Since we're relating some incidents.
'79 in Harrisburg PA, there was no Mexican food to be found (by me anyway) so I decided to make some shredded beef burritos for my friend who put me up when I first got there. Beef, onions, garlic, even some chilies weren't too hard to find, I think I found some "Pace" type salsa, then went to 3-4 grocery stores for the flour tortillas. At one, after some searching, I decided to ask a young lady working there if I had missed them. She directed me to an aisle and pointed up at a box of preformed hard corn taco shells and said "Oh, you mean these". Can't remember where I finally found them, but I did get some burritos made.
NW PA in '99. Asked a dude I worked with where I might find some. He said there's a restaurant up the road in Jamestown NY. OK, the Sears store and the big grocery are there so I can tie in some shopping and get a Mexican meal. I check the menu, the waitress comes to take my order. I'll have the beef burrito." would you like onions and peppers on that?" I didn't say it out loud but thought that's an odd question, however I am in NW NY and these folks think garlic in the spaghetti sauce makes it spicy. Yeah, I'd like the onions and peppers. "would you like chips and salsa?" Hmmn? another odd question............sure bring them too.
Food comes, the burrito is served wet, like in NM, which is tolerable. But the red sauce looks a bit funny. Well isn't this interesting, it's got ground beef in it like spaghetti sauce and tastes about the same too. Burrito was edible, ground beef inside though, but there were onions and ............bell peppers. Check comes, I look at it and there's a $3.50 charge for the chips and salsa, and $0.50 each charge for the onions and peppers? WTF I say. Waitress says that's what we charge. I told her I though she was just being polite as some folks don't like onions and peppers and that where I come from chips are set on the table when one sits down. Oh well, never went back to that place and I warned folks away even.
Eventually found a place in Bradford PA, run by a Mexican guy who ran a restaurant in Buckeye, AZ of all place. His wife was from PA and wanted to go back to her family so he decided to open a restaurant there. Wife and I would make the 45 minute drive in all sorts of weather when I needed Mexican food and the folks there thought I was crazy.
'74, Port Angeles WA. Just came out of a back packing trip over the Olympics from the Quinalt Lake side. 2 buddies and I spied an ad for Mexican food in the Yellow Pages. Boom, after freeze dried food for 8 days or so, hell to the yeah. We go, order food, lady brings out the "hot sauce" in one of those big glass dishes with a stainless steel lid and a spot for a spoon handle. Used to have them in places for sugar too. 3 SoCal boys, early 20's, hungry, we ate our food and three jars of their sauce. Get to the register and the lady says, and I'm not scheidting you, " You boys aren't from around here, are you?". We asked how can you tell. "No one around here could eat on dish of that hot sauce and you guys ate three" We laughed and told here we were from down near that border and that was more like baby food where we came from.
Juneau AK, E WA, and a few other places along the way were tough at times too.
