A Simple Coffee Order in Mexican Cafés Now an Act of Rebellion Against US Policies
A Simple Coffee Order in Mexican Cafés Now an Act of Rebellion Against US Policies. The traditional Americano—a shot of espresso with added hot water—is getting a rebrand, swapping the name to Café México. *”If my staff wants to rename the *Americano* México, then we can do that,”* says Scarlet, the owner of Café Catres in Mexico City.
She opened the spot eight years ago after moving here from her native New York. “If you know Spanish… uh, that’s the language of the kitchen because it’s mostly undocumented Mexican immigrants.”
A culinary studies graduate, inspired by her interest in how migration influences the kitchen, she soon became a supporter of the movement to rename the Americano. “Words really carry power… like, um, they carry meaning and they’re powerful. So if someone symbolically wants to shift the name as a form of resistance, then all power to them. I think it’s really cool.”
The trend is part of a long tradition of renaming products to protest unpopular government policy—just like in 2003, when some American companies decided to rename French fries “freedom fries” after France refused to join the U.S. invasion of Iraq. Mexico’s rebranding movement is meant to rally behind national industries to protest the Trump administration’s tariffs on Mexican exports.
These bill initiatives kicked off last month by the Panella coffee shop in the Mexican state of Oaxaca, when the owner, Iván Seo, posted an Instagram call to action to oppose U.S. tariffs. *”In *Panella*, it’s no longer called *Café Americano*—it’s now called *Café México.”
Many of those supporting the name change are frustrated with the United States’ crackdown on immigration and the criminalization of undocumented migrants. *”We’re not happy with what’s happening on our northern border as a country, and at least as the state of *Oaxaca… with them imposing tariffs on us. This is an act of protest.”
Now, Mexican coffee consumers prefer to fuel their day with a México rather than the unwelcome reminder of U.S. tariffs and the Americano. Pasarextra.