| Question | Answer |
| el desayuno | breakfast (typically between 7-9am) |
| el almuerzo, la comida (Mexico) | lunch, the biggest meal of the day (typically long mealtime between 2-4pm. Many stores close and people go home to eat and have a time to rest--"siesta.") |
| la merienda | late afternoon/early evening snack (especially for students after getting home from school) |
| la cena | dinner (typically very late 8-10pm and lighter than US dinner. Stores close around 8 or 9pm) |
| los tacos de carnitas | Mexico - fried pork tip tacos |
| los tacos al pastor | Mexico - pineapple marinated slow-roasted pork tacos |
| el mole poblano | Mexico - savory chocolate/chile sauce (goes with chicken/turkey/pork) |
| los chilaquiles | Mexico - chicken nacho bake kind of dish with red or green enchilada sauce (plus fried egg if breakfast) |
| los chiles rellenos | Mexico - fried chile/poblano pepper stuffed with cheese |
| los huevos con chorizo | Mexico - eggs/ground sausage (makes breakfast tacos or burritos) |
| los elotes | Mexico - roasted corn on the cob with mayo, tajin chile/lime seasoning, cheese |
| la sopa de tortilla | Mexico - tomato/chicken soup with tortilla strips |
| el menudo | Mexico - tripe soup (cow intestine/stomach lining) |
| la sopa de lima | Mexico - chicken lime soup |
| la paella | Spain - mixed rice dish, typically seafood or seafood/chicken mix (saffron spice gives rice yellow color and flavor) |
| la tortilla española, la tortilla | Spain - thick potato/onion omelet, cooked in a cast iron skillet, served in pie wedges |
| el cocido (madrileño) | Spain - pork/chorizo/chickpea stew |
| el gazpacho | Spain - cold tomato soup/smoothie |
| el lomo con patatas | Spain - shaved lamb (gyro meat) with potatoes/french fries |
| el jamón serrano, el jamón ibérico | Spain - ham shaved off the bone (serrano = regular grade ham, ibérico = premium ham) |
| el bocadillo, la bocata | Spain - sandwich on a baguette (crusty french bread) |
| la morcilla, el chorizo | Spain - chorizo sausage links (like bratwurst), morcilla = black sausage/blood sausage |
| las tapas | Spain - meal of appetizers or small dishes, typically shared with friends or family |
| el café con leche | Spain probably more so than Mexico - coffee with milk (Europeans drink coffee strong and cut it with milk) |
| los churros | Mexico - fried doughnut-like sticks coated in sugar and cinnamon |
| los churros con chocolate | Spain - plain fried doughnut-like sticks dipped in thick hot chocolate |
| las empanadas | both - turnovers (typically savory/meat-filled) |
| los licuados | both - fruit smoothies |
| la horchata | both - rice milk with cinnamon/sugar (tastes like Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal milk) |
| el jugo *Mexico | el zumo *Spain |
| las papas *Mexico | las patatas *Spain |
| el sándwich or la torta *Mexico | el bocadillo or la bocata |
| el pastel *Mexico | la torta *Spain (like a torte cake is a layered cake with many thin layers) |
| la tortilla *Mexico (round flatbread wrap) | la tortilla or la tortilla española *Spain (potato omelet served in pie wedges...sort of like a crustless quiche) |
| seafood is very common | Spain - Iberian peninsula, surrounded by ocean |
| spicy food is more common here | Mexico - think jalapeños, habañeros, spicy salsas... |
| corn is significant | Mexico - tortillas, tortilla chips, masa for tamales... |
| corn and beans grown by indigenous tribes | Mexico - Mayans and Aztecs |
| crusty french bread side for lunch/dinner | Spain |
| tortillas and chips/salsa side for lunch/dinner | Mexico |
