Little Mexico

About four blocks away from Mildred there is a wonderous little place called, Tampico Refresqueria. It is not pretty. It is not air conditioned. It does not accept anything other than cash. But the treats are fresh, cheap and (most importantly) delicious. 

Stumbling upon it has been one of the top reasons why I hope to never budge from Mildred. It is literally a little piece of Mexico here in Houston.The licuados (Spanish for smoothie, kind of) are a must (it's worth splurging an extra 25 cents for the mango) they are sweet and completely natural. 

However, the two treats I diligently crave are:

The chamoyada raspado and the elote. 

Chamoy is not for everyone but it's a staple in my fridge. I will douse my green apple slices/cucumbers/mangoes with it, lime juice and chili powder for an explosion of deliciousness. Putting it in a raspado (aka sno cone) is absolute heaven in this summer heat. 

The corn in a cup will sound disgusting but, it's definitely one of those combinations that you have to give a chance in order to fall in line behind the many doubters-quickly-converted-to-lovers upon tasting. It consists of corn with a dollop of mayonnaise (I know, I hate it outside of this too), hot sauce and grated Oaxaca cheese. The key to make the corn absolutely irresistible is to thoroughly mix all ingredients before digging in. If not, you end up with lonely kernels at the end. No one wants to end up with those. 

Living so close makes it hard to resist. It's also on my route home from work...I foresee many "it's been a hard day" treats in my future!