Greetings from Carrboro,
They came in a can. I swear to god. Though I have no memory of how many were in each Old El Paso tin, I do happily remember the sheer 4th grade glee over the pleasures that any appearance of that yellow can foretold. The holy taco night. Our electric can opener never did such important work. As I type in 2023, the idea of tortillas sold in a can is almost too ridiculous to imagine but, hey, 1976 beggars couldn’t be choosers. And I certainly never complained.
Since that time I’d say that all of us have taken the foods of Mexico to heart. You know, just a bit. And I’d hope beyond hope that finding something delicious doesn’t come across as off-putting cultural appropriation. Though I do wonder if some of the food names are made up as a sort of deserved running joke on all of us gringos. Because a woman I know dated a guy who got a Kanji tattoo with a supposed deep, Japanese meaning that actually read as “baby changing station.” So with that in mind, I always order my chimichanga very quietly.
And, yes, there is a reason for bringing all of this up. Tomorrow is Cinco de Mayo. That roughly translates to National Margarita Day in American English. Or something akin to that. Because it’s not really a holiday in Mexico – but it certainly seems to be one here. And personally I’m ok with that. To be honest, I’m good with any reason for a delicious meal. Period. And at Acme the fact that Cinco de Mayo also happens to be Friday sort of forces our hand. In a good way. Because we do have a lot of perfect strawberries and maybe a bottle of tequila or two. And, yes, plenty of salt and limes. ¡Viva la weekend!
Of course, we won’t stop at just margaritas. Honestly, how could we? There will be smoked chicken pozole, pork belly tamales, Martha’s flan, chili-rubbed strip steaks with Mexican chimichurri, empanadas with nopales and twice-cooked beans, chilaquiles with overnight beef cheeks and pipian verde, and our smashburger with guacamole. And – to be clear – all our traditional Acme favorites. Not too shabby. And I promise that none of it comes out of a can.
On Saturday, you can sip your Derby mint julep while eating an empanada. Why not? At Acme, when it rains, it pours.
Well, that’s all the news from Carrboro. The staff at Acme look forward to serving you soon.
Cheers,
The Staff at Acme
