If You're Not Serving Free Chips and Salsa, You're Not a Mexican Restaurant
You're just an overpriced restaurant with tacos
When I was a kid growing up on the West Coast, I always looked forward to eating in Mexican restaurants. Because I knew as soon as I sat down, I’d be greeted with a hearty “Buenos dias, senor!” and a basket of chips and salsa so big it could, in a pinch, play shooting guard for the Sacramento Kings.
When I moved to Miami, like any good transplant I complained about the lack of good Mexican food, insisting California’s was better because of our tap water, which was filtered with carne asada. The waiters stared at me blankly, because all they knew how to say in English was, “More chips?”
Even those pretty-awful Mexican restaurants gave you free chips and salsa as soon as you sat down, and would sometimes follow you outside to give you another basket of chips after you left. Sadly, that practice is dying.
“Upscale” Mexican Means No Chips For You
Flash forward to 2026, and this year has seen as many new Mexican restaurants come to Miami as it has live-streami…
