It’s no surprise that the best tacos we had in Mexico City were eaten on the street.
Personally, I love traveling to places where street food is plentiful. Not only are your chances for eating something amazing very high, but the value for dollar is equally exciting. Coming from California, where everything is expensive, the international street food scenes are always a dream for me.
Here’s a little collection of a few spots we loved, and one we didn’t.
Tip: If you’re someone who is concerned with the possibility of contracting stomach bugs or experiencing other digestive issues when traveling, try taking grapefruit seed extract daily.
El Vilsito
El Vilsito was urged on us by a guy we met at a speakeasy, called Handshake (I highly recommend). After having already been in CDMX for a couple of months, he was adamant that these were some of the best tacos in the area.
I’m so glad we went. For how good these tacos were I’m surprised I didn’t have El Vilsito on my *long* list already.
El Vilsito never closes before midnight, with most days serving amazing tacos until 3am. So this is the perfect place for any meal and/or after a night out.
The tacos al pastor from El Vilsito were the tip top of the toppest notch. We got a few other kinds of tacos but none were as memorable as the al pastor. Before leaving, I had to order the al pastor two more times.
El Vilsito always has a crowd gathering. The tacos flow. Especially the al pastor, and for these orders they have three guys operating three separate vertical rotisseries. They’re constantly filling tacos with thin cuts of meat and pineapple. When it’s super busy your tacos are brought to you where you stand in the crowd.
El Vilsito shares space with an auto repair shop. It has some room inside to eat, but people mostly populate the sidewalk space and enjoy their tacos standing up.
Sadly, I have no pictures because I’ve never eaten tacos faster.
Tacos Don Juan
Tacos Don Juan has a few locations throughout CDMX. So, there’s no excuse to not go when you’re there.
We loaded up on these tacos. I can’t remember everything we got, but everything was good. The only one I can remember the specific name of was la gringa (you can probably guess why!).
The tacos were cheap, they were flavorful and they were juicy. The guys made them exceptionally fast. Salsas are self serve and they have a few tables to sit/stand at on the sidewalk.
Birria Colorado
Birria tacos… one of the most heavenly of creations.
Tender, extremely juicy meat wrapped in melty and browned queso (quesabirria) and nestled in a fresh corn tortilla. Piling cilantro atop is recommended. But, dipping it in the spicy confit is mandatory. I’m broth obsessed so I finished that cup of confit like water. It’s spicy, silky, and rich.
We just happened to come across this little spot while walking around, but it looks like they already have a nice little following, at least on Instagram. Birria Colorado is a traditional food cart located on a sidewalk. Don’t wear white.
There are a few different locations which you can reference on Google Maps.
Bonus Round…
Los Cocuyos
Los Cocuyos is not technically street food (maybe that was the problem, ha). I won’t go here again.
This is one of the spots that had a ton of solid reviews online, so I added it to my list. I’m still confused. But why am I confused? This happens all the time with places… Everyone has different tastes and standards.
Or maybe it was just a one off; inconsistent cooking?
The tacos were so dry and bland. We ordered an array, maybe 5 different ones. I can’t endorse Los Cocuyos.
Guys, I left so sad. Thank God we went to El Vilsito after or this could have actually ruined my last night.
I can be maddeningly emotional about food.