Cinco de Mayo is celebrated more in the United States than in Mexico
“What's sad is that most Mexican Americans and most Latinx people don't even realize that it was originally started as a political event about resistance and about fighting against the odds,” he said. “That's kind of one of the downsides of multiculturalism and diversity is that when your holiday gets included, it gets reduced down to sales on tortillas, sales on beer, sales of all you can eat at El Torito. It doesn't talk about the community that has been here and survived."
You've probably heard that Cinco de Mayo is really only a regional holiday in Mexico, celebrated principally in the state of Puebla. I live in Mexico, but in a different state, Jalisco, where the holiday is not celebrated, even though just about everything else is (May 1 was Labor Day, May 3 the day of the holy cross, and May 10 will be Mother's Day, all celebrated, but not May 5). It's much bigger holiday in the States, although I doubt many celebrants know what it commemorates.
If you don't mind a digression, another thing that surprises Americans is that Mexicans don't eat Tex-Mex, which is food like nachos, burritos, and fajitas. Those foods are here now in my community, because we have so many Canadian and American expatriates living here, and they want these foods, but the Mexicans don't order them. I remember the first time I had nachos in Mexico. Not what you would call nachos. Basically chips with salsa (pico de gallo) on them instead of in a bowl on the side.
This is a menu from a local diner (cenaduria) that caters to Mexican tastes, not gringos. Memo is the owner, a nickname for Guillermo, or William, and Cenaduria Memo is a typical restaurant name, like Mariscos Lety or Tacos Jessica, also both local restaurants.
Prices are in pesos, so divide by 20 to get prices in US dollars. For a large bowl of pozole (a hearty, reddish, local soup made with hominy and meat), 2 tacos, 2 tostadas, 2 enchiladas, and 2 beers - dinner for two - you'd pay about 170 pesos, or $8.50 USD. The point, however, is what's not on this menu.