Tulum, Mexico: Dreamy Paletas from Flor de Michoacan

Jan 14 2011

Update: Check out ESFB’s Guide to Eating in Tulum.

Whatever happened to the paleta man?

Back in the 80s, in some Los Angeles neighborhoods, the guy pushing his little cart of Mexican popsicles down the street was a common sight. Both of my grandmothers—one born in Mexico and one born in East LA—were crazy for paletas, and I could always count on their hurriedly shoving money in my hand while shouting flavor requests whenever we heard the bell.

“Fresa con leche! Limon! Piña!” Sure, my Spanish was pretty limited, but I could perfectly pronounce and identify any of the flavors once the paleta man took the lid off and let me peer into his frosty icebox on wheels. You just had to wait a few seconds for the cold smoke to settle, so you could focus on the selection.