Cheers to the $100 view we didn’t realize we were paying for, and to all the people that helped get us there…
One of the wildest things we did in Mexico City was at one point falling for practically every tourist trap in the books.
In one fell swoop of an experience, we visited an extremely touristy hub of the historic Centro, went willingly with catcalling hustlers trying to recruit us to their restaurant with a view, didn’t ask for the full price of menu items, and lacked the willpower to fight the outrageous bill. Isn’t this all stuff covered in “How to Be a Tourist 101”?
How did this happen and how are we resolving to avoid situations like this in the future? Let’s start at the top…
We acknowledge that the land in and around Mexico City is the stolen land of the Mēxihcah people.
Walking through Zocalo Square and the streets flanking it can be overwhelming, as the sidewalks are overrun with tourists, hustlers, and people just looking to get tacos from Tacos de Canasta Los Especiales (full review coming soon!).
On one such walk during our first trip to la Ciudad de Mexico, we were amused by the catcallers in Mercado Centro yelling at passersby to come dine at their “terraza” with a view of the Catedral Metropolitana and Zocalo Square. It sounded appealing, but this was a tourist trap if we ever did see one, and we didn’t want to get caught up in it.
Fast forward a few hours, our hungrier and tired-of-walking alter-egos found ourselves in the same exact location. This time, we shrugged off our common sense, thinking “what the hey, let’s do it!” We were immediately led by staff through jewelry stores and up the elevator to the fifth floor, where we were greeted by a pretty sweet view paired with over-eager servers.
One look at the menu prices and I knew that we would be overpaying (if I recall correctly, main dishes were priced at ~$20 USD/$400+ MXN), so we stuck to drinks and snacks, assuming they would do the least damage to our wallets. Our kid was specifically asking for ice cream, but we didn’t see it on their extensive menu.
“¿Tienen helado?” we asked the server. He looked as if caught off-guard for a moment (we were told just minutes earlier by the person leading us to the restaurant that they offered ice cream), and told us he would be back. A few minutes later he reappeared to reassure us that they did, in fact, serve ice cream.
This would’ve been a great cue for us to inquire about the cost of said ice cream, but alas, we did not. I think that given the great dining experiences we’d had so far on the trip (and our overconfidence that things in Mexico City generally fell well within our price range), we were willing to eat whatever ice cream surcharge they were going to throw our way.
It was all fun and games and silly photos with my extra large michelada (they had originally given me a stein of modelo even though I’d asked for a michelada) all the way up until the bill arrived:
For a juice, ice cream, margarita, and michelada—they were charging us $112 USD!!!!!
My partner and I had to do a double-take at the unexpected sum. $12 USD for a glass of juice, with a 16% service charge (we typically give 20% tips, but still…)? $2,000+ MXN pesos total?! Even in our wildest nightmares we weren’t expecting to pay more than $60 USD total, but to pay double that?! It certainly served us right to think we could afford every bill in Mexico…
Some reviewers even reported the menus being swapped with different pricing when it came time to pay the bill! I’m all for paying a tourist tax, especially as an American and for a nice view. I would just like for pricing to be transparent so that I know what I’m getting myself into. Take, for example, the Balcon de Zocalo, which offers the same view, better food, and very clear expensive(!) pricing.
While the views were admittedly enviable, the food, shady service, and lack of transparent pricing left a bad taste in our mouths (at least mine and my partner’s–our kid doesn’t know the difference between an ice cream that costs $1 vs. $15). This is one place in Mexico City we would advise you to avoid at all costs.
Would you pay that much for this view?! Even knowingly?
That said, DO NOT write-off Mexico City simply based on this one post (if you do, I’m guessing you already had a bias…?). We loved every part of our week-long trip there (see our other posts), other than for this one crappy experience in a very touristy part of town. It happens, but I wrote this post hoping it happens to fewer folks. I truly hope everyone has an opportunity to travel to this vibrant city.
Angelica (she/her) is of Cebuano(Pilipinx)-descent and was born and raised in Huchiun Ohlone territory (the East Bay Area--pay your Shuumi Land Tax!), where she also now resides with her partner and their toddler. She loves to spend her time sipping on boba and dirty chai lattes (sometimes together), and eating pescetarian goodies at BIPOC-owned cafes and restaurants.
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