The homemade corn tamale cakes ($4.99) at Gringo’s (12330 Southwest Freeway, 281-980-7482) may remind you of the cuisines of several cultures, but they’re still distinctly Mexican. Three round slices of a bright-yellow corn cake are fried on a griddle. Their consistency and texture evoke Italian polenta as well as Venezuelan arepas, but this Mexican version has pieces of corn inside and is much sweeter than its cousins. The three slices are served on a tart tomatillo sauce and topped with slices of avocado, cilantro and sour cream, creating their own indisputable Mexican identity.
This article appears in Mar 1-7, 2007.