Every Monday morning I find myself in Jackson Heights as I attempt to defeat my common allergies. Do allergy shots work? Who knows? What I do know is that I'm not allergic to these tacos and as long as they're here on the corner of 75th street and Roosevelt ave, I'll be here every Monday.

I had a chorizo and al pastor taco. Generously served and tender meat mixed with a combination of flavorful spices, onions, cilantro and real saucy guac.

Stay tuned for the rise of the taco trucks. They seem to be sprouting all over NYC slowly conquering the halal street meat strongholds.

$2 Tacos/$5 Tortas

Growing up around passionate soccer loving Colombians, the only thing I knew about Argentina was that they were the rival, the arch-nemesis if you will. It's the same feeling Yankee fans have towards the city of Boston. A ridiculous resentment that happens when the fine line is crossed from passion to obsession.

















As I matured and broadened my horizons, my feelings changed and the wonders of Argentina's culture were revealed. I visited Buenos Aires a few years ago and witnessed first hand the elegance of Tango and the stern yet hospitable nature of the Porteños (people from Buenos Aires).

If you are familiar with Sunnyside, Queens, you know about Dalia's Taqueria on 46th street on the Southern side of Queens Blvd. This taco truck has been satisfying late night taco craves for the past 15 years yet when searching for the truck online, I found very few comments.


















It seems that the Vagabundos truck is overshadowing it's presence. I've yet to try Vagabundos but it's buzz has made me curious and we will post about them next week.

Could this be a classic case of everyone loving the underdog or are the Vagabundo tacos better than Dalia's. We'll shed some more light on our next post but here's our feedback on the ever-present 46th street tacos.


















Of course I brought along my Mexican food meter (a.k.a. Jaquie) who rated the tacos 9 out of 10. Our hunger may have skewed the rating system but overall the quality of the meat was great and the double tortillas were warm and fresh. I've had all the meats here and prefer the tacos al pastor and chorizo.


















The tortas (Mexican sandwich) were also very tasty. I'm not exactly sure where and when the word torta was transformed to signify sandwich but it's original Spanish meaning is 'pie' or 'cake'.
Either way, Dalia's tortas are served on toasted fresh bread with lettuce, tomatoes, avocado and mayo. It definitely hits the spot after a night of partying or to grab a quick snack on the way back from Manhattan.

Cheap Eats: Tacos are $2.50 and Tortas are $5.50

Whether it's a huge Colombian breakfast with the works- I'm talking arepas with butter, cheese, eggs and steak-, picking up empanadas for a family visit, satisfying your sweet tooth or simply enjoying a bunuelo (cheesy bread balls) and some pure Colombian coffee, this little bakery is a home away from home.

Wherever you reside, I hope you have a Colombian bakery near you.

My Neighborhood bakery is located on 162nd street between 43rd ave and Northern Blvd.

A Saturday of beach volleyball reminded me of my visit to Rio di Janeiro. Sunny beaches, caipirinhas, the most amazing tans in the world and feijoada (Brazilian national dish- Black bean stew with tender meats). so I asked my friend Carlos who has a weird obsession with Brazil, where we could find some delicious Brazilian food.
His suggestion was Malagueta (25-35 36th ave/(718) 937-4821), a small restaurant that breathes passion for its food. But before I write about the food, I want to simply state my admiration for the Brazilian culture. There is so much soul, energy and undying passion in every artistic element. If you have not witnessed this first hand, I suggest you search the web for videos of Brazilian samba, capoeira, soccer, and the famous carnaval.

But nothing will make you understand better than tasting this food.

















We walked in and immediately conjured up our game plan. As always, we’d planned on sharing everything. We started with some empanadas that were actually cold in the center, but everything was so delicious that we felt guilty complaining. At the same time there was no way we could enjoy crispy ground beef goodness at the temperature of the refrigerator. So we told the waitress and she immediately gave us a new order that were literally taken out in just a few bites. They were delicious!

















We also enjoyed the most brilliant crispy yuca fries we have ever tasted with an herby garlic mayo served with chorizo that was seasoned just right and cooked to perfection. It's tough to go wrong with chorizo but celebrating is a must every time it's prepared with such excellence.

















Carlos, having been there previously, suggested the lentil salad with goat cheese. Before trying it, the combination did not sound appetizing, but once it all came together it seemed like magic. The goat cheese slightly overpowers the other flavors but the texture is enough to make this an outstanding salad.

















If you are going for the feijoada, I suggest an early Saturday dinner. While we got the day right, since it’s only served on Saturdays, they had run out of the popular dish by the time we got there. It was a tease especially because the lady sitting next to us had gotten the last of it and was slurping up the last of her black bean stew.

With plans of returning, we ordered the steak, which was cooked medium and just right. This was Jaquie’s favorite. The texture of the dish was impeccable. And it came with my favorite Brazilian side, farofa (roasted cassava flour) mixed with black beans and rice. This combination completes the wonderful combination of rice and beans. Simple and delicious.


















My favorite dish of the night, along with the yuca fries, was the coconut milk shrimp. The sauce had just enough of the coconut taste without being overpowering.

I definitely recommend this small corner restaurant, and, on a side note, we also suggest asking for their signature hot sauce, which the waitress was kind enough to tell us about. She enlightened us with the addition towards the middle of our meal and helped finish off all the last bites with explosive kicks. OH and it can’t go without saying, congratulations to the Brazil national soccer team for winning the confederations cup.

Check out Carlos’ new blog as he goes on 27 first dates to get back to the essence and help guys out with some low budget creative dates in NYC.

A visit to Citi field is only complete with some ballpark food. Even though hot dogs, pretzels and cracker jacks have been the staple foods of New York baseball since I can remember, a little diversity is certainly welcome. The dawning of a new stadium for the Mets opens the opportunity to satisfy the diverse taste buds of this equally diverse fan base.

















I would have expected Dominican food to be the representation of Latin food since most of the Mets players are from the Dominican Republic, and they are the 2nd largest Latin nationality in terms of population in New York. I guess the truth still stands that Mexican cuisine is the reigning ambassador of the Latin food world across the U.S. (hence the name of this website).

Though Citi field would benefit from some mangu (popular Dominican plantain-based dish), it needs to be said that the Taqueria in the outfield food court has done a good job of mass producing some tasty tacos. In the seventh inning Jaquie and I descended from our nosebleed seats to wait impatiently on a long line for our Metsican treat.

















The elusive elote was the best I have tasted and even tops the elotes I had in Jackson Heights. It was everything you can ask for from a piece of corn, juicy, sweet and delicately crumbled cheese and chili powder with every bite.


















Believe it or not, the steak tacos score a 7 out of 10 on Jaquie's authenticity scale mainly because of the poor quality of the tortillas. The steak was seasoned just right and the cilantro and lime brought out its fiery flavors. The chicken mole tacos tasted nothing like mole though they were still pretty good solely based on flavor.

















Taco numero uno (#1) on my list of Citi field tacos was the taco al pastor (pork taco). The meat was shredded tender and cooked with a spicy flavorful sauce. Again, the cilantro and lime highlighted everything. While not very authentic, they were a nice variation from the typical ball park cuisine.

















The Salsa was medium spicy. If I remember it correctly, it was completely gone after the tacos were done; it ended up on our fingers and in our bellies.

















Along with the must-have beers and our thunderous screams cheering on the Mets, the food at Taqueria made for a great night at the ball game. Not to mention that the Mets won the game in extra innings, a successful end to an enjoyable evening.

Continuing on our journey to explore the passionate world of Latin cuisine, we embark on a mission to figure out which country reigns in the art of creating South America's beloved flatbread, The Arepa!

A bit of research and common knowledge has led me to understand that Arepas are rooted deep in the cultures of two neighboring countries, Colombia and Venezuela. Leaving recent political rivalries aside, we put these two countries to the test in a Battle of the Arepas.














Since Venezuela is credited for pioneering the Arepa movement in the US, we decided to take a trip to Brooklyn's Caracas Arepa Bar (718.218.6050/ 291 Grand St. b/w Havemeyer St. and Roebling St.). Located in the heart of gentrified Williamsburg, the ambiance of Arepa Bar is very hipster-trendy, using recycled and raw building materials as decorations. Their outdoor seating and open windows create the perfect springtime atmosphere. We arrived at the perfect time, exactly half an hour before people were waiting in line to be seated and the employees, who had been chatting with us about the place, began racing back and forth shouting orders in the already fast-paced Venezuelan dialect.















To accompany the arepas, Venezuelans have created one of the most refreshing non-alcoholic drinks i've tasted, papelón. It's simply made of sugar loaf or panela (compressed sugar cane extract), water and lime. I would call it upgraded limeade! The papelón below was almost empty when I took the picture not only because of how refreshing it was but because it was Jaquie's drink. Her mutant ability is to absorb liquid very fast (Tribute to the X-Men craze).














Split open like pitas and stuffed with a large variation of ingredients, the Venezuelan masa (dough) is a bit greasier than its Colombian counterpart. From what I understand, it's also consumed more commonly as a nighttime food in Venezuela whereas Colombians consume arepas mainly during breakfast.

Before I get into what we ate, I have to admit that I have a weakness. If I see chorizo on a menu, any dish containing this spicy Spanish sausage becomes my number one choice. I think Jaquie has the same weakness because we ordered the only two arepas that had chorizo. The first was called Los Muchachos (The kids), which was stuffed with grilled chorizo, spicy crisped white cheese, jalapeños and green peppers. I was expecting a little more spice and it was a bit too greasy, but that's what you get if the main ingredient is chorizo. Overall very tasty and the crispy cheese added a crunch that went well with the arepa.














The second arepa was la Sureña (The Southerner). A chorizo and chicken stuffed delicacy with avocados and, as the menu describes, the always enigmatic spicy chimichurri sauce. (See Don't try to Eat Argentinaaa post for a link to an amazing chimichurri recipe). This arepa was also quite tasty but again greasy and had way too much going on at once. “Venezuela, you make a great arepa and you sure do know how to market it in the urban scene.”


























Arepas Pues Mixtas (83-15 37th ave/ phone # does not work) is owned by a middle-aged Colombian couple that began their venture by selling arepas in Flushing Meadows Park. The chatty lady reminded me of one of my aunts because of her comforting nature. While she mentioned that they haven’t had much success with advertising, it looks like word of mouth seems to be working just fine for them because a few minutes after we arrived, the very small eatery was jam-packed with Colombian arepa lovers even after their closing time.















The place has no menu and only two choices: Arepa mixta or arepa with butter and cheese. The new aged, non-traditional arepa mixta has all the main proteins stuffed in one arepa. It starts with my absolute favorite tasting thing in the world, chicharron (pork rinds). Think not of the stuff you get in the bag but instead bacon on steroids. Next is a layer of chicken followed by shredded beef, which Jaquie enjoyed much more than I did. She described it as tender and juicy. I was too busy trying to dig up the chicharron. Lastly, it's topped with shrimp in salsa golf (ketchup and mayo) which is used on practically all Colombian street foods.















We then had a more traditional butter and cheese arepa, which I thought would come served with the butter and cheese on top instead of inside, but I guess Arepas Pues Mixtas is sticking to their modern ways.

After much deliberation, Jaquie and I concluded that even though Venezuelan arepas are well worth the buzz and several trips to Brooklyn, Colombia comes out on top. The simplicity of the traditional butter and cheese arepa is so satisfying that it becomes a staple food you will constantly crave and go out of the way to prepare again and again. The new-age arepa mixta has three things that destroy its Venezuelan rival:

1. Chicharron
2. A lighter, healthier, crunchy on the outside and moist on the inside arepa
3. Salsa Golf

Need I say more?














You can do it yourself!! I've included a picture of a supermarket bought arepa which I toasted, buttered up and placed Colombian cheese and two eggs on top. This is the Colombian breakfast of champions.

Queens is one of the most diverse areas in the world; so, it was a no-brainer that Jaquie and I had to attend this year's Taste of Queens event where dozens of Queens chefs gathered in Citifield to prepare samples of their restaurant's most celebrated fare.














Though Italians seemed to rule the floor, a few Latin restaurants showed face and stood their ground. First off was La Rosa Nautica (90-16 Corona Ave/718-592-0482), which is owned by Peruvians who position it as a restaurant of international Latin cuisine.

La Rosa served up a seafood soup, which was good but not outstanding. However, we knew the next item would taste great because people were asking for seconds and complementing the chef. Mescla a la Nautica (Nautica style Mix) is a savory mix of creamy chicken, beef, and veggies mixed in layers of a very unique mashed potato mix topped with slices of hard-boiled eggs. This was one of our favorite tastes of Queens. The owner mentioned that it was an original creation specific for the Taste of Queens event. I was disappointed to find that they didn’t have a website. Hopefully they’ll get one soon.














The next Latin station was occupied by two young and enthusiastic Argentinian guys representing La Fusta Restaurant and Steakhouse (80-32 Baxter Ave/718-429-8222) and Don Francisco Meat Market (85-17 37th Ave/718-505-5892). As mentioned in last week's post, Argentinians are serious about their meat. We tried the choripan which is Argentina's national street food. It's simply sausage on bread topped with chimichurri sauce. As one of the guys explained, chimichurri is a very personal element of Argentinian culinary life. No one chimichurri is the same yet everyone believes theirs is the best. It symbolizes the pride of the Argentinian spirit. CHE! Don Francisco! Your's is definitely the best.














In addition to choripan, we had a tasty seafood salad and matambre (hunger killer), which is rolled beef stuffed with hard-boiled eggs, vegetables and various herbs and spices. It's a great appetizer because it's cold and lean, leaving room for the hefty steak entrees that tend to follow. Sadly enough there were no samples of steaks but maybe that was their tactic to tease the guests for the next level. Your marketing tactic worked on us guys. We'll be there in a couple of weeks for sure.














Most impressive were the delicate tasting samples from Marbella (220-33 Northern Blvd/718-423-0100) who offered carnes con setas del bosque (beef made in it’s own sauce with mushrooms) and pollo en piquillo (chicken in pepper sauce). The beef and chicken tasted absolutely exquisite despite their ordinary look. You almost tasted the years of experience it takes to master these common dishes.

Their salpicon (seafood salad) on the other hand looked as delicious as it tasted. Jaquie went back for seconds and I convinced her that thirds would be ridiculous since there were about 20 other booths that we had not visited. Eventually we went back for thirds.

















My tastebuds were overwhelmed with all the different types of food and my stomach expanded to twice its size but my smile was permanent. We were in the new home of the Mets (I'm a big fan) and there were food and drinks everywhere.

The non-food highlight of the evening: Mr. Met pushing a Yankee fan behind him after he tried taking a picture with him. Let's Go Mets!














Unfortunately, Tequila Sunrise ran out of food by the time we arrived and Mitad del Mundo was a no show.

Though not exactly Latin, I must mention our favorite bite of the night and winner of the best appetizer. Courtesy of Bantry Bay Pub, we had the pleasure to taste almonds stuffed in dates wrapped in bacon. I wrote about this only because it's one of the most amazing bites I’ve ever tasted.

According to the census, Ecuadorians have surpassed Colombians as the largest South American group in New York City and are rapidly catching up to Mexicans. Have you ever tasted Ecuadorian food? Ecuador is nestled in between Colombia and Peru so naturally the food incorporates elements of both countries plus their own to create unique flavors.Something tells me that Ecuadorian food will be recognized widely in the near future. Get a head start and check out Barzola. If you feel more comfortable venturing into Brooklyn, there's a Barzola in Williamsburg as well.

Next stop, a walk-up Colombian establishment, Los Chuzos y Algo Mas, located on the northeast corner of 79th street and Roosevelt Ave. The name translates to Skewers and Something Else; in this case, the something else was typical Colombian fruit juice. Though guanabana (soursop) was on the menu, I decided to go with mora en leche (blackberry milkshake). Jaquie had the pineapple juice that seemed to disappear like any other drink that has ever been at her arms length, given her habit to drink very fast. Colombian juices are made from a wide variety of fruits, some of which are not well known in the US. The less known ones are guanabana, tomate de arbol (tamarillo), lulo (no translation). Reason enough to visit paradise.