No Reservations #1: Grasshoppers

You may have heard that I fancy myself an Anthony Bourdain wannabe... a novice "Tony" Bourdain in training, if you will. It all started when Tivo suggested I watch "No Reservations" on the Travel Channel. My Tivo is so smart, I swear. Anyway, 1/3 of the way through the episode ("Ghana," I believe), I was smitten.

He's way more hardcore than I'll ever be, but a girl can try, can't she? I love to try new things, but rarely do I have the chance to feast on bull testicles, stomach sacks, and various insects. But, as part of my new year's resolution to "Emulate Anthony Bourdain whenever possible," I knew that last Saturday's trip to Oyamel would prove to let me test the waters.

.Grasshoppers.

Oh yes, they were that big (No, they weren't).

LM, RZ, DW, CC and I went to dinner at Oyamel - my first time, decently yummy, fish wasn't all that - and I ordered the Tacos de Chapulines: The legendary Oaxacan speciality of sautéed grasshoppers, served with shallots, garlic and tequila.

Let's enjoy the eating process:

Doesn't look so bad, does it?

Yep... the closeup doesn't do it any favors.

Oh boy. This looks more fun than it was. CC, in the background, looks so happy because SHE wasn't eating grasshoppers.

And yet, they were delicious. Again, please note CC's "face of compassion" for her friend. Bah!

All in all, I'd say they were pretty delicious. Crunchy, salty, and masked with guacamole to take the edge off. I imagined they'd be bigger, so it was mildly freaky to watch the smaller 'hoppers fly out of the other end of the taco whenever I'd take a bite. But I definitely think I'd order them again. Maybe.

Sheesh - emulating Anthony Bourdain is tres difficult.

Thanks, RZ, for the pictures.