Street Food

[ATX]

So from what I can tell, street food is damn cheap and looks good from what I can see. But I keep seeing people to stay away from it or you'll get mad sick. Just wondering how true this is, and if there is anything in particular to avoid.

I plan on getting typhoid/hep a/yellow fever shots if that makes a difference. Speaking of that anyone know the price of getting those in Mexico? Guess I should check out the red cross...

 

[MolotovMocktail]

Don't know about Mexico but I've been reading about Southeast Asia and read that since street food vendors sell so much food in such a short amount of time, they're actually more likely to have fresh (not rotten or rancid) ingredients.

 

[Odin]

Remember THIS.

https://squattheplanet.com/threads/gutter-oil.19743/#post-146883

 

[MolotovMocktail]

Forgot about that. I won't be visiting China though so I guess I wasn't exactly wrong.

 

[Odin]

yup lol... jst stay safe.

 

[Tude]

I've been in Mexico a few times (with car) and I ate from a few carts with no issues. I did however do a "cart" inspection for a short time after I found something I wanted - how clean it was, how the server served, etc (LOL you should have heard us when we saw the guy cooking and serving - no gloves, pick his nose!) - saw some really messy carts (greasy/dirty) and avoided them. Ate more from the fresh fruit - did have some awesome goat there and some decent tacos. My Grandmother traveled the world (awesome woman) - China, Thailand, Alaska, month in Africa on a a safari that included some time on the Amazon ... but it was her one trip into Central America and coming back up through Mexico where she had issues - she ate from some street vendors and ended up in a hospital with a bad bad case of food poisoning - had to be flown home - end of trip. So. Eat but be safe (hehe and I love samplling new foods).

 

[wizehop]

Man when you travel in "developing" countries, your going to get sick from time to time period. The drinking water is more of an issue than food is. I wouldn't even worry about pumping your body full of all those vaccines either. I've been all over the globe and never gotten any shots ( I have gotten the shits though), and I've been fine.
Keep in mind some vaccines only cover certain strains, so you can still get sick from something you got shots for; And even at that some shots can actually make you sick. SO your basically spending money and still taking a risk either way.

Living through the odd bout of near death is good for you anyhow, and the money is better spent on other things in my opinion.

 

[ATX]

The jist of what I'm getting here is to just kind of inspect it, think about what I'm doing, and expect to get sick. Doesn't sound bad to me. As far as water goes I got 5 life straws kiced down to me once for some reason, that's like a hundred dollars worth of portable water filters haha. So I'll bring those if I have to hit the tap.

I'm not really scared, I know the possibilities and I'm going into it knowing what to expect. I guess I can't say I'm not scared, but that's a part of the adventure. I just have about two months until I go down there so I have just been studying and reading up on it because I'm excited. Only reason I even considered immunizations is because I plan to be down there for a good while.

 

[Kim Chee]

I didn't get sick there.

I did order some meat to barbecue from a gloveless guy who was behind a window with a knife and a side of beef hanging without refrigeration. I tell him the cut and the weight and dude slices off a chunk. Worked for me, but wouldn't make it past any health inspection I know of.

I'm sure much of the street food is handled in the same manner.

Two of the three Mexican restaurants I worked in had some kind of insect infestation going on. All three were dirty, I was plenty busy cleaning.

 

[Mongo]

Man when you travel in "developing" countries, your going to get sick from time to time period. The drinking water is more of an issue than food is. I wouldn't even worry about pumping your body full of all those vaccines either. I've been all over the globe and never gotten any shots ( I have gotten the shits though), and I've been fine.
Keep in mind some vaccines only cover certain strains, so you can still get sick from something you got shots for; And even at that some shots can actually make you sick. SO your basically spending money and still taking a risk either way.

Living through the odd bout of near death is good for you anyhow, and the money is better spent on other things in my opinion.

In the U.S. there are places like planned parenthood, but for travel vaccinations. I don't know the name of them exactly but I think they are called travel centers just google travel center vaccination. I know there is one in Chico, CA that will provide them for free. You just have to make an appointment a month in advance.

 

[Raging Bird]

Haha, I was walking over to a street vendor in Mexico last week and the guy dropped his rag into a puddle in the street, then reached into a bucket, splashed some clean water on it, and used it to wipe down the flattop he was cooking on. Took a sharp left and hit a different taco stand real quick.

 

[Orisha El]

Haha, I was walking over to a street vendor in Mexico last week and the guy dropped his rag into a puddle in the street, then reached into a bucket, splashed some clean water on it, and used it to wipe down the flattop he was cooking on. Took a sharp left and hit a different taco stand real quick.

Are you still in mexico? im travelling with a friend there in less a couple weeks. It will be our first time there and it would be nice to meet up with some knowledgeable and seemingly chill people!

 

[Raging Bird]

Are you still in mexico? im travelling with a friend there in less a couple weeks. It will be our first time there and it would be nice to meet up with some knowledgeable and seemingly chill people!

Crazy you ask, I took off but I'm gonna jet back down there in a week or so from NOLA. When/where are you heading? I'm probably going to be traveling around the DF area looking for shit to sell on the streets here, would definitely be cool to see someone from STP down there.

 

[Orisha El]

Crazy you ask, I took off but I'm gonna jet back down there in a week or so from NOLA. When/where are you heading? I'm probably going to be traveling around the DF area looking for shit to sell on the streets here, would definitely be cool to see someone from STP down there.

Awesome! it looks like were awaiting to hear if were leaving now or in late june. how long will you be there? it would be really great to meet up with you!

 

[up2eleven]

Just go to busy street food stalls. The locals aren't going to be eating at shitty ones. The food is cheaper and tastier than most restaurants anyway. If there's a line, it's safe.

 

[deathrehearsal]

I never had a problem with street food. Since it is being prepared right in front of you it isnt hard to discern which carts take sanitation less seriously. Take your time, walk around, find one that is serving fresher ingredients or one where the proprietor isnt licking his fingers between orders and you'll probably be ok. Honestly street food is one of my favorite things about Mexico and Ive always wished we allowed those carts and stalls in the US.