The Mexican patio of Los Olivos has a family history that goes back more than a century. Named for the olive trees that thrived in the area a long time ago, Los Olivos has stood the test of time since it opened its doors as a restaurant in the 1940s and remains the last surviving business of remodeling the Scottsdale neighborhood in the 1970s. This place in the old town of Scottsdale is a kind of time capsule where the history and stories that have developed over the years here have been carefully preserved. From the restaurant's iconic blue room to the artworks and intricate details around every corner, Los Olivos delights all the senses, especially taste.
The handmade sauce from Los Olivos takes hold of the palate and awakens a feverish appetite for what's to come: hot fajitas, charcoal tacos, enchiladas with salsa and full plates, specifically. The Chihuahua-style taco bar has expanded. And more tacos is always good. This family-owned Mexican restaurant has a casual atmosphere.
It's the kind of place where you order at the counter, you can't miss the order sign here. Also unmissable are the Chiwas' Barbacoa and Asada Tacos tacos. And if you still have room for more after cleaning your plates, get back in line and order the Tres Leches or look for one of those traditional Chihuahuan dessert cones filled with sticky candies. One of the last restaurants to open its doors along Gran Avenida, Testal Mexican Kitchen is a kind of homage to the culture and cuisine of the state of Chihuahua, in northern Mexico.
Testal's simple menu familiarizes you with the simple basic dishes of Chihuahua, namely, perfectly prepared burritos with abundant poblanos, pork and potatoes, among other savory ingredients. And what's a meal without beer? Testal offers a short selection of unique homemade fresh waters, including a roasted corn drink and an appetizer with chia and lime, which can keep you satiated. But charcoal tacos? Even greater?. Cooked on fire, Taco Boys' flame-drenched display of tacos, vampires, burritos and quesadillas is nothing short of impressive.
The varieties range from leftover dishes such as roasted meat, chicken, shepherd and barbecue to tripe and head. And you can garnish your order at the fully stocked salsa bar. This fast-food and casual taco spot has two locations in Valley. The last one, Taco Boys Tap Room, is just a few steps from the ASU campus.
Downtown Mesa recently welcomed a new place to eat, Espiritu. A product of the culinary sages who blessed us with bacanora and tacos chiwas, Espiritu is a little sexier, a little naughtier and much drunker than his culinary cousins. Bottles over selected agave bottles satiate the backlit bar. And a wise variety of Mexican seafood dishes, think ceviches and aguachiles, pairs perfectly with Espiritu's creative batch cocktails.
It's always a day at the beach at this stalwart 16th Street, Phoenix's favorite Mexican seafood restaurant, painted in bold colors. Three generations of the Corral family have worked to make the restaurant a favorite of Mexican food in Phoenix since they left their native Mexico in 1919. Gallo Blanco, in Mexican slang meaning “white man”, is an appropriate name both for chef Doug Robson, who grew up near Mexico City, and for his Mexican-influenced restaurant, located in a light-filled building from the 1920s in the Garfield neighborhood. Mexican cuisine in the United States is a gastronomic genre that generates a lot of opinions and shows many interpretations and variety.
Barrio Café, not to be confused with the chain called Barrio Queen, is a charming space in downtown Phoenix, on 16th Street, that also has an impressive collection of fine equilas and other agave liquors. When chef Silvana Salcido Esparza (James Beard nominee and semifinalist many times) opened this art-filled restaurant with white tablecloths in 2002, she rejected the usual clichés in Mexican restaurants to illustrate how sophisticated Mexican cuisine can be, mashing guacamole with grenades next to the table and putting baskets of bread and butter instead of the necessary French fries and sauce. Named after the olive trees that Scottsdale's founder, Winfield Scott, once planted, this evocative old school Mexican restaurant, owned by the Corral family for 74 years and counting, was saved from the wrecking ball by Barry Goldwater's secretary, who considered it a Scottsdale landmark, and he was right. Burritos, nachos, Mexican sausages wrapped in bacon, flutes and tostadas, tacos, beer and desserts such as homemade flan complement Tortas Paquime's incomparable offer of sandwiches.
For more delicious food of all kinds and even more from the best local restaurants in Phoenix, check out my Local Food Guide: & Fun in The Valley. Hopefully the words of this Texas girl have convinced you about the best Mexican restaurants in Phoenix. The good news is that the region's reputation as a Mexican gastronomic destination has increased considerably in recent years, thanks to a series of regional restaurants, some luxurious and others informal, many of them family-run, showcasing the rich diversity of Mexican cuisines. Barrio Café by chef Silvana Salcido Esparza is a masterclass on the redesigned art and tradition of Mexican cuisine.
Chef René Andrade, originally from Sonora and who named the restaurant after the agave liquor grown in that Mexican state, serves dazzling Sonoran comfort food in the wood-fired oven on Grand Avenue, in downtown Phoenix. Don't let the overwhelming behavior of this renowned Mexican gastronomic institution stop you from experiencing the nirvana represented by Carolina's iconic cheese-covered combo plates. From sophisticated versions of Mexican classics to delicious street tacos that are careless, easy to dip and delicious, these Mexican places are some of the best restaurants in Phoenix. .
