t lunch, either—they eat lunch after they get home, between three and four in the afternoon. In my family, though, the kids take a bento box to eat as their lunch during the 1 p.m. snack. It depends on the job, but many working people also return home during this time to eat lunch with their families. And I hear that most companies have their employees take a break around 11 a.m. to eat something as well.
Because mealtimes are different here, most restaurants are open between 1 p.m. and 11 p.m. or so. That said, there’s a breakfast tradition in Mexico called desayuno, so the ones that serve it open around 10 a.m. instead. So be forewarned that if you go to a restaurant to eat lunch around noon like you would in Japan, you’ll find that they’re still serving breakfast. Even McDonald’s only serves breakfast items until noon. Restaurants start getting crowded around 3 p.m., so you’ll often find the restaurant deserted if you go in as soon as they start serving lunch.
It probably seems like Mexican people eat tacos day after day, but there is a huge variety of food served both in homes and in restaurants and cafés. Even supermarkets offer a lot of prepared food items like they do in Japan, so I’ll take a moment to describe some of those as well.
Modern Mexican cuisine, which as the name suggests is an updated take on traditional Mexican fare, is popular in Japan and the world over—not just in Mexico.


Restaurants along Avenida Presidente Masaryk

Restaurant at the Museo Rufino Tamayo art museum

Tosadas (fried corn tortillas) made with dark corn
Modern Mexican isn’t always budget-friendly, but as you’d expect, you can really enjoy the atmosphere, the flavors, and the presentation if you eat it in a nice restaurant.

You can also get food in ready-to-eat packages at supermarkets. This one has chicken, mashed potatoes, and cactus salad for about ¥300.

Prepared fried whitefish

They also have ceviche, but a lot of the ones you find in the supermarkets are spicy.
Restaurants here also serve things like soup and pasta, but I’ll finish up by talking about meat, which the Mexicans love, and fish dishes, which a Japanese person like me is always on the lookout for.

This is a classic favorite, arrachera (skirt steak), served with guacamole, frijoles (refried beans), and other sides as well as tortillas so you can make your own tacos.

Ceviche is a marinated fish dish. Peru is most famous for it, but it’s also frequently eaten in Mexico and throughout Latin America. In Mexico they serve it with tostadas.

This is grilled chicken breast that has been pounded thin. It’s usually served with potatoes and raw vegetables.
Mexicans consider chicken breast to be the better cut of meat, so chicken thighs are actually cheaper. Another popular selection in addition to simple grilled chicken dishes like this one is Milanesa de pollo, which is a Milanese-style chicken cutlet.
You can get dishes like these in most restaurants and hotels. They’re likely to suit a Japanese palate and be enjoyed by kids, so they’re a pretty safe bet wherever you go. One of the unique and interesting things about Mexican cuisine is how many dishes besides tacos also make use of tortillas or tostadas.