See some history while having a beer!!! YES you can in Queretaro @ Cerveceria Hercules

One of the most signature neighborhoods in Queretaro is called Hercules or how local people like to call it “La Hermana República de Hercules”, the place has more than 500 years of history but the highlight is a textile manufacturing facility that dates from 1838 and worked continuously until this year. In 1838 the owners brought machinery from England and opened the factory working continuously until 2019 to satisfy the local textile market, current market conditions from asia imports made it difficult to continue operating so they decided to close the factory. Maybe 30% of the space is being used for the brewery and the garden right now.

As part of the evolving changes in consumer taste and taking advantage of growing trends in beer culture the textile landmark integrated a Beer Micro Brewery called “Cerveceria Hercules” founded in 2011 and in 2016 they expanded their offering by opening “Jardin de Cerveza Hercules” , now in this historic place you can find good food, entertainment and more important great beer .

Beer gfor here and to Go / Pizza is delicious (Pepperoni )

We have seen their development during these 4 1/2 years but one thing has been a constant: their quality in everything they do. Today they offer a wide variety of in house brews that mix perfectly with a balanced menu of pizzas, sausages, and seafood options. On special occasions they expand their food offerings with some other specials. For me the pizzas and sausages are gooood and are the perfect fit for the different beer options like the MACANUDA, HURACAN or the SUPER LUPE

Their options continue growing, more than 15 different types of beer!!!!

As part of the development of the space now the garden offers live music multiple days in the week with nice variety from cuban music to electronic sounds and even when a good soccer match is on they will show it on screens, additionally you find ping pong, table games and cornhole. For us Cerveceria Hercules has been a pace to gather with friends and family to celebrate any occasion or just to have a good time

It has been fun watching Cerveceria Hercules grow, now you can find their beers in many of the restaurants around Queretaro; they invested in machinery to sell their beers in cans and have opened a store were you can buy them directly or thru the internet.

Definitely Cerveceria Hercules has been one of the great places we come to know during our stay in Mexico, it is a required visit if you come to Queretaro. Just gather some friends and taste the many alternatives the “Jardin de Cervezas Hercules” has to offer, hey and if you like them a lot by a couple of them at the store and put them in your luggage.

You can see the chimneys of the old textile factory

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Winter is coming… Life is a beach in Mexico!!!

It is clear that when people says Mexico the images of tacos, fiesta, and traffic comes into their mind. Mexico vast coast give life to some of the most beautiful and cool beaches in the world, with more than 5,500 miles of beaches you will definetly find great places to surf, eat and chillax.

We come from Puerto Rico, a place that has some of the most beautiful beaches in the world for pleasure (Flamenco in Culebra) and surfing (Jobos en Isabela), so we now a great beach when we see it . Maybe another time I will write a post about the beauties of our island but for now the blog is focus on the great things Mexico has to offer.

Culebra used to be an Army practice area (Can you imagine!!!) / Flamenco Beach / Kite Surfing in Isabela

During our time here in Mexico we have been given the opportunity to know beaches across the 2 oceans both the Pacific and Atlantic, also the selection of places includes small towns like Holbox and big tourist destinations like Cancun. There are endless things to do for all budgets and great food like seafood tostadas or lobster pizza.

Lobster Pizza Place in Holbox / Fried Fish, from sea to the table in 30 minutes!!!

In future posts I will get into specifics on the different places we have been and what in our opinion you should do while on a Mexico beach. One thing is important for you to know, Mexico beaches are quite spectacular and you can choose among many alternatives to enjoy good days in hot weather and wonderful margaritas. So go ahead and this winter plan a vacation in one of Mexico beaches, I know we will!!!!

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Mexico cuisine is more than tacos… Still the taco is champ!!!

If you ask 100 different people in Mexico their favorite dish, you can get 100 different answers. Mexico extensive land and climates provide a huge pallet of flavors and texture in their food. The other key element in their food is the wide variety of peppers from mild to extremely hot, it is important to say that in order to enjoy Mexican food it is mandatory to use their salsa made with peppers. For me is key the freshness of their ingredients, today they have hundreds of open air markets were you can get vegetable, fruits, meats that go directly to their cuisine. I will share my experience of “el mercado” in another post.

“El mercado” is an experience that every one needs to have in Mexico

If you ask for my favorite dish it would be almost impossible to just select one, but for the exercise I would tell you that the “Cochinita Pibil” would take the number 1 place, it is a traditional Mexican slow-roasted pork dish from the Yucatán Peninsula. Preparation of traditional “cochinita” involves marinating the meat in strongly acidic citrus juice, seasoning it with annatto seed which imparts a vivid burnt orange color, and roasting the meat while it is wrapped in banana leaf.

The best way to try Mexico food is thru a buffet, we found one in a trip to Guadalajara (more to come about these beautiful city) the price was around $20 USD per person and had more than 100 different options, see the photos below from one of our trips. On Sundays many hotels and restaurants have their own Mexican buffet, give a try to food made on the spot …

Buffet from Santo Coyote in Guadalajara, you will find many buffets like these all across Mexico on Sundays

Cochinita can be served in many ways: Tacos, With beans, As a sandwich but my favorite is the “Panucho” (Corn Tortillas filled with mashed black beans, cochinita pibil , topped with purple onion and habanero sauce), the secret is that the tortillas are fried before putting all other ingredients.

Best place to try “Cochinita” in Mexico City / Panuchos in the making

The great thing about Mexican food is you can enjoy a simple “Taco de Canasta” from a lady in a street to a tasting menu from Pujol one of the best restaurants in the world, one in front of the other. The alternative are endless and for every budget and taste buds. I will try and cover different foods and places in my posts, also will share a list of places we have enjoy thru the years in the Food section.

I hope this brief introduction have set you up for a culinary trip across Mexico, give a try to their cuisine and taste the large variety of foods from Seafood to local produced meat, from local fruits to the more than 100 hundred different peppers to make a salsa.

Continue enjoying our blog as we share our stories of #boricuaslivingabroad .

To explore Mexico you will need more than a lifetime…

My first time coming to Mexico was close to 20 years ago, that time coming to work I stayed a week and went to traditional tourist places (Teotihuacan Pyramids, City Center, couple of museums) it was quite impressive to see how complex and massive Mexico City is: 20 million people, 150 thousand taxis, largest metro system in Latin America, more than 26 thousand buses “Peseros”, more than 1 million mom and pop stores, street food all over the place!!!!. Frankly it was overwhelming and was tough to understand how you can get know Mexico City, what I was sure is that I needed to come back again and enjoy the chaotic Mexico experience.

10 years ago (2009) Pyramids, Chapultepec Forest, Estadio Azteca

Before I came to live permanently to Mexico there were many trips for work and every trip the experience was better. Adventuring to try different foods, entertainment, sports, Mexico has it all. Now after more than 20 years I am ready to share some great experiences that will definitely will make you come and experience Mexico at it’s best.

Xochimilco (2014) – The Venice of America!!! (More Fun definitely)

Moving to today and now been living in Mexico for more than 4 years, we have been to 20 different states from the 32 they have in Mexico. Big cities, country side, beaches, archaeological places we have seen it all and will be sharing specifics in other posts on what to do, see and eat because the alternatives are almost infinite.

Morelia, beautiful city. Love Mexico Markets (2017)

I hope that our story will inspire people to come here and visit Mexico and enjoy all it has to offer, until the next post remember to follow us in the blog and by searching #boricuaslivingabroad in social media.

Sierra Gorda – Incredible landscape… unique views

Wrestling the real top “Sport” in Mexico

A couple of nights a months, usually Tuesday or Sunday people gather in one of the cathedral of Mexico wrestling “Arena Queretaro” . Many of the top wrestlers in Mexico have wrestled in the Arena: La Parka, Pshyco Clown, Mistico, Caristico, Pagano, Hijo de Wagner Jr., Ultimo Guerrero are some of the biggest stars, but also you find local stars like: Kastigador, Vengador, Gremlin, Dragones de Oriente and many others.

Promotion Material for the wrestling show

It does not matter if it is a school night you will find a full arena with kids, women and men of all ages ready to root in favor of the good “tecnicos” or bad “rudos” guys . People come to enjoy the show and get the stress out: a cold beer “chela” and some snacks “botana” are the perfect add on for a high energy night. Outside and inside the arena you will find the perfect souvenir to bring back to your home.

Wrestlers always on the move “Flying in the Ring”

Once the matches starts it is non stop action, all of the wrestlers are great performers with many hours of training. The first matches build energy, you get the lower card that can surprise you with their great performance. People start throwing money into the ring if the match was good for them, these is because lower card wrestlers get very low pay from their matches. Then you get the last 2 matches semi and main event here you will find the more experienced wrestlers and the bigger names, now almost 2 hours into the show people expect the roof to blow. You will not be disappointed going to a show it is fun and a great way to live Mexico culture.

BTW, the night is not over… After a great wrestling night, you need to hit a taco place “taqueria” it is a great way to end a perfect night… I personally go to Tacos “Los Gusanos de Chucho” 2 minutes by car from “Arena Queretaro”, you will not regret it… guarantee!!! Will be sharing some food insight in the food page.

The action gets very close to your seats!!!!

At the end if you have the chance and see a wrestling show … GO it will be a unique experience full of energy and entertainment….

I will share information in the entertainment pages about the venues you can go and enjoy the wrestling shows.

Queretaro best city to live in Mexico

A couple of hours north of Mexico City you find Queretaro city located in the center of Mexico called “El Bajío”. I first came to know Queretaro in 2009 while working for Nielsen Company, went there to visit the wine region, today is the second wine region behind Baja California. Queretaro at that time was receiving more than 30 new families each day, the proximity to Mexico City and how safe it is made it the place to go. I could not imagine that 5 years later it would become home.

Queretaro offer is incredible, the city center is beautiful with good restaurants and lots of activity during the weekends; close by lots of “Pueblos Mágicos” – San Miguel de Allende / Tequisquiapan/ Bernal and a couple of hours by car Guanajuato / Valle de Bravo / Sierra Gorda. More to come in other posts about these day trips. If you want to do some shopping it offers some of the most newer and bigger shopping malls in Mexico.

If you want to know Queretaro and enjoy what it has to offer 7 days are needed, 3 or 5 days let you get to know most of the great things in Queretaro. If you send me a note I will share some schedule advices for your visit.

I will share more information about the sights, food and entertainment of these great country and their cities.

“Boricua” family that took the opportunity to live in Mexico and has enjoy the adventure since 2015 and counting …

Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.