Holy Guacamole! These last few weeks have flown by and it’s time for my monthly ‘Travel Tip Tuesday’ post. This month my focus is on food, more specifically, cheesy veggie goodness rolled into a soft (or for some, hard – I’m judging you btw) tortilla shell. I’m focusing on Tacos, lets tacobout it now!
I just returned from Cancun, Mexico on a mission to sample all the best tacos that I could possibly fit into my stomach. For the full video, including my reactions to hot sauce and tequila (cause you have to in Mexico), check out my YouTube channel Mellie Telly for my latest video HERE!
No time for a video? Then read on for my tips on finding, eating, and enjoying my favourite food. I mean, we had a wedding taco party, how much more dedicated can you get?!
The Taco Search
Finding tacos in Mexico is not difficult; the real 5-star challenge is finding a local business, not the restaurant chains geared towards sucking as much money as possible from tourists while providing practically tasteless food. I spent lots of time on Google searching “The best tacos in Cancun”, reading forums, searching “Local tacos” and looking up suggestions from expats and locals alike. To save you the time, here is my list of restaurants that I have personally tried or ambitiously wanted to make a stop at: Taco Factory, La Parrilla, Tacun, The Surfin Burritto, El Asador, El Poblano, Tacos Rigo, Los de Pescado, Taqueria Coapeñitos and Mextreme. Some are located in the Hotel Zone, and some downtown Cancun. 
In the end, we could not possibly hit up every single place. In Mexico, portion sizes tend to be enormous and greasy and add in the intense summer heat, was way too much food. We ended up sticking to a few local places downtown (so local that not a single tourist was in sight, and no one understood English, PERFECT), with a few touristy spots for comparison. Can you guess which ones were best?
You’re right if you were thinking the handmade, under-priced, over-spiced deliciousness that the local shops offered up. Oddly enough, many places did not have vegetarian tacos on the menu, so after some hand gestures and awkward attempts at Spanish, they were willing to create something special. Often it would result in a ‘build your own’ taco, and gluten-free was not always possible. You win some, you lose some.
Eat It Hot
All meals are served with chips, dip and HOT sauce to start. I prefer that over bread and oil any day. The hotter the sauce, the better, provided I had a Corona or Sol (low gluten beer) to combat the burn. I suggest trying all the sauces on the table; you are in Mexico after all. The colour of the dip or salsa is not an indicator of spice, as in some restaurants the green one was the hell in the bottle and others the red one was the mouth scorcher. Not sampling all the flavours would be like flying to Amsterdam and not having a handful of cheese. No one does that.
Most of the time the tacos were fresh off the grill, hot, spicy and ready to go. Have napkins nearby to soak up your sweat, a bottle of water and/or beer, and you are set to roast in the sun and eat tacos to your heart’s content. I always take a bite first to experience the original flavour the chef provided, and then add sauces and lime wedge squeezes if needed.
The Results Are In
More often than not, my stomach and taste buds were satisfied. There were some meat close calls (1 accidental consumption), too many intakes of gluten and some fun games of charades before ordering, but Cheese Louise, it’s worth it for tacos. Overall I was surprised by the lack of “street meat” taco stands that I had envisioned would fill the roads, perhaps we were not in the right city? Or it was tourist down season? If you know, leave a message in the comments below.
To see which taco won my heart over in Cancun, be sure to watch my YouTube video on Mellie Telly!
No matter how tasty these Mexican meals were, I am still on the hunt for the PERFECT taco holy grail (and maybe one that won’t cause stomach pains hours later). So far the best have been the ones we’ve made, (with love) with our own hand-picked ingredients and extra flavours. Maybe it’s the control of portion sizes, adding specifically what I’m craving or the joys of building and plating my own. Now, let’s see if my saucy souvenirs will now only enhance what we already have, as my search continues.
Cheers,
Melissa
It’s that time of the month for Travel Tip Tuesday! Are you travelling on a budget? Look for free things to do! Most cities offer some tourist attractions that are free or by donation. This can include museums, churches, graveyards, parks, gardens, beaches, waterfalls, hiking and more! Some locations have special free days once a month on big tourist attractions as well (such as the last Sunday of the month in Rome, where most attractions are free including the Colosseum and Roman Forum), or cheaper rates on unpopular nights (enjoy discount tickets at 
Here’s the catch; other people are also looking for these deals and the free days can come with higher than normal lines to get in, and perhaps can overcrowd your perfect Instagram shot. So go early, have patience, bring snacks and be prepared.
You all know by now that I am a huge advocate for the pay by donation walking tours (such as 
Want to see more vintage artefacts without spending a dime? Check out high-end antique or art shops. This is a great option if you are a budget traveller, and sales staff are typically more than willing to give you a full history lesson regarding a particular piece. If in doubt, 
First off, hope you had a lovely Easter weekend filled with family, friends, fun and of course chocolate!
It’s that time for Travel Tip Tuesday! One of my favourite things when travelling is to do as the locals do. When travelling you most definitely want to check out the famous iconic landmarks that each city holds, but also try to venture off the beaten path. Some of the best foods I’ve eaten were not in touristy restaurants, but mom and pop shops that were not listed on maps! You can find beautiful sites, delicious food and local crafts that are not commercialized when you step out of the main tourist core. Also asking the locals where they like to eat and shop can be helpful and very rewarding! Want to save some cash? You can check out the local grocery stores for snacks to carry with you when exploring.
Enjoy your trip and be adventurous, but with a degree of caution to your surroundings. Any other travel questions? Let me know! And stay tuned for more!
I also have just started a collection of lipsticks from visited countries, so that I have a shade to remind me of each trip! What do you collect?
Any other travel questions? Let me know! And stay tuned for more monthly tips and tricks!
Melissa Verwey - Van de Vooren 