Eating is a favorite pastime of mine. What better way is there to experience a new country than to eat my way through it?

I believe you cannot know a people or a culture until you’ve tried their local cuisine—and not just from the tourist stops. The history behind their food or the nostalgia and pride they have in certain snacks is exciting to me.

Different from some of my other posts on “what I ate”—this one includes more focus on alcohol! I don’t usually drink in the countries I visit, but this time I did more than usual. I suppose New Years Eve and all of the tequila tastings around Cozumel lured me to partake.

In this post, I give you the highlights of my foodie—and drinkie?—experience in Cozumel!

Groceries

As usual, one of my first stops in Cozumel (and any new country) was the grocery store! My accommodation had a small kitchen with a refrigerator that I could use, so having groceries on hand at least for breakfasts was ideal.

But I also love to see what unique snacks are sold in each country. I didn’t want anything that I’ve seen or could easily access in the USA. It was important to look for the items less commonly found anywhere else.

The first is “Nopal” flavored or infused foods. Nopal is cactus! It was laced into a lot of items on display in the deli/baked goods section of the store.

Nopal tortillas and nopal chorritos were some of the frequent cacus items I found. I tried the chorritos and really enjoyed them!

I didn’t buy any liquor but I did take some photos of some of the more unique bottles I found. Of course, their most popular national liquor is tequila. It’s all over and a big tourist trap to participate in a tequila tasting! But here it was, and for rather cheap, by the bottle right in the grocery store.

I’d say, if you want some really unique tequila, wait to experience it at a bar. There’s one in particular I’ll discuss a bit further down this post!

Other snacks that are very popular in Cozumel and Mexico in general are snacks made with peanuts. In particular, their lime flavored peanuts and a special Japanese flavor.

I tried both and definitely fell in love with the lemon flavored peanuts the most! They were the perfect amount of salty and tart with a tinge of sweet from the peanut itself. There is also a glorious crunchy outer shell before you hit the peanut that makes for a super addictive chomping experience!

I’m not really a bit chip person so I didn’t try their uniquely flavored chips. But I had to share just a few examples anyway. The one that really stood out to me was a Tostitos flavor called “nachos.” Nachos flavor already built in is wild to me!

Next up—sweets!

I have a sweet tooth and so this is where I got a little crazy. I picked up so many interesting items, including spaghetti-shaped, watermelon flavored licorice and a chocolate-covered, marshmellow-y happy face?! One of my Mexican friends said they remembered these from their childhood—cute!

Taramindo was a popular flavor in Costa Rica and that was also the case here in Cozumel, Mexico. Lots of tarmindo flavored sweets as well as marzipan-flavored treats were clearly special items to buy as gifts.

I tried the “de la Rosa mazapán” and it was a different texture than I am used to. Cut into little circles that fit into the palm of your hand, the marzipan treat is almost like a grainy chalk that crumbles and melts in your mouth. Really good!

Because I was visiting Mexico right after Christmas, I spotted in the bakery some traditional Three Kings Bread. It’s essentially a sweet bread that is traditionally baked in a ring with different crystallized fruit jams in various colors decorating the top. It got a bit of a makeover after the conquistadors came, but there is a deep-rooted tradition in Mexico around this bread.

I tried it and it was ok! A little too doughy for me—like a donut which is my least favorite American dessert!

Not pictured are a lot of food items that were coated in a particular red-colored seasoning. This was usually made of dried arbol chiles and ground piquín. I had it on dried mango slices, expecting it to be really spicy. It was not bad at all. The flavor was more salty than spicy—and really unique and addictive!

Local Foods

One of the best parts of Mexico is the incredible inexpensive local good you can get. If you don’t go to the super touristy areas, you can find little corner restaurants that are only open for a few hours a day in the afternoon. They serve whatever is available that day or sometimes only tacos.

As a result, I ended up having a lot of tacos during my stay in Cozumel. It was the easiest way to save and I knew it’d always come out great. The presentation was never much to look at. But the flavor, and especially the fresh tortillas and spicy salsas available, made this an awesome experience almost every time.

On one occasion, I was especially hungry and got a bean soup to go with it! Yum!

After so many tacos, I went to Taqueria El Poblano to mix things up. It was a place known for their tacos, especially the ones with pork from their vertical roasting spit.

I ventured off menu to order a pizza. It was just ok! As New Yorker, I probably should have known better than to take this leap! ;)

Tourist Spots

Sometimes, the tourist spots still do hit right. They may charge a little extra but they are often owned and operated by locals anyway. So at least my money was contiuing to go to the right place.

My favorite spot (I went twice!) was located right on the main strip by the port called “Aqui + Ahora Coffee Bar.” Not only was their food good, they had a generous happy hour margarita special (two for one) and the lighting, décor, and views at this place were everything I love!

Another notable tourist spot was Alberto's Beach Restaurant. This restaurant is located southwest of the main city of San Miguel about 30 minutes down Quintana Roo C-1.

This seafood restaurant had delicious, traditionally Mayan dishes that are infused with a spice called Achiote. I had shrimp that was cooked in achiote with vegetables. I can’t begin to explain what this taste like but it was so good that I bought the spice and brought it back with me to cook with! It’s absolutely a must-try while in Cozumel.

I also very much enjoyed a burrito from the roadside location called El Chipo. I included this one under Tourist spots because it’s on the road adjacent a lot of the major beach parks. But they were clearly locally owned and quite small.

They were super sweet and gave me free chips and salsa as I waited for my burrito! :)

I left there almost already full on that. But I took the burrito to-go and ate it at the beach at sunset—perfection!

Alcoholic Beverages

I was in Cozumel for New Years—so unlike my other trips I was actually in the mood for some drinking!

Margaritas were a consistent order of mine. These were usually the less expensive options on the menu. They also usually included a great variety of flavors—like mango or coconut!

Strawberry Margarita from Del Cielo Beach Club

But one of my favorites, and totally unique to Cozumel, was the peanut butter margarita you can order from Rasta Bar. This is specially made by none other than—my dive master at Cozumel’s Angel Dive Resort! His brother works at Rasta Bar on the southwestern corner of Cozumel. It’s bottled as “Ohana’s” and it’s served there as a delicious creamy beverage (“Noka Tequila”) or a shot (“Bob Marley”).

For New Years Eve I had a…few beverages. You can read all about it here!

Churros!

Last, but not least, there are food trucks around Cozumel that serve of various treats. After seeing and experiencing churros multiple times all over New York and Miami, I had to try fresh churros from a cart in Cozumel.

I’m so glad I tried them because these were definitely unlike any churros I’ve ever had before! These were hot and crispy and so fresh. This was definitely a good call while passing through San Miguel Municipal Park.

In Conclusion

This foodie enjoyed the food (and drink) in Mexico. It didn’t knock me off my feet but I generally love Mexican food so it was good to experience it in its origin country.

My favorite drink of the trip was definitely the peanut butter tequila! I’ve been craving it ever since.

And my favorite dish of the trip was Alberto’s shrimp dish with the traditional achiote Mayan spice. It left such an impression on me that I am savoring the little box of achiote that I brought home with me.

This wasn’t the last of the Mexican food I would try, though. I experienced more when I returned to Playa Del Carmen in April! But more on that later.

What I Ate (and Drank) in Cozumel