For great Mexican food, head to Sunset Park. Here are some of the best places.

When I explored the Chinese restaurants along Eighth Avenue in Sunset Park last year, I couldn't help but notice all the Mexican restaurants lining nearby Fifth Avenue. I made a mental note to return and explore the neighborhood's Mexican fare.

Recently, a friend introduced me to Lorena Kourousias, the executive director of Mixteca Organization Inc ., a Sunset Park-based community organization that provides free health and education programs to Mexican and other Latino immigrants. She moved to New York from Mexico City about 10 years ago and began working at Mixteca almost six years ago.

Mixteca often works with different restaurants in the area through its initiatives, so I knew Kourousias would have some insight into where I should eat in Sunset Park.

Some spice to kick things off

I met Kourousias at Jalapeño King on Fifth Avenue between 22nd and 23rd streets. The restaurant, which recently celebrated its 10th anniversary, sells a variety of Mexican favorites, such as tacos, tortas and tortillas that are made in-house daily.

Owner Irene Castillo moved to New York in 1992 from Puebla with her family "to work and succeed," she said.

Kourousias ordered some of her favorite dishes for us to try: the bistec torta (steak sandwich) and the picadita de carne (thick corn tortilla boats topped with spiced and sliced beef, then finished with cheese and crema).

Tortas are Mexican sandwiches made with a soft, sweet roll, such as a telera or bolillo, and filled with a variety of things, such as refried beans, mayonnaise, cheese, avocado, meat, lettuce and tomatoes.

The steak on the torta was pounded flat, breaded and fried, and the bread was lightly toasted and soft. The picaditas were accompanied by green and red salsas that I drizzled on top. They were slightly spicy, but the cheese and crema helped temper the heat.

Breakfast quesadillas for the win

We were already slightly full when we walked next door to another of Kourousias's favorite spots: Pablito's. It opened in 2015 and owner Elia Rodriguez greeted us with a large smile as we entered.

Pablito's is known for its chilaquiles (tortilla chips cooked in salsa and topped with various ingredients) and quesadillas, and we ordered "Ceci's quesadilla" and "Elia's quesadilla."

"Ceci's quesadilla" is named for Elia's daughter and comes replete with all the fillings Ceci likes: eggs, Oaxacan cheese and avocado. "Elia's quesadilla" was filled with eggs, fresh jalapeños and home fries.

Both are made using 12-inch homemade corn tortillas, which were the largest I'd ever seen.

A refreshing and tangy pit stop

We walked down Fourth Avenue to stop in Molkajete Restaurant Bar. It used to be a Peruvian restaurant.

Margarita Camacho worked in the front of house for about a year before she she got a phone call that her boss was closing the restaurant while she was on vacation in Mexico.

Camacho called her friend, chef Hugo Garcia, to reopen the restaurant with her in May 2023, but with a slight change. They'd continue to serve the Peruvian specialties (like lomo saltado and ceviche) that made the place known, but add some of their own Mexican favorites to the menu.

"Sometimes you have to fight for your idea and vision," said Garcia.

We got the shrimp aguachile, a dish from Mexico's northwestern Sinaloa state that consists of raw fish or shrimp cooked in a fragrant broth made of local chiles and lime juice.

While it comes with red onion and cucumber, Garcia also adds charred avocado, which imparts a mild smoke to the tangy dish.

Taco stop

From Molkajete, we took a 20-minute walk down Fourth Avenue to Tacos El Bronco, which gave us time to slightly digest our food before ordering a few tacos.

Mariano Tapia originally opened Tacos El Bronco as a taco truck, which has since expanded to a brick-and-mortar location on Fourth Avenue.

We got a variety of tacos: lengua (tongue), al pastor (roast pork with pineapple), chorizo (Mexican sausage), cabeza (veal head), and cueritos (pork skin), which all come on two small, corn tortillas with sides of lime, sliced cucumber, charred onion, and red and green salsas. Their green salsa has avocado in it, so it was a bit creamier than I was expecting.

I drizzled a squeeze of lime and each of the salsas over the tacos and made my way around the plate, taking a bite of each one and passing it on to Kourousias.

The tortillas were fantastic, but the flavor of the meats really take these tacos to the next level. The meats were tender and each had a distinct flavor.

The al pastor was my favorite, while Kourousias preferred the cabeza. I washed it down with a hibiscus agua fresca (a blended non-alcoholic drink of fruit, water, and sugar), which was refreshing, icy, and not too sweet.

Fresh tortillas

Feeling incredibly full, we left Tacos El Bronco and headed back toward Fifth Avenue to Tortilleria La Malinche between 42nd and 43rd streets, across from Sunset Park.

Kourousias explained that it's the only shop selling fresh tortillas in Sunset Park.

Jesus Delgado has made corn tortillas fresh between 6 and 7 a.m. every day for the past four years. The store goes through over a thousand pounds of masa daily.

I spotted a cooler by the herbs adorned with a handwritten sign that read, "tortillas calientes" (hot tortillas). A pack of around 15 goes for $2.

I bought a pack and we went outside, where I carefully opened the foil and pulled one out. It was hot and pliable, with a hint of saltiness. I couldn't wait to go home and make tacos or enchiladas with them.

A street food stop

On the corner by 43rd Street and Fifth Avenue was a woman selling elotes (grilled corn on the cob) and esquites (street corn salad) outside of New Sunset Deli.

Elote are typically slathered in mayonnaise and sprinkled with chile powder, chopped cilantro and cotija cheese before they're finished off with a squeeze of fresh lime juice.

We got the esquites, which she ladled into a small container, then squeezed on lime juice. She topped it with a dollop of mayonnaise, a sprinkle of cotija cheese, and a large spoonful of chile powder before handing it to me.

The resulting bite was warm, creamy, slightly spicy, and vibrant from the lime. We walked down the street to our next stop as I continued taking bites.

Something sweet to snack on

Bakeries are incredibly popular in Mexico, where they're known as panaderias. It's no wonder that Sunset Park has so many of them. We popped into Mi Mexico Pequeno Panaderia, located on Fifth Avenue between 45th and 46th streets, to browse its selection of pan dulce, or sweet bread.

Walking in, I spied numerous trays of conchas, which means "shell" in English, named for their seashell-like appearance, as well as pan de muerto, a sweet white bread.

Pan de muerto are made in the weeks leading up to the Day of the Dead, celebrated Nov. 1-2. The bread is said to honor deceased loved ones. They're typically eaten at breakfast with coffee, or in the evenings with warm milk.

The concha was similar to brioche dough — sweet, with a soft interior. Its exterior was crunchy and lined with sugar. I wished I had a glass of warm milk to wash it down with.

A sweet and spicy end to the day

Two blocks down Fifth Avenue between 47th and 48th streets is Nieves Tia Mimi, which has been around since 1997 and specializes in nieves, or sorbets. We ordered the mangonada (or chamoyada), a sweet and spicy mango shaved ice drink topped with chamoy, chili powder, and chunks of fruit.

Chamoy is a sweet, spicy and salty condiment made from dried chiles, fruit, and lime juice. Although we ordered the small version, we were shocked by how large it was when it arrived.

We picked off and ate pieces of fruit, making our way to the mango shaved ice at the bottom. It was light and refreshing, and the perfect ending to a day filled with tacos, tortas, and tortillas.