That's according to my Mexican friend Esdras, with whom Yuzo and I went tonight. Tepito is located in the Shimokitazawa (下北沢) area of Tokyo, just one train stop on the express train from either Shibuya or Shinjuku. It is run by a Mexican guy and his Japanese wife (who speaks fluent Spanish) and the chef Gabriel is also Mexican.

The three of us arrived before the live music started, and what we experienced was quite unexpected. The musicians were Japanese who have lived in Nepal for 15 years, and throughout the 2-3 hours that we were there they performed a variety of music and dance from Nepal accompanied by a few different instruments and a sound system. The guy also demonstrated (with explanations in Japanese) the different sounds that could be made with his drums. There are a couple of short videos at the bottom, but they can't really do it justice.

Some of the food we enjoyed was Tacos de Carnitas containing pork (photo 2), Tacos al Pastor also containing pork but with pineapple for added sweetness, delicious chorizo sausage with tortillas (photo 3), guacamole with nacho chips, and Pancita soup which is made from part of the stomach of a cow. Unfortunately neither Yuzo or I liked the soup very much; we found it a little bitter. But Esdras nearly cried he was so happy to eat it again after four years (the last time he was in Mexico).

For drinks Yuzo and I had Bohemia beer which tasted similar to Belgian white beer to me, while Esdras enjoyed not one but two drinks. The one on the right is wonderfully sweet Agua de Tuna, which comes from a fruit (called Tuna) that grows on a type of cactus, while the left-hand one is a sweet milk drink called Horchata which is made from milk and rice, and then sweetened with vanilla, sugar and cinnamon.

We finished off with flan (Mexican-style creme caramel pudding) and of course the mandatory round of Sauza Gold tequilas, drunk straight of course without the pictured salt and lemon.