Posted on 03/27/2014 10:45:08 AM PDT by blam
Lime Prices Are Surging
Jim Forsyth, Reuters
Mar. 27, 2014, 1:16 PM
SAN ANTONIO (Reuters) - Mexican restaurants in the United States are being squeezed by a sudden jump in the price of limes, an essential ingredient, which has led managers in places like San Antonio that are a hotbed for the cuisine to alter recipes.
"Mexico received some heavy rains that destroyed a large amount of the lime crop, so with limited supplies we are seeing lime prices skyrocket," Bryan Black, director of communications for the Texas Department of Agriculture, said on Thursday.
Texas like most U.S. states receives most of their limes form Mexico.
John Berry, who runs La Fonda, a prominent Mexican restaurant in San Antonio, said on Thursday the price he pays for a case of limes has jumped to nearly $100 from $14 last year.
"Real simple," Berry said. "We don't buy them. We substitute lemons."
Limes are used in guacamole and to garnish beers.
Serving a margarita without a lime garnish is burning at the heart of Louis Barrios, who runs the family-owned Mexican restaurant chain "Los Barrios." But he's doing without.
"Ninety nine percent of the time, people don't squeeze it into the margarita anyway," Barrios says.
(snip)
(Excerpt) Read more at businessinsider.com ...
damn...it took me a minute,,,,
“Why, yes, my good man, I will have a cool and refreshing Gin and Tonic.”
“Here you are, Sir.”
“Godfrey Daniels! What is that foul flotsam floating in my drink?”
“It’s a cherry tomato. The price of limes is too high.”
“You can have a toe-ma-toe in your salad. You can have a toe-ma-toe with your hamburger. But, you must never disgrace good gin by putting a toe-ma-toe in it.”
“I’m sorry Sir. That’s what we have.”
“I see. I noticed that you have Lime-Crusted Mahi Mahi on the menu.”
“It’s the house specialty.”
“Well, give me an order of that.”
“Of course. How would you like it done.”
“Throw the Mahi Mahi to the Kitty Kitty in the alley. Give the crust to the pie maker. And put the lime in my drink.”
My reply has Emily Latella in mind...
Actually, yes you can cut up limes and freeze them for later use in a gin & tonic. I do.
There goes all that Corona beer, back onto the shelf.
Phew! Thanks, I was worried :>)
Probably.
One never knows with Mexico. Like other third world countries their four "p's" don't allow us foreigners or other Mexicans to ever know the truth, real or whole.
--police (corrupt)
--politics (corrupt)
--poverty
--pollution
I lived in Mexico City when I was a young woman and I had the lion's share of my father's family down there. I had FINALLY had it with the four "p's" and decided it was time to come home.
Side note: my family was originally from France. At the start of the French Revolution the family decided to emigrate. No surprise since who wants to live in a country in the throes of civil war?
They HAPPENED to have a son traveling in Mexico during that time. My family was NOT rich, but one didn't have to be rich to have a son traveling abroad.
Anyway, they contacted their son, traveling in Mexico, and told him NOT to return to France and that THEY were immigrating to Mexico to escape the war.
So my family settled in Mexico and "Mexicanized" its French name. The family came HERE in the early 1900's because of the civil war in Mexico (Emiliano Zapata and friends). There happened to be a scion of the Mexican family in Spanish California.
My Spanish California grandmother's photo (I never knew her.) showed a stately matron of light skin, dark curly hair, dark eyes and, of all things, a turned up nose. Now, NO Spaniard OR Mexican had, has or ever will have a turned up nose. TURNS OUT that my dear sweet California-Spanish "abuela" had a "souson" of IRISH in her. Faith and begora! I never knew her and so couldn't ask where that IRISH came from. Doesn't matter...so many Americans are "mongrel" anyway...and mongrels ARE the smartest dogs!
SO on to California they came. HERE we are and please, Lord, no more revolutions!
========================================
Change of topic:
LIMES are big stuff there. I lived there two years and NEVER saw a single lemon. "Limon" is lemon...not "lemon."
One HAS to be careful of pronunciation.
True story:
I was in a fancy club in Mexico City and was taking a shower. I leaned out of the shower and asked one of the women there for more "jamon"--instead of "jabon"--"jamon" is HAM and "jabon" is SOAP. LOL.
She UNDOUBTEDLY thought: "Aye, Dios mio, esta gringa esta LOCA!!"--which means: "Aye, my God, this American is CRAZY!!!"
=========================================
Slight change of topic:
limon = lemon
lime = cal
NEVER in my two years there did I EVER hear the word "cal" for ANYTHING, let alone a lemon or lime. I had to look it up in my VERY fancy, schmancy Spanish-English diccionario. HAH!!
SIDE NOTE, FYI: Lemons and limes are from Portugal--"Portugal" is from the ARAB language and it means the color ORANGE.
NOTE: the Arabs have no "p" in their language...never did, never will, so they always but a "b" in place of the "p"--YEAH, a pile of BRICKS becomes a pile of __ricks.
Hahaha. We had some fun with that. AND, Portugal became Bortugal.
I found out from our Portuguese guide that the Arabs had traveled EXTENSIVELY in the Mediterranean during their "glory days" and is the reason why there is ANY Arabization of any Mediterranean languages. I hadn't known that. =========================================
Yet ANOTHER true story: When I was first teaching I worked in a heavily LATINO populated high school and I spoke INFINITELY better Spanish that the students who went there.
They KNEW it, too, and after the first "go round" they acquiesced to the idea (the VERY IDEA!!!) of my superior Spanish skills. Haha, or rather "jaja"--it WAS fun and SHAME on me for enjoying it so much.
You are probably right.
I just bought a bag of limes. I’m planting them later this spring. Should have a good crop by the time the tomatoes come in.
Thanks.
We use a lot of hydrated lime here with our highly acidic soil.
I’d love to go back to El Mercado for some good Mexican food. Haven’t been there in about ten years.
What a great idea about freezing citrus. I squeeze limes or lemons on all kinds of fish and veggie dishes, brightens up the flavor. Use as salad dressing too, with a minuscule amount of oil.
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