A British celebrity chef insulted Mexican bread. Mexico took it personally

MEXICO CITY — Don't mess with my bolillos!

It was a universal message following disparaging remarks about Mexican bread made by a British celebrity chef who poked fun at the beloved bolillo: a white, oval-shaped bun that is a culinary and cultural staple, the basis of tortas (sandwiches), pan con chocolate (bread with chocolate) and other staples, comfort food with spiritual value.

Mexicans “don't really have a lot of bread culture,” chef Richard Hart, owner of a popular bakery in Mexico City, said in a podcast that recently appeared online. He called Mexican wheat “not good… highly processed, full of additives,” adding, “They make sandwiches on these white, ugly buns that are pretty cheap and industrialized.”

This frontal attack on El Bolillo comes just as many Mexicans are preparing to stock up on fluffy loaves for the holidays. Judging by the reaction, Hart might as well have criticized the national soccer team.

“Bolillo is a sacred food in Mexico, it's part of our daily life,” said an astonished Carlos Lopez, 32, as he stood in line at the counter waiting for his daily torta de tamale, a sandwich consisting of a cornmeal tamale stuffed inside a bolillo.

“This is breakfast for millions of Mexicans!” Lopez claimed a bloated cholesterol bomb, usually dripping in hot sauce. “I think this English cook should close his shop and go home to his country.”

Bolillo defenders have taken to the walls of the internet to defend their humble lives. Many posted under the hashtag #ConElBolilloNo.

“Bolillo is everything: it’s food, it’s medicine, it’s homeland,” said one outraged X commenter.

The insult seemed to anger many as it touched on both a current issue and gentrification in Mexico City — and an old sore subject: foreigners citing supposedly higher European standards when denouncing Mexico, where Hart now makes his living.

Another poster hoped that the intelligent European chef had learned his lesson about bolillo and wouldn't dare neglect other favorites like concha, the ubiquitous shell-shaped sweet bread with a sweet filling.

“If you're going to mess around with vanilla or chocolate concha, think twice,” the user warned.

London-born Hart, who honed his sourdough skills for seven years at San Francisco's famed Tartine Bakery, apologized online last week after comments he made several months ago went viral.

“Ever since I came to Mexico, I have fallen in love with the people of this city,” Hart wrote. “However, my words did not reflect that respect. I am a guest in this country and forgot to behave accordingly.”

The culinary frenzy was unusual for Mexico, which boasts world famous cuisine which includes dozens of breads and pastries, both savory and sweet. Many of them are developments of European originals and often bear suggestive names such as: banderilla (banner), bigote (mustache), tortuga (turtle) and quiver (mattress).

Mexico is especially famous for holiday breads such as pan de muerto Day of the Dead), often left on the graves of loved ones; and Rosca de Reyes, a round sweet bread eaten on January 6, Three Kings Day (Epiphany), traditionally with a figurine of the baby Jesus hidden inside.

“Mexico doesn't copy European bread because it doesn't need to,” Edgar Nunez, a celebrated Mexican chef who studied in France, wrote on X in response to the bolillo scandal. “There is a real tradition of bakeries here, with their own history, identity, technique and social connections that many cultures don’t have.”

Hart did not respond to messages left at his Green Rhino bakery in the capital's posh Roma Norte district.

Reports that the Green Rhino was vandalized are untrue, workers at the eatery said. There were no signs of external damage Friday afternoon.

Green Rhino, which opened in June, employs about 50 people, employees said. Business seemed slow on Friday afternoon. Some potential customers lingered outside the premises, apparently wondering if they could go inside.

“I think it’s all a misunderstanding,” said Sofia, 28, a regular customer who, like others interviewed, declined to give their full names for privacy reasons. “Yeah, I think I'll come back. It's a good place.”

The bolillo brouhaha has quickly become part of Mexico City's raging debate about gentrification.

Critics blame rising rents and the displacement of longtime residents and businesses on a wave of digital nomads and other expats from the United States, Canada, Europe and elsewhere. Foreign visitors, mostly young, wander the gentrified neighborhoods daily, looking at their cell phones and following directions to the latest hip spots promoted on Instagram and TikTok. Many trendy bakeries offer European-style breads and pastries.

In July, angry Mexican protesters, mostly young, marched through the trendy gypsy neighborhood and surrounding Condesa neighborhood. condemnation of gentrification run by foreigners. Some vandalized restaurants and cafes, breaking windows and overturning outdoor tables at various establishments, including the popular Starbucks with a predominantly Mexican clientele.

Despite complaints about gentrification, there is a clear upside to the foreign (and Mexican) clientele attracted to high-end establishments like Green Rhino. Business support has helped spur economic recovery in Rome and Condesa, the epicenter of gentrification. Both counties were hit hard by the 2017 earthquake, and business has plummeted again during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Still, the attack on El Bolillo clearly touched a nerve in the capital, which was otherwise in a celebratory mood. Christmas decorations adorn the windows of most bakeries, which are community anchors throughout Mexico City.

– Did he really say that? asked Roberto Celorio Diaz, a retiree who was buying bread at his “local” bakery, Lupita, when he was informed of Hart's comments.

“This is very upsetting for Mexicans,” he said. “Foreigners come and live in our city and criticize our food, our culture. Maybe it's better for them to stay in their own countries, where they think everything is better.”

McDonnell is a staff writer and Sanchez Vidal is a special correspondent.