Texans take great pride in Tex-Mex cuisine. We're loyal to specific locales, restaurants, and Tex-Mex plates, debating our favorites as fervently as we discuss college football.

A San Antonio native, I grew up speaking Spanish alongside English and distinctly recall begging for Tex-Mex at every meal. If my parents hadn't stood in the way, I would have subsisted entirely on refried beans, Mexican rice, and cheese enchiladas smothered in beef gravy. Like many San Antonians, we had weekly family dinners at our neighborhood Tex-Mex restaurant. There, I invariably ordered enchiladas, rice, and beans, often in Spanish. And every Christmas night, we dug into homemade tamales gifted to the family during the holidays.

As I got older, my tastes and my geography broadened. I took my first trip to Mexico City, which helped me appreciate the difference between authentic Mexican cuisine and its north-of-the-border cousin. The more authentic meals tend to revolve around proteins, at least at dinnertime, and lack the gooey cheese Tex-Mex offerings often incorporate. I fell in love with chilaquiles for breakfast but missed chips and queso—my appetizer of choice—whenever we sat down to dinner.