Taqueria El Paisa on Irving Avenue provides the classic Puebla experience. — Photos by Scarlett Lindeman
A perfect al pastor taco is a beautiful thing. The sharwarma-style rotisserie, brought to Mexico by Lebanese immigrants, is a gas-fired contraption that rotates like a slow-motion top. A mass of layered meat, which Mexicans swapped out the original lamb for swine, turns inside, slowly caramelizing and developing a crust. It’s basted with the juice from a skewered pineapple at the top that drips and drizzles over the meat in a true spa-treatment of taste.
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Bushwick is no stranger to the seduction of al pastor. Various taquerías, rooted in southern-style Poblano cooking, offer al pastor tacos, burritos, and tortas, chile-orange-stained things that will ruin your clothing. But al pastor demands the spit by definition, and not all places have them. Here are two that do.
El Paisa Taqueria & Restaurant has been at the corner of María Hernández Park for over eight years, the go-to place when you can’t fight the packs of Bourdain-believers crowding Los Hermanos. On warm weekend nights they bring the al pastor spit outside, flanked by a do-it-yourself salsa bar and plastic jugs of fruity aguas frescas. Their al pastor comes in large floppy tortilla, steaming and packed with fatty chunks of pork, livened by a squirt of lime and their avocado-heavy green sauce. Best to order a double to take to the park where you can freely drip pineapple-pork juice all over the grass. Also, if you have an extra quarter and a child, the ersatz Mickey ride outside is a freaky time.
Though the names are similar, the restaurants are not associated with each other. Just to disclose my bias, Taquería El Paisa looks just like an al pastor joint I practically lived at in Puebla: a window you order through, a row of stools, and a minimal menu make the tacos the focus of this dining experience.
And what tacos they are — sweet shards of pork drenched in adobo (a vinegar-based chile marinade) have amazing layers of flavor, with crispy bits and tender shreds wrapped in supple tortillas. Christen with cilantro, onion, and radish; ask for no lettuce, which should never come within an arms length of a taco, ever.
When I asked the cook what the secret to a good al pastor was, he shook his head saying, “It’s private. Only the gran mamas know.”
El Paisa Taqueria & Restaurant
324 Suydam St. | 718-417-4323
Tacos: 2.50 each
Taqueria El Paisa
298 Irving Ave and El Paisa Deli (another branch) at 266 Bleecker St. | 718-456-2095
Tacos: 2.00 each
PALespress October 31st, 2009 at 2:21 pm
Congrats, this is a real find. I biked right over to El Paisa on Irving and Myrtle and had better al pastor than at anywhere I’ve tried in Queens or Sunset Park so far. Thank you, Scarlett.
armstrong November 2nd, 2009 at 4:36 pm
Yeah! I’ve been a fan of this place for a couple of years now. Al pastor is definitely tasty. Their nachos (they’ll add fresh guacamole to any meat combination) are amazing. That guacamole is worth the trip in itself. Careful though, it’s got a lot of fresh jalapeño peppers in it unless you specify “mild.”
Plus, I find the wait for food at Tortillería los Hermanos to be really annoying anymore so it’s nice to have other options.
bkrezi412 November 2nd, 2009 at 10:01 pm
taqueria el paisa is much better than los hermanos hands down but if your’e also looking for some authentic latin food there’s a place on hancock st by wilson ave where they prepare everything from roast pork and ceviche to fish escovitch and pastelon(puerto rican lasagna)
n@ November 4th, 2009 at 11:14 pm
yes and yes, all yummy.
taco truck that sits outside the L/M stop on Myrtle also good for late night taco ventures.
Professional Alternative December 31st, 2009 at 4:01 pm
This place made me realize I actually do like some Mexican food — not all of it is poverty slop from Chihuahua. Poblano food is actually quite sophisticated and lovely, and El Paisa on Suydam is some of the best I have had. The al pastor is so juicy and sweet and tangy. For the life of me I can’t understand why people crowd into and relentlessly cover Los Hermanos in the media, maybe it’s “safe” and the media just copy each other. Even though they make the damn tortillas at Los H., they taste old and chewy in a bad way, while at El Paisa they’re light and soft, though still made locally. They also have table service, actually have an exhaustive menu, and are personable, things you can’t really say about Los H.
El Paisa rules!