as a city of diversity, rio de janeiro has been blessed with many attractive qualities from many alluring cultures, with a varied cuisine one of the most apparent aspects of carioca life - foods of all descriptions have entered the city, some helping to form the unique brazilian cuisine, others maintaining their traditional roots, but all have found a welcoming new home in a city open to new flavors.

mexican food is one of the most popular national cuisines to be exported to almost every corner of the globe, known for its pungent flavors, colorful presentation, and wide variety of spices - in fact, mexicans have one of the world's richest diets in terms of protein, vitamins and minerals.

when spaniards arrived in mexico during the sixteenth century, the indigenous people of mexico already had a rich native cuisine based on corn, beans and squash - to it, the spanish added beef, goat, chicken and pork, as well as coriander, parsley, olive oil, black pepper and oregano.

the europeans also introduced nuts and grains such as rice, almonds, barley and wheat, as well as fruits and vegetables like lettuce, grapes, oranges, carrots, and potatoes, apples and cauliflower.