Gordita: Literally “little fatty,” referring to the chubby size of this oversized tortilla with a pocket for stuffing meat, vegetables, and salsas. They are usually fried without oil on a comal (“griddle pan”) to create a crunchy exterior.

From “Guide to Foods of México” by Erich Almasy

I was having lunch with Erich Almasy last week. We were in a relatively new place, a little place that specializes in gorditas. Now it’s not unusual to see gorditas on a menu. But they’re usually way down on a menu. This charming little place is so proud of theirs, they’ve not only put them first and foremost on their blackboard, they’ve worked them into their name. 

The place is called Gordibuenas. I call it a place because it’s not quite a restaurant. It’s grandma’s front garden with a couple of tables and a griddle. There are a few different words for small restaurants in Mexico. I thought loncheria might be the most appropriate. Erich thought fonda. Erich won. He wrote the book.

Fonda: A tiny restaurant or street stand. Think “hole in the wall” and even someone’s porch. It’s closer to a street food cart than a traditional sit-down restaurant. Run by mothers and grandmothers, they are the very definition of home-cooked meals. 

From “Guide to Foods of México” by Erich Almasy

Gordibuenas the fonda is run by a mother, a grandmother and a daughter. A family business doesn’t get much more family than that. Their pride is shown by the three’s almost constant smiles.

Daughter Valeria serves the guests who tightly squeeze into Gordibuenas’ maybe 15 seats. Erich and I tell her we’re here for the gorditas and she asks what stuffing we’d like. We ask Valeria what she recommends. Her first suggestion is pork cooked with nopales.

Nopal: Many types of succulent cacti (Opuntia ficus) from the Nahuatl word nohpalli, typically referred to as prickly pear cactus. Most familiar are the large (up to 25 centimeters) oval-shaped, flat “paddles” with thorns but tender stems and ears. With the thorns removed, the cactus paddles are called Nopales and are sliced or cubed and eaten raw, in salads, or cooked. 

From Guide to Foods of México by Erich Almasy

We say yes. Valeria’s second suggestion is beef. We say yes and ask if she’ll bring us a knife when they’re served so we can 50/50 the order.

Valeria’s mother, Perla, prepares our gorditas, doing something I’d never seen before. To the masa or corn dough, Perla adds your choice of spicy cheese or what she calls migajas and I call the more browned, salty and tasty bits that are left after making carnitas. Meanwhile, Valeria reminisces about the time she was a kid and how all of her friends wanted to come to her house after school because Mom was such an amazing cook.

Erich tells me more about what Perla is cooking.

“Gorditas are fried on a Comal pan, unlike their sister, the Chalupa, which is deep-fried in lard, or its South American cousin, the Arepa, which is smaller. The round is fried and browned, then slit on the side”, says Erich. “Originally, the opening was filled with cooked vegetables such as squash, nopales, beans, and peppers. Today, we also add cooked eggs, pork, beef, or chicken. You could call it the Mexican pita!”

I interrupt Erich sipping his lemonade to ask what he knows about their history.

“Gorditas were a pre-Hispanic dish enjoyed by indigenous people throughout ancient México”, he tells me. “The name gordita is relatively new and considered pejorative by some as it’s the feminine form for chubby. In the Nahuatl language, all tortillas were referred to as Tlaxcalli, but early gorditas may have been called Tomāhuac, meaning ‘something plump’.”

Valeria arrives with the gorditas. They are good, very good. Crispy, crunchy on the outside. Ooey gooey on the inside. And very tasty.

Though Erich and I decide most people could be satisfied with a single gordita for lunch (with the lemonade that’s a 50 peso lunch), we want more.

Valeria suggests cochinita pibil tacos and asks if we’d like a single or an order of three.

Cochinita pibil is something you’ll rarely find at a taco stand or fonda in Central Mexico. Erich and I look at each other. I tell Valeria we’ll take the full order of three.

Cochinita Pibil: A famous dish of Yucatecan cooking. A blend of pre-Hispanic cooking style using pib (Maya word for underground oven) with Spanish ingredients, including pork. The key local ingredient is achiote (“paste from annatto seeds”), which marinates the meat and gives it an orange coloring.

From “Guide to Foods of México” by Erich Almasy

The Mexican tacos with that juicy orange meat come perfectly dressed with avocado and pickled pink onions. They taste as good as they look. I’m not sure that Erich’s book mentions that cochinita pibil is considered by some to be one of the world’s greatest dishes. I make it a point to check when I get home.

If you’re hungry for some good gorditas in pleasant surroundings with a delightful server you’ll find Gordibuenas at Tenerias #13 in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. The fonda is open from Friday to Sunday from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm but those good gorditas are only available on Saturday and Sunday.

If you’re hungry for more about Mexican foods, you can find information on purchasing a paperback or ebook version of Erich Almasy’s Guide To Foods Of México at https://guidetofoodsofmexico.com. Both are available at Amazon and Lulu; the ebook is available at Apple Books and Lulu.