Avocados will never lie to you. You will know the moment you cut one open whether it’s a winner. Here’s how to dramatically increase your odds.
Avocado Buying Advice
You’re undoubtedly reading this because you’re tired of buying avocados that disappoint. Since they’re among the most expensive foods, learning how to choose a great avocado ranks among the most useful shopping skills you can acquire.
The Best Avocado Varieties
Some avocado varieties are tastier than others. Hass avocados are widely-regarded as the best. Any avocado that resembles a Hass will rarely disappoint, even if it’s an alternate variety. I try to buy fuerte avocados when Hass aren’t available. Reed avocados are also excellent, but they have a short growing season. Generally, huge avocados with thin and shiny skins are terrible. At all costs avoid the slick-skinned bacon avocado, as this variety lacks flavor and has a watery texture.
Never Purchase Ripe Avocados
Regardless of which variety you choose, the one inviolable rule is of purchasing avocados is to only buy them totally unripe. You want them greenish and rock hard. That enables you to eliminate the risk of bruising.
People tend to squeeze avocados at the market to test ripeness, and that’s all it takes cause bruising. Even a tiny bruise will spread brown rot throughout the fruit as it ripens. The riper the avocado you purchase, the more likely it has already suffered a bruise. Even partially ripe avocados bruise easily. So I urge you to only buy avocados when they are green and totally unripe.
Thoroughly unripe avocados are nearly impossible to bruise. I’ve had one roll off the kitchen table and bounce off my tile floor, and it still ripened perfectly.
Perfectly ripe avocados make vegan guacamole that’s to-die-for.
Storing Avocados
Once you buy your unripe avocados, you’re going to need to store them.
After purchasing, I keep my hard green avocados in a fruit bowl at room temperature. I like to have my avocados reach perfect ripeness on different days. To accomplish this I’ll put one or two of them into a paper bag, with the top rolled shut, to speed ripening—they’ll then usually ripen a day ahead of the others.
You need to look at your avocados twice a day in order to catch each one at its peak. With practice, you’ll gain a knack of knowing when one’s ready to cut open. The trouble is there’s only a brief window of time during which avocados reach perfection. Any significant waiting past reaching ripeness is detrimental. Figure it takes about a day for a not-quite-ripe avocado to perfectly ripen. Then less than another day until it starts going downhill. If you wait too long before cutting open an avocado, it’ll often have developed disgusting hairlike brown fibers running through the fruit.
How to Tell When to Cut an Avocado Open
The more avocados you cut open, the better you’ll get at judging when one has reached peak ripeness. The skin will turn from green to off-black as the fruit ripens, but that in itself won’t tell you everything. The best indication is softness. Once you get a feel for it, the softest imaginable squeeze is all you need to reliably judge ripeness.
Once you start cutting your avocado open, you can’t go back. If it’s unripe, you’ve ruined the fruit. I’ve cut open more than a thousand avocados, and I still sometimes misjudge. You’ll know you’ve blown it if the flesh is still fused to the pit. Unripe avocados won’t mash properly into guacamole and it digests like you’ve eaten plastic.
That’s all there is to it. All the trouble is worth it because avocados are one of the most delicious and satisfying foods you’ll ever eat.
Tableside-prepared guacamole served at Restaurante La Fonda Cholula, in Tequila, Mexico. The best guac I’ve ever eaten.
Avocado Serving Ideas
Of course the most famous preparation method is guacamole. Just mash some avocados and blend in some lime juice, black pepper, salt, garlic, and perhaps some finely-diced tomato and minced cilantro.
Avocado slices go wonderfully on both salads and sandwiches. Their rich texture combines perfectly with any sort of crunchy vegetable. And of course, sliced avocados are also the perfect garnish for just about any Mexican dish.
Finally, no better breakfast exists than a freshly-baked baguette sandwich with perfectly ripe avocado slices. these two foods offer one of the most delicious flavor combinations you’ll ever experience. You won’t even need salt or pepper.
This Bar Was Just Named No. 1 in North America—and We Got the Scoop on the Perfect Order
The Mexico City hotspot also happens to be ranked No. 1 in the world.
Spirits were soaring, and history was made in Vancouver as thousands of the world’s most influential bartenders, industry tastemakers, and cocktail connoisseurs gathered for the unveiling of the 2025 edition of North America’s 50 Best Bars. Set against the sophisticated backdrop of the JW Marriott Parq, the ceremony honored excellence in mixology and hospitality with all the grandeur the occasion deserved.
Now in its fourth year, the prestigious ranking highlights the most outstanding bar experiences across the United States, Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean. A respected Academy of over 300 anonymous experts—from bartenders to beverage writers—cast votes based on consistency, creativity, and overall guest experience over the past 18 months.
So, which fine watering hole took top honors this year? Handshake Speakeasy in Mexico City clinched the coveted title of North America’s Best Bar—for the second year in a row. And just months earlier, they earned the ultimate global accolade: World’s Best Bar.
“Winning this award was a dream, we were not expecting to be number one again,” co-founder Rodrigo Urraca told Travel + Leisure. “We are all incredibly happy. Thank you to the people who believe in us, who vote for us, all the clients, and the team, especially—our team is the heart and soul of Handshake.”
Though the dimly lit, bi-level space in Colonia Juárez may channel the Prohibition era in its aesthetic, the cocktails are anything but old fashioned. Under the direction of van Beek, the team leans into molecular mixology to craft technically precise libations that showcase regional ingredients in innovative ways.
For first-time guests, van Beek and Urraca enthusiastically suggest ordering the fig martini—the cocktail that “started it all” for them—or the piña colada. Both crushable drinks reveal unexpected layers of aroma and flavor, offering a fresh spin on the classics.
So, what’s next for the Handshake crew? The team shows no signs of slowing down—they recently expanded their current space, and have plans to open another bar in Mexico City and debut their first international outpost in Amsterdam later this year.
In addition to Handshake, Mexico City had an impressive seven more bars on the list: Tlecān (No. 3), Licorería Limantour (No. 9), Bar Mauro (No. 14), Baltra Bar (No. 20), Bijou Drinkery Room (No. 34), Hanky Panky (No. 35), Kaito del Valle (No. 40), and Café de Nadie (No. 47).
Following last year’s festivities in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, the awards made their Canadian debut in Vancouver—a rising star on the global bar scene—further solidifying the city’s status as a hotspot for world-class cocktails and forward-thinking hospitality.
In the host city, Botanist scored the 26th spot and The Keefer Bar came in 28th, while Canada continued to represent with Toronto’s Bar Pompette (No. 7) and Bar Mordecai (No. 37), as well as Montreal’s Cloakroom Bar (No. 31) and Atwater Cocktail Club (No. 36).
“We are thrilled to bring North America’s 50 Best Bars to Canada for the very first time,” Emma Sleight, head of content for 50 Best, said. “Hosting the awards in Vancouver, a city renowned for its dynamic cocktail culture, stunning natural beauty, and outstanding hospitality scene, allows us to highlight the city’s exceptional talent and celebrate its innovation on a global stage. We look forward to recognizing the people and places that continue to elevate North America as a true leader in the world of hospitality.”
Some like it Hot! Mexico’s Hot Sauces
Hot sauce in Mexico has deep roots that trace back thousands of years, even before the arrival of the Spanish. Indigenous civilizations like the Aztecs and Mayans were already using chili peppers not just as food, but also for medicine and religious rituals. They would crush chiles and mix them with water, herbs, and sometimes ground seeds to create early forms of hot sauces.
After the Spanish arrived in the 16th century, new ingredients like vinegar, garlic, and various spices were introduced, which started to shape hot sauce into the types we recognize today. Over time, every region in Mexico developed its own versions, influenced by local ingredients and culinary traditions.
Today, hot sauce is more than a condiment in Mexico—it’s a cultural staple. Brands like Valentina, Cholula, and Tapatío (which was actually created in the U.S. by Mexican immigrants) have become household names, but many people still make their own at home, sticking to recipes passed down through generations.
🌶️ Timeline: The History of Hot Sauce in Mexico
~7000 BCE –
Early evidence shows chili peppers were domesticated in Mesoamerica, especially in areas that are now part of Mexico.
~2000 BCE–1500 CE (Pre-Columbian Era) –
Civilizations like the Olmecs, Mayans, and Aztecs used chiles in cooking, medicine, and rituals. They made early sauces by grinding chiles with water and herbs using stone mortars (molcajetes).
1521 (Spanish Conquest) –
The Spanish introduced vinegar, onions, garlic, and European spices. These new ingredients blended with native traditions and helped shape modern hot sauce recipes.
1800s –
Hot sauces remained mostly homemade, varying by region. Fermentation and vinegar became more common for preserving sauces.
Mid-1900s –
Commercial production began to grow. Brands like El Yucateco (founded in 1968 in Yucatán) and Valentina emerged, using regional chile varieties.
1980s–1990s –
Hot sauces like Cholula gained popularity internationally. Tapatío, created by Mexican-Americans in California in 1971, became iconic in the U.S.
2000s–Today –
Mexico’s hot sauce culture explodes globally. Artisan and gourmet sauces gain popularity alongside classic brands. Many Mexican families still prefer their own homemade blends.
In the second half of the import season, the grape supply from Peru and Chile has been exceeding demand, which is a stark contrast to the first half of the season when demand far exceeded supply. “Stocks have been exceeding cold storage facilities’ capacities. This has caused a problem with freshness and condition,” says David Watson, SVP sales and marketing with Fresh Farms.
Meanwhile, grape production in Mexico’s Jalisco region started on time this season, and arrivals began on April 1st. This year, growing conditions have been very favorable across all of the growing regions. “The weather has been just right for producing high-quality grapes, and we’re seeing excellent conditions in both Jalisco and Sonora. With that, we anticipate a strong and consistent supply of top-quality fruit in the months ahead,” says Watson.
He adds that the high quality of grapes from Mexico this year and the freshness to market factor is the season’s biggest advantage. “Volumes this year are also higher and will continue to grow each year,” he says. “We see the Jalisco region growing in premium greens and reds and Cotton Candy as the South American imports continue to have supply chain challenges as well as time, distance and variety and fumigation development issues to deal with in comparison to Jalisco.”
Focusing on candy varieties
In terms of varieties, the company is in production with a mix of green and red grapes and is increasingly focused on its candy varieties, which continue to gain popularity with consumers. “We’re also planting new varieties in Mexico to further diversify our offerings and stay ahead of trends in the market,” says Watson.
As for the demand for grapes, right now, it is lower than the supply, though retailers are actively promoting grapes. Even so, demand is still strong, especially as more fresh fruit from Mexico becomes available. Green and candy grapes have been particularly popular, and the company expects red grapes to follow suit as new varieties hit the market in upcoming seasons. “Grapes are one of people’s favorite snacks, and high-quality grapes can pass through the system seamlessly, leaving everyone involved with a positive experience,” adds Juan Pablo Molina, general manager and CEO of Fresh Farms. “Our goal is to grow the finest, most delicious grapes, ensuring that we deliver top-notch quality to retail partners. Ultimately, we want to create satisfied customers who return for more of our exceptional grapes.”
“Volumes this year are also higher and will continue to grow each year,” Watson says.
Stable, favorable prices anticipated
So where is this leaving pricing? “The market dynamics are different this year. South American import prices are currently split between fresh fruit arrivals and older stock that has yet to sell,” says Watson, adding that this looks quite different from last year’s pricing trends. “For fresh fruit from Mexico, we expect prices to remain stable, and even favorable, over the next few weeks. We anticipate that as the volume from Sonora ramps up, there will be more opportunities for promotions during June and July, which could drive additional sales for our retail partners.”
Meanwhile, one of the biggest challenges the industry is facing is costs: the rising costs of labor, water, products and inputs, and more. That said, Watson says higher costs won’t impact the quality standards of its fruit.
Looking ahead, following Jalisco’s timely start, a slight delay in production is expected for Sonora, with a larger volume expected to arrive between the second and third weeks of May. While the timing may vary slightly, the company is optimistic that the overall season will be strong and that increased volumes will be seen in the coming months–particularly in June.
