Mexico's Modern Supermarkets

Whenever traveling to a city for the first time, in Mexico or elsewhere, one of the first things that I do is to visit a supermarket to get, hopefully, a clean, well-lit, interesting, non-threatening-albeit sanitized- view of and feel for the area that I am “discovering.” In Mexico, that is pretty easy to do, as unlike many businesses in that country that are controlled by near or actual monopolies, there are many different supermarket chains. In the Western Central Highlands of Mexico where I live, there are five modern Mexican supermarkets.

Now, having lived in Mexico for four years, on alternating weeks I go by bus approximately 20 miles to go shopping in the mid-sized cities of Zamora and La Piedad. In Zamora I frequent the following modern supermercados: Comercial Mexicana; Soriana; and Walmart de Mexico. In La Piedad I shop at Casa Ley, which is 49% owned by Safeway, and Bodega Aurrera, which is owned by Wal-Mart. All of these chains are national except for Casa Ley which has stores in only 12 Western Mexican states. In addition to being supermarkets, all of these stores double as mostly discount-like department stores selling a range of major and minor appliances, electronics, DVDs and CDs, clothing, shoes, sporting goods, home furnishings, housewares, and home maintenance items. Like their American counterparts, they are air conditioned, normally well-stocked, use laser scanners, and accept multiple forms of payment- most have their own store savings cards. All have parking lots with handicapped spaces available but those are usually not respected or enforced. Importantly, as it keeps the prices down somewhat, they are highly competitive and, oftentimes, will display their competitor's prices to show that their own store’s are less expensive.

The dry and canned goods in these stores, for the most part, are a combination of brands that are available in the US (some like Kelloggs have Mexican subsidiaries) and, mostly, Mexican manufactured products. Of course, the rice and beans sections are much larger than most of those north of the border and are locally produced. Comercial Mexicana and Walmart have a decent selection of imported packaged and canned items, and Wal-Mart has specialty Asian items like Hoisin sauce, Thai sauce Sriracha, and panko bread crumbs. Paper products are mostly Mexican brands as are also the detergents/cleaning supplies

All of the stores have deli counters, meat departments, dairy sections, seafood sections, and produce departments. These are organized along the same lines as those in the US and pretty much use the same kinds of wrapping and packaging materials; pre-packaged meats are normally sliced thinner than in the US but you can have them custom cut as you desire. Obviously, there are differences in some products as local specialties are available such as chorizo sausage, tripe, dried shrimp, bacalao/dried cod, and in season, tropical fruits, vegetables, and herbs. The cheese departments have none or at best a few imported cheeses but do have a wide selection of local cheeses like asadero, panela, Oaxaca, ranchero, manchego, cotija, and Chihuahua. Eggs, for some reason, are always sold unrefrigerated. Moreover, as a generalization, Mexicans love (primarily unhealthy) treats, so the snack, soda, cereal, and cookie sections are quite large featuring local items as well as the run-of-the-mill US-style fare!

However, there are areas that really set the Mexican supermarket apart from those in the US. First, each chain has their own in-house bakery producing locally popular breads and pastries. Although the quality varies from chain to chain, each produce bolillos and teleras among their selection of rolls/bread. As for pan dulce/sweet breads, each store typically has dozens of varieties to choose from including such traditional ones as conchas/shells, cuernos/horns, orejas/ears, and puerquitos/little pigs. In my area, in addition to a wide assortment of frosted cakes, all have pay de queso/cheese cake and pastel de tres leches/ a super rich cake made with three kinds of milk. During holidays they have huge displays of such specialties as pan de muerto/bread of the dead, Rosca de Reyes/Three Kings cake, and capirotada/Mexican bread pudding for lent. Four of these supermarkets also make their own corn tortillas and two make flour tortillas. Three have store-made pizzas.

Also, most of the stores sell pre-prepared specialties of the region and country. In my opinion, none does that better than Casa Ley. On a recent visit there they had the following pre-prepared dishes: four kinds of ceviche- fish, calamari, shrimp, and imitation crab; Salchichas a la Diabla; Chile Rellenos; Arroz Mexicano; Frijoles Refritos; Frijoles Puercos; Tinga Poblana; Birria de Res; Menudo; Albondigas de Res; Bisteck a la Mexicana; Lengua a la Veracruzana; Chicharon en Salsa Verde; Pollo en Mole Casero; Machaca de Pollo; and Cochinita Pibil al horno. As a word to the wise, all sell roasted chickens (which are extremely popular throughout Mexico) but the quality is such that you are much better off buying them in stands/restaurants that specialize in them. Most have pre-made mole paste sold in bulk and all have packaged regional sweets like ates, cajeta, and chongos.

Consequently, Mexico’s major chain supermarkets are truly modern although they do vary somewhat from those up north in the US and Canada. Yet, all things being equal or not, there is one reason that I prefer Mexico’s supermarkets to the ones that I used to go to in the San Jose, California area. In the last four years I have gone to the supermarkets here 550 times, mas o menos, and my items have been, to the best of my knowledge, mis-scanned a sum total of only three times; in San Jose that would be, on average, the equivalent of no more than two shopping trips! Say what you will about Mexican efficiency, they sure know how to scan!